Here is what is probably one of the most interesting projects if you are getting started with electronics and Arduino. Below we will show you step by step how to build and program this Arduino radar, which uses one of the most popular modules: the ultrasonic sensor, also known as HC-SR04.
Table of contents
Materials used in the project
A continuación veremos te mostramos los materiales que se van a emplear para realizar este radar con Arduino. Además, te mostramos una breve descripción de los mismos. Para todos aquellos que estén interesados en realizar el proyecto, te dejamos una lista con los links de compra para poder adquirir dichos materiales.
Arduino UNO board: It is the brain of the project and controls all of its processes through the code you will find below.
Servo motors: motores de 5v con una reductora, lo que permite un gran manejo de su posición y una gran fuerza para su reducido tamaño.
Wooden board: It will be used as the base where all the project components are mounted.
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Step-by-step explanation of how to build the Arduino radar
First, glue the ultrasonic sensor to the servo motor using hot glue. The HC-SR04 pins should point upward so they do not interfere with the servo motor.
Next, place the Arduino board on the wooden base. In our case, we used a 3D-printed support so we did not have to glue the board directly onto the wood.
We also need to glue the servo motor in place. It should be firmly attached to the wooden base so it does not come loose while rotating.
Project wiring diagram
To make the assembly easier, here is the wiring diagram for the project. All the connections in this diagram match the code shown below, so make sure your setup is wired exactly like the image.
Step-by-step project video
If you want a much more detailed explanation of how to build this project from start to finish, including the code, the video below covers the full process in a clearer and more visual way. And if you enjoy this kind of content, do not forget to subscribe.
Arduino code for programming an ultrasonic radar
Below you can find the Arduino code developed specifically for this project. The pins used in the code are the same ones shown in the wiring diagram above.
If you have any questions about how to use or install the development environment used for Arduino, here is a link to how to download the Arduino IDE
//CODIGO ARDUINO
//Canal de YT -> RobotUNO
//Proyecto RADAR
#include <Servo.h>
const int trigPin = 10;
const int echoPin = 11;
long duration;
int distance;
Servo myServo;
void setup() {
pinMode(trigPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(echoPin, INPUT);
Serial.begin(9600);
myServo.attach(12);
}
void loop() {
for(int i=15;i<=165;i++){
myServo.write(i);
delay(30);
distance = calculateDistance();
Serial.print(i);
Serial.print(",");
Serial.print(distance);
Serial.print(".");
}
for(int i=165;i>15;i--){
myServo.write(i);
delay(30);
distance = calculateDistance();
Serial.print(i);
Serial.print(",");
Serial.print(distance);
Serial.print(".");
}
}
int calculateDistance(){
digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(2);
digitalWrite(trigPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(10);
digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
duration = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);
distance= duration*0.034/2;
return distance;
}
Code for the Processing application
Below you will also find the code used for the Processing application.
If you do not have it installed yet, you can download it HERE.
IMPORTANT! On line 19 you must check which port your board is connected to and replace COM7 with the correct one in your setup.
import processing.serial.*; // imports library for serial communication
import java.awt.event.KeyEvent; // imports library for reading the data from the serial port
import java.io.IOException;
Serial myPort; // defines Object Serial
// defubes variables
String angle="";
String distance="";
String data="";
String noObject;
float pixsDistance;
int iAngle, iDistance;
int index1=0;
int index2=0;
PFont orcFont;
void setup() {
size (1200, 700); // ***CHANGE THIS TO YOUR SCREEN RESOLUTION***
smooth();
myPort = new Serial(this,"COM7", 9600); // starts the serial communication
myPort.bufferUntil('.'); // reads the data from the serial port up to the character '.'. So actually it reads this: angle,distance.
}
void draw() {
fill(98,245,31);
// simulating motion blur and slow fade of the moving line
noStroke();
fill(0,4);
rect(0, 0, width, height-height*0.065);
fill(98,245,31); // green color
// calls the functions for drawing the radar
drawRadar();
drawLine();
drawObject();
drawText();
}
void serialEvent (Serial myPort) { // starts reading data from the Serial Port
// reads the data from the Serial Port up to the character '.' and puts it into the String variable "data".
