The Hyperdrive

Control Electronics

Detail Design Work by Clay Gimenez / See my team's full design

Goal

My detail design focus was on the electrical system to drive the product. First I would collaborate with Chacha to develop the overall system and code architecture to satisfy the requirements of the game design.

Then I developed a more detailed electrical design and selected needed components. My primary goal was to develop a fast and efficient prototype to construct to validate the game and mechanical design, as the control of the final 5Wits product would be handled by a central computer for the adventure.


Overall Product

This image shows our overall product for reference. Please see our team page for more details.


System Architecture

The heart of the system is the microcontroller, which governs all other elements. Use of a microcontroller allows us flexibility to vary our game design or control of mechanical systems quickly and easily as needed in later development work. It also effectively simulates the type of control system that would be used in the final product.

This processor first controls the lighting of the central column of the hyperdrive, both the large lighting rings or levels that indicate the completion of the challenge, or the number of puzzle cylinders inserted and locked successfully.

Second, the processor controls the systems of each puzzle cylinder individually. It controls actuators for the mechanical subsystems that enable/disable the ability to insert and lock the cylinder, that trigger the cylinder's ejection for reset, and monitors the contact sensor to determine when the cylinder is inserted and locked.

Each cylinder has two different "solved" states. Which state is the correct solution for each instance is determined by a switch controlled by the processor. Simple contact points in the cylinder complete an electrical circuit when the cylinder elements are in the correct positions. By selecting which state is powered, we select which contact points must be aligned. When each pair of elements are aligned, the appropriate lights along the elements light up. When all pairs of elements are aligned, the puzzle is solved, signaling the microcontroller to trigger the mechanical systems.


Software Architecture

The code outline below lays out the core required behaviors of the microcontroller. 


MICROCONTROLLER MAIN LOOP OUTLINE

//For a given cylinder..
Trigger cylinder solution switch ->
  Change state of sensor set selection switch

Trigger reset ->
  Enable the lock release
  Trigger cylinder solution switch


//For the overall system...
Every light line cycle time -> 
  Determine the next light line color
  Switch the current color to the next color
  Disallow locking of the current color's cylinder
  Allow locking of the next color's cylinder

For each successfully locked cylinder ->
  Turn on a light ring

When all cylinders are locked ->
  Perform reward behavior
  Reset all cylinders

Detailed Electronics Design

The circuit diagram shown here develops the system block diagram into a final electrical architecture. An Arduino Micro controls the system. It communicates with a multichannel LED Driver IC that simplifies the control of the main column lighting with RGB LED strips. It controls the electromechanical actuators with PWM outputs and monitors the cylinder lock sensor with a digital input. A digital output controls a single pole-double throw switch to select the active "solved" state. OR gates simplify the element lighting, allowing a single set of lights to be used for all solutions. If an element of the active, powered solution is solved, the OR gate will trigger a MOSFET transitor to safely power the corresponding lights. If the full puzzle is solved, the AND gate will signal the microcontroller.


Components

The core components selected for the system are:

© Clay Gimenez 2014 for 2.744