Wehali Engineering has released version 2 of it's Serial Sonar Controller board. This release adds support for the the Sharp GP2D02 infrared range transducer. The new board now supports the GP2D02 and the Devantech SRF04.

The Serial Sonar Decoder coprocessor was designed specifically to handle the i/o intensive requirements for SONAR use with an embedded microprocessor. This release adds support for the Sharp GP2D02 IR sensor and a new board to support RJ11 connectors for the sensors. Existing users will be able to upgrade their software to support the IR sensors using their existing boards.

The Serial Sonar Decoder is the result of research into the development of navigational systems for the blind. It gives robotic engineers the ability to add range-finding capabilities to their projects simply by connecting up to eight sensors to the controller, attaching a serial cable to a host, and applying power. All communications with the board is accomplished through the use of serial commands from the host. Range information is returned to the host in a serial stream similar to that used by GPS receivers.

Without the headaches of designing, building, and programming their own sonar systems, roboticists can concentrate on more interesting areas of the robot itself.

The Serial Sonar Decoder handles all interfacing with the range finding transducers, which currently are the Devantech ultrasonic SRF04 and the Sharp infrared GP2D02 transducers, via it's RJ11 cables.

Wehali Engineering specializes in the development of specialized controllers for robotic and medical aplications

For more information, go to the Wehali Engineering website.