International Journal of Current Research in Engineering, Science and Technology 1 (2016) 34-42
International Journal of Current Research in
Engineering, Science and Technology
Journal Home Page: www.newcrestpublications.com/IJCREST
Research Article – Systems Engineering
Android Controlled Robot Using Bluetooth Technology
Soubhagya Nayak1, Sandip Kumar Patra2, Suvam Suvabrata Behera3, Sasank Sekhar Panda4 ,
Deepak B.B.V.L.5
1
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Odisha
([email protected])
2
Department of Biotechnology & Medical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela,
Odisha ([email protected])
3
Department of Computer Science Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela,
Odisha([email protected])
4
Department of Computer Science Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela,
Odisha([email protected])
5
Department of Industrial Design, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Odisha
([email protected])
Abstract: To satisfy the never-ending thirst of human civilisation for harmonizing with the pace of modernizedsophisticated life style, the rise of smartphones is the only voice that echoes loudly in the ears of humanity. User
friendly interface, light weight and flawless android operating system of the smart phones have usurped the ageold empire of technologies like programmable glove, static camera etc.; making them absolutely obsolete for the
current generation. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPRS, EDGE, GSM, GPS etc. are characteristics of some peripherals of
smart-phone that are taking the arena of connectivity and communication around world to its peak. Out of all,
the Bluetooth technology conspicuously has become the most reliable, most inexpensive and simplest radio
frequency (RF) based, short range connectivity technology which demonstrates allegiance for hassle-free
wireless communication. To amplify the shear ingenuity of this technical invention among the human
civilisation, our research work on Bluetooth controlled robot comes ahead. It basically depicts a robot that can
be controlled by a smartphone (with android operating system) through android application software using
Bluetooth technology. Along with quick and short connectivity procedures, Bluetooth technology powers the
robot in the phase of simplicity and productiveness.
Keywords: Bluetooth technology, Android app (application)
1. Introduction
Bluetooth technology was invented by telecom vendor ERICSSON in 1994[1]. Bluetooth is a
wireless communication protocol running at 2.4 GHZ with a architecture suitable for forming
personal area networks. After all smart phones are more affordable and efficient handheld devices
which can be used to support collaborative activities in a community [2]. Again with incarnation of
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with reinforced processors from the crematorium of desperate keenness for sublime technology, the
implementation of mobile phones has become an unstoppable juggernaut [3]. The Bluetooth
technology in smart phones has brought revolutionary change in the usage of digitalised devices at
home, office etc. and converted the orthodox wired devices into wireless one as it has 8m working
area [4]. Larger storage capacities, enhanced entertainment functionality, smoother communication,
Bluetooth technology have added new feathers to the wing of the smartphones [5, 6]. Bluetooth is a
great communication protocol which doesn’t possess slightest probability of interference [7]. It uses
MAC address of the device and provides connectivity between two devices using their MAC
addresses [8]. This technology can be implemented where human intervention is not desired [9] and
it’s superior to the DTMF and RF communication in terms of simplicity and reliability [10]. DTMF &
GSM based robotic controls have slackened in the market competition with the mushrooming growth
of Bluetooth technology due to its various lacunas like high energy consumption and complexity in
user interface etc. But there are many scopes of Bluetooth technology in various filed like accurate
localisation of mobile robot[11,12,13], using Bluetooth transceivers in mobile robot[14], in intelligent
transportation system[15], temperature sensing system[16], LEGO mind storms NXT with
visualisation(infrared communication module)[17], using PAN(Personal Area Network) mobile robot
controlled system and tele operated platform for multi-specified robots[18].
As per our research work, our robot is reprogrammable and tooling can be interchanged to
provide wide range of applications. User friendly interface, light weight and portability of Android
operating system based smartphone have overtaken the sophistication of various technologies for
controlling the robot like programmable gloves, RF communication etc., making them completely
obsolete. Our prototype is robust, sensitive and fast in moving in various real time conditions. Using
an Android app namely ‘Blue Arduino’ we send commands to the robot for movement using
Bluetooth communication protocol. The Bluetooth receiver on the robot receives the signal and sends
that to the microcontroller. In the end microcontroller powers the geared dc motors for movement as
per the code encrypted in the Arduino UNO microcontroller board.
2. Experimentation
The functionality of a Bluetooth based robot controlled with an android application is elucidated
by this research work. According to our prototype, the robot is wirelessly connected to a smart phone
wirelessly through Bluetooth technology. An android application called “BLUE ARDUINO” has been
created in the smart phone which transmits various commands to robot for its manoeuvring as per the
wish of the human controller. Various electronic equipment like Arduino UNO board, Bluetooth
module (HC-05), motor driver and dc motor are revoked in this above research.
