[DonRotolo]

The CMU cam can be taught to recognize a "color", anywhere in RGB-space, and can also be given 'tolerance' parameters to account for some lighting or color variations.

Instead of having your controller process image data (ouch!), the CMUcam does this for you, providing signals that say "I've found that color", "This is how 'big' the color is" (i.e., how much of that color is in the field of vision), and "this is the center of the 'blob' of color". Exactly what you need to 'see' a cone from 30 feet or more and go to it.

Programming it is also not difficult, but you are well advised to read all of the instructions explaining it. Also search here. The part most folks have the most trouble with is calibrating the camera - setting the color and tolerance, so that the object is found, but only the object and not every stray cat that runs past the robot. This takes a little tweaking by trial and error. The LabView calibration routine makes it a LOT easier to do well.

Your color sensor is meant to have light shine upon it. Unless the cone glows brightly, and you have a good lens system to focus the light from a small area (don't want it 'seeing' a 45 degree field of vision...) the RGB sensor you propose will not work.

Don