{"id":5179,"date":"2018-12-12T15:20:45","date_gmt":"2018-12-12T20:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dronebotworkshop.com\/?p=5179"},"modified":"2023-04-12T12:28:17","modified_gmt":"2023-04-12T16:28:17","slug":"elegoo-smart-robot-car-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dronebotworkshop.com\/elegoo-smart-robot-car-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Elegoo Smart Robot Car Part 2 – Bluetooth and IR Remote Control"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Download \"Parts<\/a> \"View<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the second of three articles and videos on construction and using the Elegoo Smart Robot Car V3 kit. If you missed the first installment you can check it out here<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Introduction<\/span><\/h2>\n

The Elegoo Smart Robot Car Kit is an attractively priced Arduino-based robot car with features like Bluetooth and Infrared Remote control, Line Following and Collision Avoidance. In the first article and video, I put the car together and used a sketch to test out the motors. Today we will look at the Bluetooth and Infrared remote control functions.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Keep in mind that what is shown here applies to other Arduino-based robot car designs, you can use the sketches and app described in this article even if you don\u2019t own the Elegoo car.<\/span><\/p>\n

The kit comes packaged with an Infrared remote control, this is a pretty standard device and is similar to the one I used in my article about using IR remote controls. For Bluetooth, Elegoo has made available an app for both Android and IOS devices that you can use as a remote control.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Elegoo<\/p>\n

On the Arduino side, Elegoo has provided a few sample sketches to get you started with both remote modes. \u00a0You can customize them to your liking or use them \u201cas-is\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

So let’s get started with the Bluetooth remote control.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bluetooth Remote Control<\/span><\/h2>\n

Bluetooth devices are everywhere, from keyboards to headphones they make it possible to connect external peripherals to our computers, tablets, and phones with very little effort.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the Elegoo Smart Robot Car Bluetooth can be used as a remote control, in conjunction with a custom app that you can run on your phone or tablet.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Bluetooth<\/p>\n

Like all of the car features, this is highly programmable, allowing you to customize the remote any way you like. So if you ad some external peripherals like headlights or a horn to your car you can use the Bluetooth app to control it.<\/span><\/p>\n

How Bluetooth Works<\/span><\/h2>\n

Bluetooth<\/a> is a short-range wireless technology for transmitting and receiving data. It operates in the ISM (Industry, Scientific, and Medical) band from 2.400 to 2.485 GHz. <\/span><\/p>\n

Bluetooth is intended to be used in <\/span>PAN <\/span><\/i>or Personal Area Networks and is typically limited to a maximum range of 100 meters (about 330 feet). Not all Bluetooth devices can achieve this range, some can only operate to a maximum of 10 meters. As with all radio communications the range can be affected by the environment it is used in.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bluetooth was originally developed by engineers at Ericsson Mobile in Sweden in 1989. Nils Rydbeck, the Chief Technology Officer at Ericsson, named the standard Bluetooth after the tenth-century king Harald Bluetooth. \u00a0The king had united a number of Danish tribes, just like modern devices from different manufacturers are united using Bluetooth.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bluetooth Module<\/span><\/h3>\n

The Elegoo Smart Robot Car has a Bluetooth Module mounted on the Arduino shield. The module is a generic version of the popular HC-05 or HC-08 modules.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bluetooth<\/p>\n

These modules have a working voltage of 3.3 volts but are 5-volt logic tolerant. They can operate at speeds of up to 115,200 baud. In the sketches we will look at the modules are used at 9600 baud.<\/span><\/p>\n

The modules also support the <\/span>AT Command Set<\/span><\/a>, a standard set of commands that begin with the text string \u201cAT\u201d. This command set has been around for decades and was first used on computer modems in the 1980s.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the Elegoo Smart Robot Car the Bluetooth module is connected to the RX (receive) and TX (transmit) pins on the Arduino, which are also digital I\/O pins 0 and 1. \u00a0These are the same connections used by the USB port on the Arduino.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Bluetooth<\/p>\n

The result is that you cannot use both the Bluetooth module and the USB port simultaneously. This presents a bit of a problem when you want to upload sketches to the car. <\/span><\/p>\n

The solution is to simply remove the module from the car before you upload sketches. This is quite easy to do as the module just plugs into the Arduino shield. I would suggest that you turn off all of the power (including power from the USB connector itself) before removing or inserting the module.<\/span><\/p>\n

Elegoo Bluetooth App<\/span><\/h2>\n

In order to use the Bluetooth module on the Elegoo Smart Robot Car, you will need a Bluetooth app to control it. \u00a0There are a number of Bluetooth apps made for controlling modules like the HC08. If you wish you can use any one of these to control the car.<\/span><\/p>\n

Elegoo has provided their own app which you can install on your phone or tablet. It is available for both Android and Apple IOS platforms.<\/span><\/p>\n

A copy of the Android app is provided as an APK file on the CD that is included with the car, it also is in the download from the Elegoo site. You may also <\/span>get the app on the Google Play Store<\/span><\/a>, for most people this is an easier method of installing it.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you have an Apple device you can get the app by searching the App Store for \u201cELEGOO BLE Tool\u201d on your iPhone or iPad.<\/span><\/p>\n

Connecting the app and the car<\/span><\/h3>\n

After you install the app and enable Bluetooth you will need to set it up to be used with your robot car. \u00a0I\u2019ll describe how I set it up on an Android tablet but I\u2019m sure that the procedure is nearly identical on an IOS device (I don\u2019t own an iPhone or iPad so I couldn\u2019t test it).<\/span><\/p>\n

The first thing to do is to start the app. If your devices Bluetooth is not turned on you\u2019ll be prompted to do that. \u00a0Make sure that you have powered up the Smart Robot Car as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the app has started you will see a link that says <\/span>Connection<\/span><\/i>. Touch it and you should get a list of the Bluetooth devices that you are paired with, as well as other devices within range of your tablet or phone.<\/span><\/p>\n

Look for the device named <\/span>HC-08<\/span><\/i>. Select it and it should move to the top of the screen. Now exit the connection screen. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"Elegoo<\/p>\n

If all is working properly you should see HC-08 at the top of the screen.<\/span><\/p>\n

The app has three modes – Terminal, Chat, and Keyboard. We will be using it in <\/span>Keyboard<\/span><\/i> mode.<\/span><\/p>\n

Defining Keys<\/span><\/h3>\n

The <\/span>Keyboard<\/span><\/i> mode of the app has 12 square \u201cblocks\u201d on the screen, these \u201cblocks\u201d are what you will actually define as keys for your remote control. \u00a0You can define what character or characters are sent when you press the key. Then on the receiving side (on the robot car) you\u2019ll write a sketch to interpret these characters and act accordingly.<\/span><\/p>\n

You set up the keys by holding down the key you wish to define. A button editor box will pop up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Elegoo<\/p>\n

You need to type in the name that you want to be printed on the button, followed by the character that you will be sending to the robots Bluetooth adapter. \u00a0You can also set the background color of the button to something unique to distinguish it.<\/span><\/p>\n

You actually need to do it twice on each editor screen. I\u2019m really not sure why!<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are the buttons you will need to define, along with their characters:<\/span><\/p>\n