2.1. Brief knowledge about accessories
2.1.1. Arduino Uno Board
The Arduino UNO board is a microcontroller board which contains Atmega 328 IC (Integrated
circuit) mounted on the middle portion of it. The Atmega 328 IC belongs to the AVR microcontroller
family. This Arduino UNO board contains 14 I/O (input output) pins for digital signal transmission
from the microcontroller to outer environment or vice versa. There are 6 analog pins on the board that
are used to take analog output of different analog sensors as input. The Atmega 328 IC has been
enabled to operate in 5v range but recommended input voltage to the Arduino UNO board is 7-12v.It
can afford maximum 32 KB of data that can be stored in the provided flash memory of the Atmega
328 IC and it does have 1 KB of EEPROM memory for permanent data storing facility. This board
permits 40 mA to 50 mA dc current to flow through each and every peripherals present thereby.
2.1.2. Bluetooth Module (HC-05)
Bluetooth module is a component used for serial communication through RF (radio frequency)
signal following Bluetooth protocol. Both serial interface module and adapter are present in HC-05
Bluetooth module. The purpose of using serial module is to convert serial data to machine level
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language. Bluetooth module can act in two modes i.e. MASTER mode and SLAVE mode. According
to the manufacturing, the name of the Bluetooth module is produced (like HC-05, HC-06 etc.).Its
working mode (master or slave) is set by AT commands.
Figure 1: Different pin outs of HC-05 Bluetooth module
2.1.3. 16 x 2 Alphanumeric LCD
This is a liquid crystal display setup with 16 columns and 2 rows which can simultaneously
display up to 32 characters that includes all capital or small alphabets or numbers. It can display all
special characters those are found in keyboard. It takes ASCII (American Standard Code of
Information Interchange) values as an input for each and every character that needs to be displayed. It
used to display the analog data (which are received by various sensors) coming to the microcontroller
for getting the exact description about the environment around the sensor. That’s why alphanumeric
LCD is considered to be a user friendly component.
2.1.4. Motor Driver
Motor driver board is a component that powers the geared dc motors for certain movements. It
contains L293D IC (integrated circuit) which is a dual H-bridge circuit. It amplifies the output signals
coming out of the microcontroller and then supplies the amplified signal to the geared motor to rotate
either forward or backward. It has ability to provide PWM (Pulse width modulation) signals through
which the speed of the motor can be controlled according to the duty cycle of the output signal
coming from the microcontroller board.
2.1.5. DC Motor
This motor works on direct current which converts the electrical energy to mechanical energy. It
has high torque effect on the wheel due to pinion setup in gearbox. This motor is used in robot
locomotion, hand power tools, food blender and hair dryer etc.
2.1.6. ‘Blue arduino’ android app. (application)
An Android App is nothing but a software cum application that runs on the Android platform.
Basically, android platform is needed for the mobile & tablet edition PCs running on Android
operating system. In this project we have used an app named “BLUE ARDUINO” (Figure 2) that
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controls an Obstacle Sensor Robot. The app has been developed using ‘Android Studio’ – the official
IDE for developing apps that runs in the devices having Android OS (operating system). Android
Studio provides a very user- friendly environment for developing android apps with special features
like: Gradle builder, Translations editor and many powerful debugging & UI tools. The minimum
SDK version of the app is API 15: Android 4.0.3(Ice Cream Sandwich) which aptly signifies the app
will run on 94% of the devices on the Google Play Store. So, the app can run on the devices having
Android OS versions starting from Ice Cream Sandwich to Marshmallow.
Figure 2: ‘BLUE ARDUINO’ android app in smart phone
3. Robot Specification
In the above context, it has been very minutely explained about the functionality of various
components of the robot. But in the real field testing, to accomplish adequate amount of efficacy and
accuracy in manoeuvring the robot, each and every components need to perform at their highest level.
For surmounting such challenges, the specifications of every component should be doctored well
before real time testing. In this context, table depicts about the most accurate specifications of various
components that have been used here.
Table 1:
SN
NAME
Arduino Uno board
1.
2.
Bluetooth
SPECIFICATION
QUANTITY
1
 Microcontroller=Atmega 328 IC
 Digital I/O pins=14
 PWM pins=6
 Analog Inputs=6
 Bluetooth
protocol=Bluetooth 1
Specification v2.0+EDR
 Frequency=2.4GHz ISM Band
 Modulation: GFSK(Gaussian Frequency
Shift Keying)
 Speed: Asynchronous: 2.1Mbps(Max) /
160 kbps, Synchronous: 1Mbps/1Mbps
16 x 2 Alphanumeric  voltage rating=5v
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3.
