Making a robot can be an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s the perfect combination of creativity, engineering and problem solving. However, if you’re just getting started in robotics, it can also be overwhelming. To make things easier for those who are just starting out, we’ve put together some tips and tricks to help makers bring robots to life! From the basics of assembling your robot to software implementation, these pointers will give you everything you need to get started on your robotic adventure!
Last week or so we mentioned there was something happening over on WhiteBox Robotics and now they’ve announced their new Model 914 PC-BOT for pre-order. The PC-BOTs come in a couple flavors, and you’ll need to add your own PC, but they’ve taken care of the hard parts- locomotion, motors, power, sensors, etc… for $1,200 or so it’s not exactly cheap, but once you add up all the components and software it’s not bad (the under $2k home robot is finally here). Link.
RoboCup soccer match results are in via Sportsdot.org- The American entry from CMDash from Carnegie Melon fell 2-0 in robot soccer to the powerhouse German squad, the MicroSoft HellHounds. After the match, the German robot dogs were programmed to flex their metal biceps. With the time to devote to development and the financial backing of a company like Microsoft, the German entries are much more polished than their American counterparts at the moment. Last month at the RoboCup German Open, the Germans dominated nearly every category. Link.
Zunk writes “While traditional approaches essentially start with a “brain,” and attempt to build robots “downward” from that, BEAM robotics starts from simple reflexes, in a “bottoms-up” approach. The majority of BEAM robots are non-computerized (although simple CPUs can be used to drive them, in a “horse and rider” sort of way). Unlike many traditional processor-based robots, BEAM robots are cheap, simple, and can be built by a hobbyist with basic skills in a matter of hours. Because of this, BEAM is an excellent way of getting started in robotics, and of learning about electronics”. Link.
I’ve been traveling over the last couple days and just saw this “Why struggle with heavy baggage? Dragging suitcases through busy airport lounges is tedious, backbreaking work – but it doesn’t have to be that way”. Motorized luggage. I’ve found airports don’t like wires, batteries and motors built in to things that normally don’t have them, at least not my little projects. I’ve been thinking of building a suitcase that powers a WiFi finder when rolled (vibrates the stick, beeps or handle glows) but realized I’d have even more trouble with my bags.
The galaxy’s most lovable robot inspires its fans to clone him.
Hacking robot toys is all in a day’s work for Natalie Jeremijenko. Dale Dougherty trails the UCSD professor for a day of fun at the races, transforming toy robotic dogs into environmental avengers.
About a year ago I was at Radio Shack headquarters hanging out with my friend and Make pal Dave, while there I saw the now released Vex Robotic Kits in early development. The cool thing, amongst other cool things about these robotic kits is that they were specifically designed to be used in the FIRST national high-school science competition (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). We’ll try and do a review of these here right away. I’m so thrilled to see these. PC Magazine article here, along with photos here.
