How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

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wibblywobbly
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by wibblywobbly »

Unfortunately I can't help with the servo control, the best place to get help might be the Open Panzer Forum. Another solution might be to use an Arduino 2560, and the full TCB firmware, as this supports more functionality, eg gun traverse?
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by sateng »

wibblywobbly wrote:Unfortunately I can't help with the servo control, the best place to get help might be the Open Panzer Forum. Another solution might be to use an Arduino 2560, and the full TCB firmware, as this supports more functionality, eg gun traverse?
Thank you very much!
I posted a feature request on github.

But the bigger controller could be the way to go as I plan to put all this stuff into a bunker.
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by LukeZ »

As one of my coworkers is fond of saying, "with infinite time and resources anything is possible" but honestly I do think this feature request falls outside the scope of this project.

The sketch as written already has provisions for 3 extra servos (in addition to the recoil servo), but they are essentially vestigial appendages because what is not provided is a way to control them. This is because the device is basically conceptualized as standalone and "autonomous."

To control the servo with a radio through the Arduino we now need to add a bunch of RC radio code, and map that to the servo functions. Since we are using a different processor on this project (ATmega328) than we are on the TCB (ATmega2560) the code from the TCB is not a direct copy/paste and processor resources are more limited.

Also, if you are going to use an RC receiver why not just connect the servo directly to the receiver? No code, no effort, but same result. You say you want to slow the servo's speed, but almost all computer radios today have built in functions to limit servo speed, my 15 year old 72MHz JR radio can do that, and for sure all open source radio softwares today such as OpenTX, Er9x, have that feature. Or you can even buy a cheap regulator that plugs in between the receiver and the servo and limits speed (for example see this one from Hobby King). Or you can just move your thumb more slowly! :)

Wibbly is right, if we add too much to this project we have basically just recreated the wheel when we could have used a TCB from the beginning. I wouldn't recommend buying an Arduino Mega because the price for one of those is nearly the same as the price for a TCB and you will have a lot more headache and it will do a lot less. Right now the TCB is on sale at HK for ~$45 USD, and it will do pretty much anything you could want an RC bunker to do.
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by sateng »

Your suggestions seem to be easier than reprogramming
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by Rad_Schuhart »

sateng wrote:This is a very cool setup!
I rebuilt it myself as described - works fantastically.

What I plan to do is control a bunker with an artillery gun with a separate rc controller / receiver.

Unfortunately I have no advanced skills in programming an Arduino.
I tried to add a function for an additional servo (to pan an artillery gun by an RC) but I fail all time.
What I did is have a look at the original project from openpanzer.org and rebuilt the TurretElevation routines - still with no luck.
The reason I want to send the PWM signal through the Arduino is to set the servo speed so the gun can pan slowly and realistically.

But, I did manage to read the signal from the receiver to fire the gun 8)

Any suggestions on this?
Just plug your servos into the receiver and program your radio to move them more realisticly. You even can program the radio to have a realistic recoil (it means, to move the barrel back very fast, and to move it to its original position slowly)

Kevin at rc tanks australia posted today a video about it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yJhXmL ... eoJ5fiND-6
My RC tanks website, loads of free info for everybody:
https://radindustries.wordpress.com/
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by wibblywobbly »

The 328 version has been sat in an artillery gun for months, all I do is charge the battery, take the diorama to a meet, and switch it on. It sits there for six hours happily firing a shot at any tank that runs over the microswitch. I went down the switch route rather than a PIR as it makes it more random, eg the gun only fires when the tracks on a tank hit the hidden landmine which is mounted under a sheet of lumpy vinyl flooring.

I should really invest in an Adafruit FX board as my current bodge is two Arduino's, the second one is hooked up to a sound card SIM, amp, etc, but due to the delay in activating the sound the muzzle flash and gun sound are out of synch. It does the job though.
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by sateng »

Does anyone know how to implement the IR Code for Taigen V2 electronics?

I tried - but none of the given Profiles work for the V2...
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by wibblywobbly »

You might want to try the Open Panzer forum as Luke is more likely to see your problem there.
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by LukeZ »

Good question. I assumed Taigen kept the same IR with their new boards, but perhaps that is not the case. I will need to do some testing on this end, I think I have a V2 board on hand. I will let you know what I find out.

Do you have any other boards (Tamiya, Taigen V1, HengLong)? If so it would be worth testing with those which we know already work, just to make sure there isn't a problem with your wiring or setup.
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Re: How to build a working IR Artillery Gun

Post by sateng »

Unfortunately I do not have older boards as this was my first tank.
What I already found out - the V2 board reacts to the power on command for an LG TV which I tested with a universal remote

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