Hi,
I am trying to make a system in which I can wirelessly get data from 5 IMU's (bno055) preferably simultaneously.
The long term vision of my project is to design a tablet app which will connect to the sensors via arduino and bluetooth, the app user will send a command to start a test which will tell the sensor arduinos to start taking readings and send those readings back to the tablet where all the readings from all the different sensors will be compiled into one array. The app will then further analyse these results.
My main problem is I know next to nothing about programing apps and how that end of the project will work. I know this is not the forum for that but as a side note if anyone knows a good starting point (website/ tutorial) for this kind of thingit would be much appreciated.
moving forward, as a first prototype I thought I would just try to have all 5 sensors send data to a serial terminal on computer.
I have a little experience using the sparkfun bluetooth mate gold (RN41). With this little knowledge I realized I could use an arduino mega or similar as a master with multiple bluetooth mate's connected to the different tx rx pins. One bluetooth mate would be connected to the computer to receive the start command. After the start command is received the master arduino mega it would send commands through the other serial ports to the sensor arduinos to start taking readings and send the reading back to the master which would then compile all the readings from different sensors into one array and then send that compiled array back to the terminal.
Even as im typing this I realize it is a dumb solution, the mega only has 3 serial ports, and using software serial for the extra needed ports would slow down my program shitloads and would definitely be a mistake. Not to mention that my readings would not be simultaneous at all.
My second idea, would be to still have a master arduino with the bluetooth mate connected to the computer terminal, but rather than have the master arduino communicate to the sensor arduinos through bluetooth it would use nRF24 (which I am unfamiliar with) which is made for multiple device networks.
This solution is definitely better. However, moving towards my final solution I don't know if it makes sense for me learning how to use nRF24 networks when in the final solution I want the computer or tablet without any extras to be the master communicating directly to the sensor arduinos and I dont think computers or tablets have nRF24 built in. The problem is time, I am hoping to somehow have a wireless system which can have all 5 sensors data compiled into one array within a month. I think I could learn and make the nRF24 system in that time, but how much harder would it be for me to learn the app/program coding for my final solution of making the computer or app be the master? It doesn't need to be pretty.
sorry if this post doesnt make much sense, I guess what I am asking is if anyone knows any good resources for learning how to make a piconet where a computer or tablet is the master controller getting data simultaneously from several arduinos connected through bluetooth? or maybe knows any other solution to the system I am trying to make.