Computer mounted on front of robot

Lenovo S10e laptop computer mounted in recess on front of robot.

The robots computer has been mounted on the front of the chest where it can be easily accessed. This modification has been impossible until recently when the lid-closed magnet was removed from the right hinge so that the screen could be closed while the laptop remained on. Mounting the laptop this way also allows the cooling fan to face the outside of the robot so that overheating will not be a problem like it would if the laptop was concealed inside of the plywood skeleton. The ease-of-access that this new location provides is profound since now the laptop can be removed with the pulling of a set of pins rather than having to disassemble a large section or pull aside a cluster of cables and connectors.

Hydrogen and Oxygen from Water to Power Fuel Cell

This is how to separate the Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen (O) atoms that are bonded together in water (H2O). The process is surprisingly simple. To do this you will need: Salt, Water, 1 large jar, a 12 volt battery, a cup to hold water, 2 lengths of copper wire (about 12 inches each), and optionally two pencils (you can decide what you need for tools).

The materials that you use are really not important. You could probably pull this off on a desert island. All you really need is water and electricity.
Start by filling your container with about one quart of water. Mix enough salt with the water to make a saturated solution. Stir constantly until no more salt will dissolve. The salt is added so that the solution is more conductive. By adding salt you change the distance between the molecules of water and make it easier for them to conduct electricity. This step is necessary because the conductivity of pure water is extremely low.

Connect one twelve inch length of copper wire to each terminal of the battery. Make sure that exposed copper does not touch any exposed copper on the opposite copper lead or they will short out the battery (this causes a spark and produces heat that, if left for to long, may cause irreversible damage to the battery)

Optionally if you remove the graphite rods from the inside of two pencils by scraping the wood away with a knife and then connect the graphite to the end of each copper lead, the water will not become discolored by the metal during the process of breaking molecular bonds.

Turn the funnels upside down in the large jar and secure them over each copper lead that is in the water so that the wide end of the funnel is partially submerged. This will channel the gaseous forms of hydrogen and oxygen into separate locations. If you wanted you could put a rubber hose over the smaller ends of each funnel and send the gas to a separate container or something else.

Tip. If you want to channel a particular gas through a tube and you want to make sure that it does not become contaminated by other gases that are already in the tube you will want to fill the tube, funnel, storage container and anything else the gas will pass through with water first. This way, as the gas fills the destined container, it will displace the liquid. This also act as a helpful indicator to see when the container is full.

Observe as bubbles start to form on the wires under each funnel. Also note that as the bubbles continue to form and float to the top, they will be channeled through your tube and displace the water in the end-container.

Hydrogen generation occurs under the tube that has the wire connected to the negative (-) pole of the battery.

Oxygen generation occurs under the tube that has a wire connected to the positive (+) side of the battery.

Given enough time to form a measurable amount of gas, you will note that there is twice the amount of hydrogen generated than oxygen. This is because there are two atoms of hydrogen for every atom of oxygen in water hence the "2" in H2O.

How to fix NXT Click of Death

Symptoms: NXT screen is blank, computer may or may not recognize the brick, and a very quiet clicking noise is audible coming from the brick. I have also witnessed an NXT brick that after the clicking was resolved was not being detected correctly by the computer. These steps also worked for that.

Robot builders who use the LEGO NXT Programmable Brick may run into a error where the NXT has a blank screen and makes quiet clicking sounds repeatedly. This problem may occur due to an error while updating the NXT's firmware. Some solutions that have been mentioned that may work are:

• Unplug the USB cable from the NXT and the computer.
• Make sure that any external Bluetooth dongles have been removed from the computer.
• Restart the NXT software that you are using.
• Restart your computer.
• Remove the batteries for a few seconds and then put them back in.
• Press the hidden reset button in the hole underneath the USB port for 7 seconds.
• Let the NXT stay untouched somewhere over night with the batteries in.
• While the NXT is clicking connect it to the computer via USB port. It is better to connect it to a primary port (one that is directly connected to the computer) and not one that is on a monitor or keyboard because those USB ports are using dividers that have to handle data being sent from a USB port designed to connect to only a single device rather than many. If the NXT is not connected through a primary USB port there may be errors.
• Attempt to re-download the firmware to the NXT brick.
• Call LEGO support and they will send you a new one probably for free.

If the above options do not work or are not an option as they were for me because I have long ago voided the NXT warranty you can also try the following steps which worked to fix my NXT.

NOTE: If you are using Windows you can go to the device manager and check to see if the NXT shows up in "Firmware Update Mode" (if not, you may need to uninstall and then reinstall the software and drivers). It may also be a good idea to make sure that you have all of the proper drivers installed. LEGO provides a free NXT driver that you can download from their website.

1. Know what software you use to program the brick; EX: RobotC, Labview, Robolab, LEGO Mindstorms NXT software etc. Developers originally based Robolab and LEGO Mindstorms NXT software off of Labview so all those programs use the same firmware on the NXT brick. Other software like RobotC uses different firmware. The NXT brick automatically makes the clicking sound when it is in firmware update mode and is waiting for an update. Because for some reason the NXT looses the connection to the computer that told it to enter update mode the NXT will remain in that state (clicking).
2. Find/download a copy of programming software that used NXT firmware other than the one that you are currently using.
3. After installing the new software you will need to use it to update the NXT's firmware. Doing this will be somewhat different for whatever software you are using so if you have any problems figuring it out simply search online for instructions or check the software's documentation under the help menu.

Your NXT should now work and be functioning normally! Also one of the best things about resolving your issue this way is that modifying the firmware does not delete any of the programs that you have saved on the NXT brick so you may be able to recover everything!

Removing Lenovo Ideapad S10e lid switch

The Lenovo Ideapad S10e is a compact and highly efficient netbook-computer. For the Salvius robot this computer has been installed with a copy of Ubuntu Server Edition 11.10 and acts as a file server and communication hub between the robot and other devices.

The Lenovo has a single flaw at this point that makes it less useful for robotics. As with most laptops the lid switch puts the computer into hibernation when the lid is closed. When using the laptop for robotics it would be better if the lid could be closed and the computer would remain on. The Windows operating System has options to control what happens when the computer lid closes but Ubuntu Server does not. The best thing to do in this case is to physically remove the lid switch which for the Lenovo S10e is surprisingly easy.

The Lenovo S10e's lid switch is composed of a small magnet located in the right hinge of the screen and a reed switch near the motherboard. To prevent the computer from going into sleep mode when the lid is closed all we have to do is remove the magnet.

Begin by unplugging the computer's power cord and then remove the battery pack:

On the sides of the screen there are four rubber tabs stuck over screws. Two of the tabs are round and two are half-round. Remove the rubber tabs with a small flat-blade screw driver. Underneath each tab is a small Philips screw which you must also remove.

Next Pull off the plastic LCD bezel; it should come off somewhat easily if a thin flat blade screw driver is slid behind it while being careful not to damage the screen.

Once removed the lock cap should be able to be popped off the side. The cap is a half-round black piece of plastic with a silver plastic disk on one end. Inside there is a small rectangular magnet.

Use a pair of needle nose pliers to break the magnet away from the cap and then remove any remaining shards of plastic.

Restore the parts you removed in the same order as you took them off. Make sure to discard the magnet or put it somewhere where you can find it if you decide you want to put it back in again.

(laptop hinge with the lock cover removed.)

Now the lid of the computer can be closed while the computer remains on.

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Alternate instructions at http://support.lenovo.com.