Datasheet

Due to its complexity, it was decided to separate the Sensor&Charger Board into three individual
boards: Sensor&Management, Power Switch and Charger Boards.
The Sensor&Management Board controller will be responsible for all the communications, control
signals and sensor acquisitions. The Power Switch Board is controlled by the Sensor&Management
Board controller allowing 5 auxiliary batteries (that can be used to power robot computers or devices)
to be activated, deactivated or put on charge. The Charger Board will be responsible for the charge of
each individual battery.
4.2.1. Sensor&Management Board
The Sensor&Management Controller, depicted in Figure 9, uses a PIC18F6527 microcontroller to
control and manage all the communication between the high-level robot Navigation Computer and to
control all the actuators and sensors devices connected to the Sensor&Management Board.
The Sensor&Management Board is responsible for managing all of the power system by:
• Measuring the energy level in each battery;
• Connecting/disconnecting the power of the devices;
• Managing the connection to the Charge Docking station;
• Controlling the charge of each battery.
It is also responsible for connecting a set of sensors and actuators that will be used in the project.
Several low-level fault diagnostics have been implemented to detect problems in the normal work of
each component and communication. The Sensor&Management Controller will analyse the
information gathered from the sensors and will run low-level control loops that will check for critical
changes in the environment or system that can affect the robot operation.
The Controller has one dedicated channel to communicate with the Motor Controller, allowing it to
send direct (and fast) commands to the motors and also to get information from them.
4.2.2. Power Switch Board
The Power Switch Board, depicted in Figure 10, has the necessary hardware to activate, deactivate or
put in charge mode up to 5 batteries that can be used to power different components of the robot. It is
possible to connect several batteries in parallel to power equipment that demands more energy. It has
also the ability to charge each battery independently.
FROG – FP7 STREP nr. 288235
Deliverable: D1.4 – Platform User and Developer Manual 19
Figure 9: developed Sensor&Management Board