Capability:Bump Sensing
| Bump Sensing | |
|---|---|
| Type | Sensing |
| Measures/Controls | Physical collision with objects (binary: contact or no contact) |
| Common Hardware | Microswitch bumpers, lever switches, whisker sensors, pressure-sensitive switches |
| Enables Activities | Activity:Maze Solving, obstacle avoidance |
| Status | Stub - Not yet implemented in BRS robots |
Bump Sensing is a sensing capability that detects physical contact with obstacles through mechanical switches.
Overview
This is a stub page. This capability is not yet implemented in any BRS robot. This page exists to:
- Document the concept for future implementation
- Invite community members to add it to their robots
- Provide a starting point for hardware selection
What It Measures
Physical collision with objects (binary: contact or no contact)
Common Hardware
Microswitch bumpers, lever switches, whisker sensors, pressure-sensitive switches
Enables Activities
Adding this capability to your robot would enable:
Technical Considerations
- **Advantages**: Simple, reliable, very low cost
- **Disadvantages**: Reactive only (detects after collision), potential for damage
- **Typical cost**: $0.50-2 per switch
- **Mounting**: Requires mechanical design to trigger switches on contact
- **Debouncing**: Software debouncing may be needed for clean signals
Contributing
Want to add this capability to your robot? Here's how:
- Select appropriate hardware (see "Common Hardware" above)
- Mount the hardware to your robot chassis
- Wire to your microcontroller
- Write driver code or use existing libraries
- Test and calibrate
- Document your implementation
- Update this page with your findings
- Share on Discord
See Also
- Capabilities - All capabilities
- Activities - What this capability enables
- Robotics Ontology - How capabilities fit into BRS knowledge structure