Subject:
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Re: Design wanted: Touch sensor for passing trains
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.robotics
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Date:
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Wed, 29 Dec 1999 18:01:15 GMT
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Original-From:
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Pete Sevcik <sevcik@flash.netANTISPAM>
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Viewed:
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839 times
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I have used a magnetic reed switch to detect trains.
Glue a small magnet to a lego piece, and mount on the train. Cut a Lego wire in
half, and solder a reed switch to the cut end.
This detects the train with precision, and is not affected by shadows. Also
costs a lot less.
- pete.
Dave Baum wrote:
> FWIW
>
> I haven't tried this yet myself, but its very typical to use light sensors
> for this sort of thing in HO scale model railroading. There are a lot of
> advantages to "contactless" detection. On the down side, you need to
> minimize interference from ambient light, etc.
>
> Usually for HO scale stuff the IR LED and IR detector are separate pieces
> (one on each side of the track). This makes for a nice point-to-point
> beam that gets interrupted by a passing car.
>
> Some find this ugly, so another approach is to bury a passive light sensor
> under the track pointing upwards. A passing train will cause a shadow
> over the sensor.
>
> Dave Baum
>
> In article <FnHCMC.KzF@lugnet.com>, "Carl M. Kadie" <carlk@msn.com> wrote:
>
> > I'm using Mindstorms to control Lego trains.
> >
> > Does anyone have a design for using a touch sensor to detect a train
> > passing?
> >
> > My intuition is that the touch sensor could be more reliable than the light
> > sensor (plus I have two touch sensors and only one light sensor).
> >
> > Thanks much for any help,
> >
> > Carl Kadie
>
> --
> reply to: dbaum at enteract dot com
--
Pete Sevcik sevcik@flash.net
Techno-stuff Robotics
http://www.flash.net/~sevcik/
Robotics for FUN !
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | RE: Design wanted: Touch sensor for passing trains
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| What about hiding the reed switch in a small electrical brick (like a lighting brick) or a motor casing and hiding the magnet inside another brick? The pair could be a good replacement for the touch switch in imprecise applications like bumpers. -- (...) (25 years ago, 29-Dec-99, to lugnet.robotics)
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