Exploded View of Garcia's Internal Hardware
| The Insides |
Exploded View of Garcia's Internal Hardware |
There is a lot of stuff inside a Garcia. Many connectors are available for customizing your robot.
Serial ports
Garcia has two TTL-level (0V to 5V) serial ports. The GP Serial port located on the left side of the main board provides a serial connection to the GP processor. It provides the main communication link with your robot. The white connector just under the GP Serial port is for an RF Modem module. If installed, this module provides a wireless serial connection to the GP processor. The Moto Serial port located on the front right side of the main board provides an auxillary serial port. It can be used to make a wired serial connection when the RF Modem module is installed. It can also be used to connect another serial device.
RF Program Button
The RF Program button located next to the wired end of the battery pack enables reprogramming of the optional RF Modem module.
EEPROM Lock
The EEPROM Lock header is located near the right axle. A jumper on this header prevents Garcia's memory from getting scribbled. Unless you're downloading new programs and settings, you'll want to keep a jumper on this header.
On older Beta units, the EEPROM lock header has 3 pins. Placing a shorting jumper across the middle and right pins enables write protection. Placing a shorting jumper across the middle and left pins disables write protection. In production units, the EEPROM lock header has 2 pins. Placing a shorting jumper across the two pins enables write protection. Removing the shorting jumper disables write protection.
I2C Bus Connectors
Garcia has two I2C BUS connectors. One is near the left rear IR sensor. The other is near the wired end of the battery pack. Each I2C connector has two rows and each row is identical. It is possible to connect four I2C devices without doing any extra wiring. The I2C pins are labeled as follows:
| Pin name | Function |
|---|---|
| GND | Common ground |
| RST | Bring low to reset both processors |
| PWR | Unregulated battery power |
| SCL | I2C clock line with 2.2K pull-up |
| Vcc | Regulated +5V power |
| SDA | I2C data line with 2.2K pull-up |
Servo Connectors
Garcia has headers for four servos near the right rear IR sensor. The bottom row of pins is ground. The middle row is servo power. The top row is servo signal. Near the servo header is a servo power connection. A separate servo power supply can be connected to the aux servo pwr pin. Placing a shorting jumper on the aux servo pwr and main servo pwr pins will power the servos from Garcia's battery pack.
Analog Inputs
Three spare analog inputs are available inside the robot. Two are located near the wired end of the battery pack. The GP A3 pin is analog input 3 of the GP processor. Connecting the Right Current Sense jumper makes it possible to measure the current in the right motor. The GP A4 pin is analog input 4 of the GP processor. Connecting the Left Current Sense jumper makes it possible to measure the current in the left motor.
The third analog input is located near the left axle. The Moto A4 pin is analog input 4 of the Moto processor. Connecting the RF Signal Strength jumper makes it possible to judge the signal quality of the optional RF Modem module.
Vcc and Ground pins located near the spare analog inputs make it easy to connect additional sensors that have a power, ground, and output connection.