Touch Sensors

Touch sensors are some of the easiest sensors to program and use. When pressed, touch sensors will activate and send a signal to the brain of the robot. The two types of touch sensors are the bumper switch and the limit switch. They may have similar functions and program, but they each have their own intended purpose. A bumper switch is usually used to detect when a robot hits a wall, or to be touched manually in order to start an autonomous function. A limit switch is more likely to be used to stop an arm or other moving feature on the robot when it has reached the point that it should stop. Either way, touch sensors are a helpful tool, especially for beginner teams.

A touch sensor is a digital sensor, and either has a value of 0 or 1. While the bumper or limit switch is not being pressed, the value that it sends to the brain is 0. When it is pressed, the sensor will send out a 1. This is a simplistic idea and can be used for simpler functions, such as in the program above, where the robot will drive forward until the bumper switch is activated, most likely from hitting a wall. Once the bumper sends out a signal of 1, the program then proceeds to stop the drive motors.