data = myPort.readStringUntil('.');
data = data.substring(0,data.length()-1);
index1 = data.indexOf(","); // find the character ',' and puts it into the variable "index1"
angle= data.substring(0, index1); // read the data from position "0" to position of the variable index1 or thats the value of the angle the Arduino Board sent into the Serial Port
distance= data.substring(index1+1, data.length()); // read the data from position "index1" to the end of the data pr thats the value of the distance
// converts the String variables into Integer
iAngle = int(angle);
iDistance = int(distance);
}
void drawRadar() {
pushMatrix();
translate(width/2,height-height*0.074); // moves the starting coordinats to new location
noFill();
strokeWeight(2);
stroke(98,245,31);
// draws the arc lines
arc(0,0,(width-width*0.0625),(width-width*0.0625),PI,TWO_PI);
arc(0,0,(width-width*0.27),(width-width*0.27),PI,TWO_PI);
arc(0,0,(width-width*0.479),(width-width*0.479),PI,TWO_PI);
arc(0,0,(width-width*0.687),(width-width*0.687),PI,TWO_PI);
// draws the angle lines
line(-width/2,0,width/2,0);
line(0,0,(-width/2)*cos(radians(30)),(-width/2)*sin(radians(30)));
line(0,0,(-width/2)*cos(radians(60)),(-width/2)*sin(radians(60)));
line(0,0,(-width/2)*cos(radians(90)),(-width/2)*sin(radians(90)));
line(0,0,(-width/2)*cos(radians(120)),(-width/2)*sin(radians(120)));
line(0,0,(-width/2)*cos(radians(150)),(-width/2)*sin(radians(150)));
line((-width/2)*cos(radians(30)),0,width/2,0);
popMatrix();
}
void drawObject() {
pushMatrix();
translate(width/2,height-height*0.074); // moves the starting coordinats to new location
strokeWeight(9);
stroke(255,10,10); // red color
pixsDistance = iDistance*((height-height*0.1666)*0.025); // covers the distance from the sensor from cm to pixels
// limiting the range to 40 cms
if(iDistance<40){
// draws the object according to the angle and the distance
line(pixsDistance*cos(radians(iAngle)),-pixsDistance*sin(radians(iAngle)),(width-width*0.505)*cos(radians(iAngle)),-(width-width*0.505)*sin(radians(iAngle)));
}
popMatrix();
}
void drawLine() {
pushMatrix();
strokeWeight(9);
stroke(30,250,60);
translate(width/2,height-height*0.074); // moves the starting coordinats to new location
line(0,0,(height-height*0.12)*cos(radians(iAngle)),-(height-height*0.12)*sin(radians(iAngle))); // draws the line according to the angle
popMatrix();
}
void drawText() { // draws the texts on the screen
pushMatrix();
if(iDistance>40) {
noObject = "Out of Range";
}
else {
noObject = "In Range";
}
fill(0,0,0);
noStroke();
rect(0, height-height*0.0648, width, height);
fill(98,245,31);
textSize(25);
text("10cm",width-width*0.3854,height-height*0.0833);
text("20cm",width-width*0.281,height-height*0.0833);
text("30cm",width-width*0.177,height-height*0.0833);
text("40cm",width-width*0.0729,height-height*0.0833);
textSize(40);
text("FABRI creator", width-width*0.875, height-height*0.0277);
text("?ngulo: " + iAngle +" ?", width-width*0.48, height-height*0.0277);
text("Dist:", width-width*0.26, height-height*0.0277);
if(iDistance<40) {
text(" " + iDistance +" cm", width-width*0.225, height-height*0.0277);
}
textSize(25);
fill(98,245,60);
translate((width-width*0.4994)+width/2*cos(radians(30)),(height-height*0.0907)-width/2*sin(radians(30)));
rotate(-radians(-60));
text("30?",0,0);
resetMatrix();
translate((width-width*0.503)+width/2*cos(radians(60)),(height-height*0.0888)-width/2*sin(radians(60)));
rotate(-radians(-30));
text("60?",0,0);
resetMatrix();
translate((width-width*0.507)+width/2*cos(radians(90)),(height-height*0.0833)-width/2*sin(radians(90)));
rotate(radians(0));
text("90?",0,0);
resetMatrix();
translate(width-width*0.513+width/2*cos(radians(120)),(height-height*0.07129)-width/2*sin(radians(120)));
rotate(radians(-30));
text("120?",0,0);
resetMatrix();
translate((width-width*0.5104)+width/2*cos(radians(150)),(height-height*0.0574)-width/2*sin(radians(150)));
rotate(radians(-60));
text("150?",0,0);
popMatrix();
}
