Virtuabotix Ultrasonic Distance Rangefinder/Obstacle Detection Module

I got this sensor to just mess around with it and play with the Arduino platform. The sound it makes is audible but isn't bad. It is just a quick clicking noise. It could probably go unnoticed with any background noise but I was listening for it specifically. I rated it 5 stars for now but will update if I feel it isn't the full 5 once I really test it out. So far it has worked well, was packaged safely, and had great documentation. I recommend it. ***Original Problem*** I initially had problems with setting it up (keep reading, it was my fault). I couldn't seem to get any accurate values back from it from any further than like 6 inches. I was using the library that the pamphlet it came with told me to. It turns out that while the pamphlet says the sensor is good for 3-5V it really needs 5V to work accurately. At least that was my experience. I had it wired to a 3V digital output pin and when I rewired the power to the 5V rail on the arduino I instantly saw much more accurate values from a variety of distances on the console. The only thing I would like is if it would have worked better with just 3.3V. It fits perfectly on the arduino board without a breadboard except where the power pin is I only have output pins that go up to 3.3V. Minor complaint, and I just breadboard it anyway so no biggie. ********************** ***UPDATED************ It turns out that it wasn't because I re-wired it to 5V, it was because I re-wired it to a pin that could output more current and therefore drive the sensor as it is supposed to be driven, do not power your current hungry modules via I/O ports. I thought it was the voltage but the kind staff at Virtuabotix clued me onto this literally maybe an hour after I originally posted it. Great customer support! While it does fit nicely directly onto my Mega2560 with the power pin connecting to an I/O port, the fact is the Arduino simply cannot safely produce the necessary current through that port and therefore it just won't work. Wired up correctly with the proper current and it works great! ********************** Also Virtuabotix has great customer service!

These rangefinders work as well as much more expensive ones. It is precise to ~1cm. However, I do have 2 gripes: 1) The maximum range seems to be ~250cm not the advertised ~500cm 2) One of mine fell 3 or 4 feet to the ground and now reports alternating values between the correct one and 213 (the default value when it is maxed out)

I'm an arduino noob, so it took me a while to get this working. I'm using a Mac with OS X 10.6.8 The first problem was that this sensor has 4 pins rather than the usual 3. On the 3-pin models, the input and output use the same pin. Fortunately the pins are labeled, so it wasn't too hard to work out. Hook GND to ground, and Vcc to 5V power on Arduino. Trg needs to be a digital output. I used pin 11. Echo needs to be an analog input. I used A0. Figuring out where to put the library files I downloaded from the virtuabotix website was the hardest part. I never store files in my Documents folder. In [user]/Documents/Arduino, I had to create a new folder named _libraries_, and put the _Ulrasonic_ folder I downloaded from virtuabotix in that newly created _libraries_ folder (you will have to decompress it first if you have automatic decompression off). After quitting Arduino and relaunching it, the library was recognized. Finally, getting the Serial Monitor open took some time because of a misleading forum post. You can find the Serial Monitor under the _Tools_ menu in the Arduino application, or use SHIFT-COMMAND-M. It is NOT in an icon in the Sketch window. **CORRECTION. THERE IS A SERIAL MONITOR ICON IN THE SKETCH WINDOW. IT IS ON THE FAR UPPER LEFT OF THE WINDOW-IT LOOKS LIKE A MAGNIFYING GLASS. Now, it's working great. I swiped some code from the example file and mixed it with my code, and I can detect objects within X inches of the detector. Mission *deter-porch-peeing-cat* is well on its way. FOLLOW-UP: I mounted the sensors with hot-glue, and they aren't working very reliably. The problem could be the length of the wire I'm using between the Arduino and the sensors (about 2 meters), or bad pin connections (making the 4-pin molex 0.1" female molex connectors was _insert curse here_ not easy) . Maybe I cooked or damped the sensors with the hot-glue. I ordered two more distance sensors, and I am going test them on my connectors to find out if it was the hot-glue or the connectors/wiring that is causing problems.

Used this on my robot car. A little hard to program the correct distance to sense. Took a lot of trial and error but it works OK. Price fantastic.

I used this as the proximity sensor for an "insect" style walkerbot project from the MAKE Arduino project book. That book showed a 3-pin proximity sensor, where the pins were power, ground, and signal. The project books source code for distance measuring involved programmatically setting the signal pin to "output", sending the signal, then programmatically setting the signal pin to "input" and reading the echo. This device has 4 pins. Instead of 1 data pin, it has a "ping" pin that you use to send the signal, and an "echo" pin that it uses to retrieve the bounceback. It took only a moment to find the arduino sketch code online to measure distance with this, and substitute that for the proximity measuring phase of the walk cycle for my insect bot. The little critter now walks forward until it detects an obstacle, at which point it backs up, turns 90 degrees, and marches on. Works like a champ. This is a very nice component.

Works as expected... just note there are a lot of limitations to ultrasonic range finding; especially distance. To test this, I wrote a .NET program that talked to an Arduino with this sense and used it move my mouse depending how how I waved my hand across the screen. Was kinda cool and fun.

I have purchase some of the Parallax Ultrasonic Sensors that have only three pins. But these have four, with one pin for the Trigger and the other for the Echo. My Arduino sketches were based on the Parallax sensors, and I needed to modify them for the Trig and Echo to use the extra pin. At first my program was not working, but then I realized that at least one of the pins needed to be on a PWM port. I believe it is the Echo pin, but I have not tested it yet. Because currently I am using the two pins on an ADK Mega board and using two PWM ports. When I had them on just two data ports I got nothing. There is also a writeup and a sketch at the Arduino site that will tell you about tying the two pins together and only using one port. If indeed you need to have one pin on a PWM port then this would mean that if they are tied together you will need to connect them to PWM. I hope this does not confuse anyone, because I am still a little confused, but I think I got it.

I have a small project and needed something to detect when an object was approaching. I decided on the HY-SRF05 since a) Amazon had it and b) it was cheaper than the older SRF04. Once I got it, I plugged it directly into my prototyping shield and had it working within 5 minutes based on the included library. Works perfectly and a great price. As with most ultrasonic rangefinders, it has some issues with things that are really close (<2cm) but that is disclosed and not an issue for me.