Maker Mini Sumo Controller: Simplifying Sumo Robot for Beginner

Wanna take part in a Sumo robot competition but don't want to get your hands dirty dealing with electronics? Maker Mini Sumo Controller is the ultimate board for you - Whether you are a beginner who just started learning about Sumo robots or a professional robot builder who participates in international Sumo robot competitions.

We've put so much effort into designing the controller board to make it as beginner-friendly as possible, and at the same time enable it to fulfill the stringent requirements of any professional sumo robot builder. To achieve this, we even teamed up with Team Ikedo Kogeki, the winner of multiple Sumo robot competitions locally and internationally.

So what's so special?

• Arduino Uno/Nano Compatible - Why? Because this is the most widely used Arduino in the world. Powered by ATMEGA328P, the Maker Mini Sumo Controller is 100% compatible with Arduino Uno/Nano and can be programmed from Arduino IDE. Library and example programs are also provided via Arduino IDE's Libraries Manager.

• Powerful Motor Driver (2 Channels) - The motor driver can handle up to 6A maximum current per channel for battery voltage 7V - 18V thanks to its discrete MOSFETs H-Bridge design. This will maximize the torque and performance of the motor, especially during face-to-face pushing in the competition.

• Reversed Polarity Protection - Have you ever connected the battery in the wrong polarity and toast your board? This is a very common mistake made by a lot of beginners even professional robot builders. But fear not! Maker Mini Sumo Controller is reversed voltage protected. If you ever connect the battery in the wrong way, just change the polarity to the correct one and it will work again.

• Solderless Connection - A lot of people do not have a good soldering skill. We know that! That's why we designed this board with screw terminals which provide a fast and secure connection to the sensors and motors. If something breaks during the competition (touch wood), we can just replace it on the spot without a soldering iron. 

• Shock Proof On/Off Switch - Sumo robot is very prone to shock/vibration, especially during collisions with each other. Mechanical switch tends to lose connection due to excessive vibration, particularly after it has worn out. We do not want our robot to lose power momentarily and reset itself during any competition. Thus, we have come out with our unique shock-proof on/off circuitry. When the power is turned on, a loss of connection or a disconnected slide switch will not turn the circuit off. Instead, it will need to connect to the opposite contact point to turn the power off.
  
  To demonstrate this feature, we purposely remove the case of the slide switch. The board is turned on when the slide switch is ON. It stays on after that even when the contact of the switch is removed. The board is only turned off when the slide switch is in the OFF position.

• Generous I/O Ports - Equipped with 5 x digital inputs for opponent sensors, 2 x analog inputs for Dohyo's edge/border sensors, and 1 x digital input for the start module (With onboard start button), this should be good enough for most of the robot builder already. Want more? Don't worry, we have an extra port for the RC servo and 2 x General Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) ports which can be configured as an analog input, digital input, or digital output.

• Support RC mode - If you are a hardcore gamer and believe that your robot controlling skill is better than the computer, you may want to take part in the RC category of the Sumo robot competition. By connecting the RC receiver to the extra GPIO ports on the Maker Mini Sumo Controller, you can turn your robot into an RC-controlled robot (We provide the example code for that). The best part is, it doesn't use up any existing port for sensors and this allows you to participate in both RC and autonomous categories with the same robot.

• Easy Troubleshooting - Most of the time your program will not work the first time you run it. It requires lots of testing, troubleshooting, and fine-tuning. We know it because we are programmers too! Thus, we've incorporated some features to ease the troubleshooting and testing process. Motor Test Buttons and LEDs allow us to test the motor direction and connection without writing any code. Opponent Sensors Status LEDs show us whether the opponent is detected and allow us to adjust the sensor detection range easily. Onboard programmable User LED, Potentiometer, and Mode Selection 3-Way DIP Switch give us the convenience to test and fine-tune our code. And the fun part is, the piezo buzzer allows us to play a melody and add some personalities to the robot :)

• Compact Size - Measuring only 92mm x 36mm, Maker Mini Sumo Controller can be fit easily into any robot. Even the international Sumo robot competition 500g category also not a problem.

• Arduino Nano/Uno Compatible (Powered by ATMEGA328P).
• Vin: 7V - 18V
• Reverse polarity protection on Vin.
• Shockproof on/off switch with MOSFET latching circuit.
• Battery voltage can be read programmatically.
• Switching regulator for +5V reduce heat and increase efficiency.
• Motor: 3A continuous, 6A peak
• Test buttons and status LED for motors.
• 5 x Opponent Sensors Input (Digital) with LED state indicator.
• 2 x Edge Sensors Input (Analog/Digital).
• 2 x General Purpose Input Output (Analog/Digital Input or Digital Output).
• 1 x Start Module Input (Digital), with LED and onboard start button.
• 1 x Servo Output.
• 1 x Programmable LED.
• 1 x Onboard Potentiometer.
• 1 x Mode Selection DIP Switch (3 Ways).
• 1 x Piezo Buzzer (Able to  play melody).

• 1 x Maker Mini Sumo Controller