LCD
 Weight=59g
 ASCII character LCD display with yellow
backlight
4.
Motor driver board
5.
dc motor
6.
caster wheel
7.
plastic chassis
8.
9.
Battery
Wheels















Uses L293D Integrated circuit
Dimension= 4.5 x 3.5 x 1.5 cm
rpm=300
12 v dc motor with gear box
6 mm shaft
Weight=125 gm.
torque =0.5 kg-cm
Outer diameter=32mm
Inner diameter= 19 mm
Length=15.5cm
Breadth=10cm
Ground clearance=4.8cm
Output voltage =8v
Diameter=70mm
Hole diameter=6.1 mm
1
2
1
1
1
1
4. Working Principle
The proposed prototype of Bluetooth controlled robot basically works wirelessly using Bluetooth
technology. The android app that has been created in the smart phone sends signal to the robot to
follow the desired path of the controller. The human controller can manually use the “BLUE
ARDUINO” android app in the smart phone very easily to control the movement of the robot due to
the simplicity and user friendliness of our android app.
The “BLUE ARDUINO” is an app that helps to control the ‘Obstacle Sensor Robot’ via
Bluetooth connection. The app establishes a connection between the Bluetooth modules of the android
device and the robot (Figure 3). Bluetooth is a communications protocol designed for short-range,
low-bandwidth peer-to-peer communications.
Figure 3: Basic block diagram on working of “BLUE ARDUINO” android application
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The local Bluetooth device is controlled via the Bluetooth Adapter class, which represents the
host android device on which the app is running. The function of discovering remote devices to
connect with them is a Discovering method of Bluetooth Adapter class. By this procedure, theHC-05
module scans for the MAC addresses of other Bluetooth modules present in the nearby environment.
For Bluetooth connections Bluetooth Server Socket class is used that connects the two devices
(android device and HC -05 module of robot). Different buttons are used for performing different
functions with the robot like: moving forward, backward, left, right, stop. On clicking any button the
‘OnClickListener’ method invokes and sends data to the Arduino Uno microcontroller board used in
the robot which then interprets as per the code burnt into it. Most importantly, permissions for the use
of Bluetooth are given in the AndroidManifest.xml file of the app. When the app closes the
functioning of the robot also stops.
On the other hand, the HC-05 Bluetooth module present on the robot receives the signal sent by
the ‘BLUE ARDUINO’ android app from the smart phone and transfers it to the Arduino Uno
microcontroller board as per the circuit connection (figure 4).
Figure 4: circuit diagram of Bluetooth controlled robot
This microcontroller board deciphers the gained signal from Bluetooth module and executes the
code encrypted in it. It gives commands (Moving forward or backward or right or left) to the motor
driver board as per instructions given by the human controller. The motor driver IC further empowers
the signal coming from the microcontroller for sending it to the DC geared motors for transferring
these digital signals into real time motion of the robot. Eventually, the robot moves in different
directions and follows the desired path of the human controller by varying the direction of rotation of
DC geared motor.
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Figure 5: Actual setup of the Bluetooth controlled robot
This above prototype portrays how compatibly all components are managed in exact place on
the chassis board with bulky battery source.
Figure 6: View of the Bluetooth controlled robot from the cross section
5. Experimental Reports of The Robot In A Real Time Environment
The controls of the robot completely depend on the commands of the user. The following table
describes the various commands that are being used by the user.
Table 2: Android app controlling Keys
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Nayak et al., International Journal of Current Research in Engineering, Science and Technology
Keys
Functions of Robot
Press “forward” symbol
Moves forward
Press “left” symbol
Moves left
Press “middle” symbol
Stops
Press “right” symbol
Moves right
Press “downward” symbol
Moves backward
In the real time environment the robot travelled from the source position to the target position
avoiding all the obstacles present thereby in the path as per the command of the user. The source and
target positions are (20, 0) and (150, 30) respectively (Figure). The total time span for the travel was
84.3 seconds.
Figure 7: Robot moving in real field filled with obstacles
6. Conclusion
Due to the robustness, sensitiveness and fastness in movement of this robot,
surveillance device in the imminent future. Its further advancement can enable it
coming as intruders through the boarders of the nation and thus this robot can be
with the boarder security forces in the military. The simplicity and reliability
technology can also be used for home automation and wheel chair operation
immensely the physically handicapped persons.
it can be used as
to target enemies
greatly beneficial
of the Bluetooth
which can assist
Acknowledgement
The author(s) received no financial support for the publication of this article
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