Page 86 - Build a Remote Controlled Robot

CHAPTER
REMOTE CONTROL FOUR

SYSTEM

ireless control has always seemed to fascinate people,
Wand Questor’s remote control system is the heart of his
appeal. While the technical aspects of remote control may be
a little hard for the novice to grasp, Questor’s remote control
system is rather simple in construction. Before I go into detail
on how the system is comprised, a brief explanation of remote
control is in order.
A remote control system consists of three basic components.
The first is the transmitter or “encoder.” Moving controls on the
transmitter causes it to send or encode signals to the second
part of the remote control system, the receiver, or decoder. The
receiver gets the signals from the transmitter and then decodes
them. Depending on what signal the receiver decoded, it will
activate a servo, the third part of the system. Servos are the
mechanical part of a remote control system. A wheel or some-
times bar on the servo will turn in proportion with the move-
ment of the transmitter’s control. This movement can then be
used to directly control the function of a robot, or in Questor’s
case to trip switches that control his movements.
Questor’s remote control system is a standard off-the-shelf
type like that pictured in Fig. 4-1. Notice the three main parts
of the system. The robot requires a system with a minimum of
two channels. A two-channel system has two servos; each of
the servos is used to control one of the robot’s motorized
wheels. The system used in my version of Questor has three
channels; the third channel is used to trip two switches that
can turn other items on the robot on or off.

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