Bluetooth and add ons

[Joe]

Maybe there are some differences between the devices mode settings.

The ESD200 defaults to mode 0 where the AT commands work. Setting to mode 3 disables the AT commands. Mode 0 can be recovered using the reset pin.

Hmm... OK, I think I see. You aren't talking about Bluetooth security modes, but rather the Parani-ESD "operation mode" which determines whether and how the ESD attempts to connect to other BT devices. You like mode 3 because in that mode, it awaits connection from other devices and is discoverable. Makes sense to me.

So I can stick this thing on a breadboard, connect it to my laptop via a serial/TTL level converter, and set it to mode 3 before installing it into the RBC. Or, I can install it into the RBC, and then download (via the serial cable) a little C program that sets it to mode 3 using the AT commands. Is that it?

One final question about the 3-pin header that comes with the RBX-BLTOOTHCOM. I don't have that and will have to fake it with a standard header. Is the RESET pin really just left floating? Seems like it should be tied to +V, otherwise random electrical noise could reset the bluetooth board. Unless it has an internal pull-up, I guess (but the manual doesn't say whether it does). Can you confirm that it really does work to simply snip that pin off the header?

Thanks,
- Joe

[i-Bot]

Hi Joe,

Yes, most important mode 3 disables any local dialog from ESD200 which might confuse the RBC.

For the header I used this type:

http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=115

and just cut a 3 pin and a 4 pin section.

The reset must have pullup on board.

I used an FTDI TTL serial cable and a small board with a reset button for the initial setting. I also use the TTL cable with the Wck programming software to set the servos without using the RBC.