Help with first project!

Hello everyone,

I am a total novice to Arduino... and I need some help in order to accomplish a project that I have in mind. I am going to attach some diagrams to explain myself a little better, but in simple words, here are my initial ideas:

Let say I want to create a mouse trap with a box, two PIR sensor align in straight line for movement direction, and a servo, to activate some kind of mechanism. Mouse #1 will enter the box and activate PIR #1, and a little further will activate PIR #2, but this will not translate in the servo activation. Mouse #1 can actually come IN and OUT of the box, multiple times, and the servo wont activate. But, if mouse #1 walks IN the box, activating in the process the PIRs, and a second mouse also walks IN, activating just PIR #1, the servo will activate... let say, trapping both mice in the box.

Please... help me with the parts alignment and the coding!

Thank you all!

rfreud:
Please... help me with the parts alignment and the coding!

Its your project. How about you get started and when you have questions we will give you some hints on how to move on?

My recommendation would be to connect your Arduino to your PC and run trough a few of the examples that come with the IDE. Then do a few modifications to make sure you understand what is going on.

Next, when you need some advice. Read the "How to post ..." section. Its at the beginning of each sub forum. Try Google first to find an answer. If that does not help provide all the information recommended in the How to and ask specific questions.

Good posts get a lot of attention and help.

Good luck with your project. Hope you catch those mice. :slight_smile:

Mouse #1 can actually come IN and OUT of the box, multiple times, and the servo wont activate. But, if mouse #1 walks IN the box, activating in the process the PIRs, and a second mouse also walks IN, activating just PIR #1, the servo will activate...

You have to consider just what the signals will be from your sensors because that is all you have to work on.

I can’t see how the signals will differ with two mice in the box unless the second sensor is always being triggered by mouse #1, and the trap is triggered as soon as mouse #2 is detected at the entrance. Getting sensors to detect the direction of travel might sound easy but it is not, as witnessed by all the failed counting people in a room projects you see here.

Someone on the forum had made floor squares that could sense being stepped on, years ago.
There was charcoal involved, like old telephone microphones used.

Hi,
Welcome to the forum.

Please read the post at the start of any forum , entitled "How to use this Forum".
OR
http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php/topic,148850.0.html.

Ops diagrams;


Tom... :slight_smile: