Remote Controller and WebCam for Lego Mindstorm RCX

CSC714 Real-Time Computer Systems

Group 4 Project Progress(Final Report)

(Link to Report 1)(Link to Report 2) (Link to Report 3)

Latest Work:

We successfully connected a Logitech QuickCam Pro 3000 to Apple Macintosh PowerMac and iBook.

After installed QuickCam Pro driver for Mac OS X from http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/, I downloaded the QuickTime for Java SDK from http://developer.apple.com/sdk/index.html#QTJava. I changed SGCapture2Disk example so that that the SGCapture application will send captured JPEG data via UDP to the Rcx Remote Controller Java Application while storing the data to the disk as a QuickTime movie at the same time. Please see the following screen shot.
Note: I didn't try to install the QT for Java on Windows machine. It may work.
Then I started the Java Remote Controller application and start the SGCapture2Disk
recording so that the SGCapture2Disk Java application will send the data via UDP to the remote controller. We successfully received the compressed JPEG data and display correctly at 5 frame/second at 160x120 resolution. Please see the following screen shot.

Issues solved previously(chronically):

Haihui&Xuejun: Downloaded and Installed LNPD under Linux 2.4.18
We downloaded and compiled LNPD code successfully. Though initially we had some difficulties to run the LNPD due to the limitation of access priviledges because LNPD will try to change some UART settings.
Haihui: Found and fixed a bug in LNPD:
It seems that LNPD can not configure 16550A UART chip correctly. In the original code, it recommends executing "setserial /dev/ttyS0 uart 16450" on the machine with 16550A UART chip. So later when LNPD initializes the TTY connection with RCX, it will treat 16550A chip as 16450 chip. It does NOT work with machines in the OS lab which have 16550A UART chips inside. It seems that we can skip this step in the LNPD code.

Haihui: changed project webpages with frames.
Now the project webpage seems more organized.

Haihui&Xuejun: Discussed the communication packet protocol
We discussed the control protocol between RCX and PC.

Xuejun: completed the design of legOS program for receiving control commands and sending current rover status
Xuejun: implemented the modules for motor control, command receiving and tested motor control module
Haihui &Xuejun: Completed the design of control communication protocol
Haihui: Implemented a prototype Java Swing GUI for the Remote Controller
This prototype JAVA Swing GUI program will let you specify the IP address and port number of the host which runs the LNPD and connect to it via TCP/IP.

Haihui: Improved the Java GUI and added more functionalities and graphics for animation.

The latest GUI will let you click on the buttoms or use 4 arrow keys to control the Lego Rover after you connect to the host running LNPD daemon..

Xuejun: Improved the reactor program running inside RCX.
Haihui & Xuejun: Get the Java GUI and Lego program work together seamlessly via LNPD and LNP addressing mode.

Now with the Java GUI application, we can control the RCX remotely very well on any machine and any OS platform.