Circuit grounding, what?

[michelle]

I'm just starting on the $50 robot (have ordered the parts) and am befuddled by the schematic (and parts of the tutorial).

I'm very new to circuitry and building and don't know  basics of electronics like - what does it mean to ground something? Also, where can I find an index of symbols for an electronic circuit? Can anyone recommend a more "basic" tutorial?

If someone used all of the recommended parts for the $50 robot but swapped out the controller, would this be the only part of the schematic that changes?

Thanks for any help!

[Ro-Bot-X]

I'm very new to circuitry and building and don't know  basics of electronics like - what does it mean to ground something? Also, where can I find an index of symbols for an electronic circuit? Can anyone recommend a more "basic" tutorial?

Take a look at the electronics tutorials http://www.societyofrobots.com/electronics_tutorials.shtml

If someone used all of the recommended parts for the $50 robot but swapped out the controller, would this be the only part of the schematic that changes?

Depends. You can swap the ATmega8 with ATmega168 with no change. Any other microcontroller wil work only with changes in the code (programming) and schematic (different pin mapping).

[Trumpkin]

This website is good for learning electronics http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/study.htm   

[Admin]

what does it mean to ground something?

A battery has a + and a - pole.

Ground is the reference voltage, usually defined as 0V, or - as on the battery.

If you have two circuits (say one for a sensor, and another for the microcontroller), they usually need a reference voltage so that they can work together. This would be referred to as grounding. Forgetting to ground circuits is a very common (and the most likely) mistake among beginners, so its why you often read 'don't forget to ground your circuit!'

It is called 'ground' because back in the old days, dirt (earth) was considered the reference voltage.

[benji]

hey michelle that should give u a push

http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~elec201/Book/basic_elec.html

there is also a nice page about starting with bots in c

http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~elec201/Book/control.html

enjoyyy