Specifications and Controls
10
Every Pioneer 2 has a Console that consists of a liquid-crystal display (LCD), MOTORS and RESET
control buttons and indicators, and an RS232-compatible serial port at the 9-pin DSUB connector on the
front and top of the Deck.
Attached directly underneath the Console is the Pioneer 2 microcontroller. (Operational details are
provided in the next chapter,
Quick Start
.)
Body
Pioneer 2’s sturdy, but lightweight aluminum Body houses the robot's batteries, drive motors, electronics,
and other standard components, including the forward and rear sonar arrays. The Body also has sufficient
room, with power and signal connectors, to support a variety of robotics accessories inside, including the
Fast-Track Color Vision System, radio modems and radio Ethernet, onboard computer, and many more.
On the DX and AT models, the Pioneer 2 has a hinged rear door for easy access to the batteries.
Accordingly, you may quickly hot-swap and replace any of up to three batteries.
Also at the rear of the DX and CE Body is a convenient carry handle for easy transport of the robot.
Nose
The Nose of Pioneer 2 is empty, except when equipped with an onboard PC. The Nose is readily
removable: Simply remove one screw from under the front sonar array, and a second screw from the
bottom of the Pioneer 2, then slide the Nose away. This provides a quick and easy way to get at the PC104+
stack of accessory boards of the onboard PC, as well as to the sonar gain adjustment for the front sonar
array (see Sonar Gain below). The Nose also is an ideal place for you to attach your own custom
accessories and sensors.
Accessory Panels
The Pioneer 2 DX comes with a removeable panel on each side of the robot on which you can install
accessory connnectors and controls. A special sidepanel comes with the onboard PC option, for example,
which gives users monitor, keyboard, mouse (serial port), and 10base-T Ethernet access, as well as the
means to reset and power the computer.
The AT comes with a single accessory panel in the Deck. Fastened down with finger-tight screws, the AT
accessory panel is accessible through its hinged door.
Sonar Arrays
Pioneer 2 supports up to two sonar range-finding arrays. One array, affixed under the front of the Deck and
atop the Nose, provides forward- and side-range sensing. The other, an optional sonar array is attached just
beneath the rear Deck and provides rearward, as well as side sensing. All arrays contain eight sonars, for a
total of 16 sonars around the robot.
Motors and Position Encoders
Pioneer 2’s drive system uses high-speed, high-torque, reversible-DC motors. Each front drive motor
includes a high-resolution optical quadrature shaft encoder that provides 9,850 ticks per wheel revolution
(19 ticks per millimeter) for precise position and speed sensing and advanced dead-reckoning.
Sonars
Pioneer 2 AT and DX supports both front and rear sonar arrays (CE front only), each with eight transducers
that provide object detection and range information for features recognition, as well as navigation around
obstacles. The sonar positions are fixed in both arrays: one on each side, and six facing outward at 20-
degree intervals providing more than 180 degrees of nearly seamless sensing, and all-around sensing when
using both forward and rear arrays.
