Ramsey Electronics WEB1 User Manual

Walking Electronic

Bug

Ramsey Electronics Model No. WEB1

Watch the little bug scoot across the table and turn to avoid
obstacles in this fun and very unique kit! Buy two bug kits and
have your own “bug wars”!

• Easy to build and fun to play with.

• Runs for a long time.

• Runs on 2 ‘N” batteries.

• Avoids obstacles or runs away from a flashlight.

• Adjustable sensitivity and speed.

WEB1• 1

PARTIAL LIST OF AVAILABLE KITS:

RAMSEY TRANSMITTER KITS

• FM10A, FM25B FM Stereo Transmitters

• AM1, AM25 Transmitter

RAMSEY RECEIVER KITS

• FR1 FM Broadcast Receiver

• AR1 Aircraft Band Receiver

• SR2 Shortwave Receiver

• AA7 Active Antenna

• SC1 Shortwave Converter

RAMSEY HOBBY KITS

• SG7 Personal Speed Radar

• SS70A Speech Scrambler/
Descrambler

• TT1 Telephone Recorder

• SP1 Speakerphone

• MD3 Microwave Motion Detector

• PH14 Peak hold Meter

• LC1 Inductance-Capacitance Meter

RAMSEY AMATEUR RADIO KITS

• HR Series HF All Mode Receivers

• DDF1 Doppler Direction Finder Kit

• QRP Series HF CW Transmitters

• CW7 CW Keyer

• QRP Power Amplifiers

RAMSEY MINI-KITS
Many other kits are available for hobby, school, scouts and just plain FUN. New
kits are always under development. Write or call for our free Ramsey catalog.

WEB1 Walking Electronic Bug

Ramsey Electronics publication No. WEB1 Rev. 1.1

May 2003

COPYRIGHT 2003 by Ramsey Electronics, Inc. 590 Fishers Station Drive, Victor, New York

14564. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be copied or duplicated without the

written permission of Ramsey Electronics, Inc. Printed in the United States of America.

WEB1• 2

Ramsey Publication No. WEB1

Manual Price Only $5.00

KIT ASSEMBLY

AND INSTRUCTION MANUAL FOR

Walking Electronic Bug

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction to the WEB1 .................................. 4

WEB1 Circuit Description .................................. 4

“Learn-As-You-Build” Kit Assembly ................... 5

Parts List ........................................................... 6

Assembly Steps ................................................. 7

WEB1 Parts Layout Diagram ........................... 10

WEB1 Schematic ............................................. 11

Setup and Testing ........................................... 14

Troubleshooting Guide ..................................... 16

Ramsey Kit Warranty ....................................... 19

WEB1• 3

RAMSEY ELECTRONICS, INC.

590 Fishers Station Drive

Victor, New York 14564

Phone [phone]

Fax [phone]

www.ramseykits.com

INTRODUCTION

Here is a very unique little kit that’s great for kids. The WEB1 is a little robot
made completely out of electronic parts and wire. It’s pretty easy to build, and
once it’s adjusted properly, it will entertain for hours. It has little pager motors
in it that vibrate and propel it on its little wire feet. How fast it goes is
adjustable by bending its feet and also by a pot that controls motor speed.
When it approaches an obstacle such as a wall, it turns to avoid it. It does
this with a second little pager motor.

WEB1 CIRCUIT DESCRIPTION

This is a fairly simple circuit, and easy to follow even for a beginning kit
builder. The kit uses a 555 timer U1 to pulse the two pager motors. The 555
timer does not directly drive the motors, but instead turns them on through
transistors Q1 and Q3. This is done because although the motors don’t draw
much current on average, they do when they initially start spinning. The 555
objects to these big current spikes, so the transistors take the beating
instead. Normally only one motor is running and the WEB1 moves in a
straight line. In this state, U1 is pulsing Q3 which drives the motor attached to
pad P1. This motor’s speed is adjustable via R2. When the WEB1 gets close
to an obstacle, infrared light emitted from D1 bounces off the object and into
the infrared phototransistor Q2. Then Q2 switches on and turns on transistor
Q1 which drives the motor attached to pad P4. This motor causes the WEB1
to turn aside from the obstacle. The sensitivity of phototransistor Q2 is
adjustable through R5. Without this adjustment, sometimes room lights would
turn Q2 on and make the WEB1 turn all the time. Okay, let’s get building.

WEB1• 4

RAMSEY Learn-As-You-Build KIT ASSEMBLY

There aren’t that many solder connections on the WEB1 printed circuit
board, but you should still practice good soldering techniques.

• Use a 25-watt soldering pencil with a clean, sharp tip.

• Use only rosin-core solder intended for electronics use.

• Use bright lighting; a magnifying lamp or bench-style magnifier may

be helpful.

• Do your work in stages, taking breaks to check your work. Carefully

brush away wire cuttings so they don't lodge between solder
connections.

We have a two-fold "strategy" for the order of the following kit assembly
steps. First, we install parts in physical relationship to each other, so there's
minimal chance of inserting wires into wrong holes. Second, whenever
possible, we install in an order that fits our "Learn-As-You Build" Kit building
philosophy. This entails describing the circuit that you are building instead of
just blindly installing components. We hope that this will not only make
assembly of our kits easier, but help you to understand the circuit you’re
constructing.
For each part, our word "Install" always means these steps:

1. Pick the correct part value to start with.

2. Insert it into the correct PC board location.

3. Orient it correctly, follow the PC board drawing and the written
directions for all parts - especially when there's a right way
and a wrong way to solder it in. (Diode bands, electrolytic
capacitor polarity, transistor shapes, dotted or notched ends
of IC's, and so forth.)

4. Solder all connections unless directed otherwise. Use enough heat
and solder flow for clean, shiny, completed connections.

WEB1• 5

WEB1 PARTS LIST

Sort and “check off” the components in the boxes provided. We do our best to
pack all our kits correctly but it is possible that a mistake has occurred and we
missed a part. Please note that physical descriptions of parts are for those
currently being shipped. Sometimes the parts in your kit may have a different
appearance but still have the same values.

RESISTORS

 1 1K ohm resistor [brown-black-red] (R4)
 1 68 ohm resistor [blue-gray-black] (R3)
 1 330 ohm resistor [orange-orange-brown] (R1)
 2 10K ohm potentiometer (R2,R5)

CAPACITORS

 1 1 uF electrolytic capacitor (C2)
 1 10 uF electrolytic capacitor (C1)

SEMICONDUCTORS

 1 555 Timer IC [marked TS555CN] (U1)
 2 2N3904 transistor [marked 2N3904] (Q1,Q3)
 1 infrared phototransistor [black T1 case] (Q2)
 1 infrared light emitting diode (D1)
 2 blinking light emitting diodes (D2,D3)

MISCELLANEOUS

 1 red/black twisted wire, 5 inches
 1 20AWG tinned wire, 18 inches
 2 “N” cell battery holders
 1 length of double stickey foam tape
 2 little motors
 1 slide switch (S1)

WEB1• 6