Mecanum Robot Kit Issues

#1

Hi everybody,

I have a problem with the Mecanum Wheel Robot Kit.

I assembled and wired everything according to the manual.
The software Mecanum_Chassis.ino loads up to the Orion correctly.

I’m powering it, as recommended in the manual, with a 11V battery.

All indicators light up as supposed.
Everything fine so far…

Here’s when things become strange

But when I switch it on - nothing happens.
When I reset the board, the wheels act differently every time.
Sometimes all four of them move for a second.
Sometimes all four of them keep moving.
Sometimes the rear wheels move
Sometimes the front wheels move

Sometimes I can control 2 of 4 wheels with the included controller.

What I already tried: Switching the Port connections to the Encoders. Removing the USB plug and putting it back in

Can anyone help me? I have no clue what’s going on.

Best Regards

Dom

#2

Hi MrCurbsurfer,

You may check the battery for the Me Orion board and the battery for the High power encoder motor driver have a check.

Besides, the green LED on USB Host module is on or not?

#3

Thank you for the fast reply!

I exchanged the battery for a power supply with adjustable volt output and tried 9V - 12V.

Yes, the green LED on the Host module is on. As well as the green LED on the Controller.

Still the same. Do you have any idea what else could be the problem?

Best

Dom

#4

Hey Guys, Update:

to make sure that all the parts are supplied with power I used a multimeter an measured the Volts at
each part

Everything as it should be. Me Orion board gets enough power, the Encoders too.

Then a ran this simple code:

include "MeOrion.h"
include "SoftwareSerial.h"
include <Wire.h>

MeEncoderNew motor1(0x09, SLOT1);
MeEncoderNew motor2(0x09, SLOT2);

define PORT1_MOTOR1 11 //PWM Control Pin
define PORT1_MOTOR2 10
define PORT2_MOTOR1 3
define PORT2_MOTOR2 9

void setup() {

Serial.begin(9600);
motor1.begin();
motor2.begin();
motor1.setMode(1); //0:I2C_MODE;1:PWM_MODE;2:PWM_I2C_PWM;
motor2.setMode(1);
pinMode(PORT1_MOTOR1, OUTPUT);
pinMode(PORT1_MOTOR2, OUTPUT);
pinMode(PORT2_MOTOR1, OUTPUT);
pinMode(PORT2_MOTOR2, OUTPUT);

}

void loop() {

motor2.runSpeed(100);
motor1.runSpeed(100);

}

As expected, the wheels start moving, keep moving with the same speed.

#5

Hi MrCurbsurfer,

It looks like the program you use is not the default firmware of Mecanum from makeblock.Here is the link to download default firmware:https://github.com/Makeblock-official/Mecanum-Wheel-Robot-Kit

According to your program, keep moving with the same speed is the correct behavior.So it is working now?

#6

Hi, thanks for the advice.
I downloaded the default firmware from the link you posted, carefully re-wired the whole kit once again, strictly sticking
to the manual.

It’s still the same -_- The wheels are still doing random stuff. If I reset the board sometimes I get to control wheel 1 and 2 or wheel 3 and 4 but never both axes.

Could it be, that the Me USB Host is damaged?

#7

Hi MrCurbsurfer,

If the controller can control some of the wheels on the Mecanum, I think the USB host shouldn’t broken.
Have you checked the wiring order of motor if it is the same as the motor wiring order in the user manual.

You mentioned that you have measured the power for each port with the multimeter, have you measured each motor port on the motor driver?

Besides, do you power on Orion board first, and then power on the high power encoder motor driver when you start use the robot kit?
You may also check the battery for the remote controller have a check.

Once still the same after checked all above, is it possible for you to take a video which show the behavior on Mecanum.

#8

Hi there,

sorry for my late reply!
For whatever reason: it’s working now =)
At least most of the time…
Sometimes there’s one wheel that doesn’t run at all. But after hitting the Reset-Button on the Orion that problem is solved.

What I did:
I went through all the points that you suggested and re-asembled once again. I didn’t change anything and all of the points you mentioned were ok.

However, it’s running

Thanks for your support. Great customer service! I really appreciate it =)

#9

Hi MrCurbsurfer

Glad to hear that!
Thanks for your feedback.

Best Regards!

#10