Robotics

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!

“Skeletonics” Exoskeleton Is Kinda Like Stilts For Your Whole Body

“Skeletonics” Exoskeleton Is Kinda Like Stilts For Your Whole Body

All the primary source material here appears to be in Japanese, in which I am sadly illiterate, but word on the street is that this is a college-level student engineering project. It’s called Skeletonics, and I want to describe the technology as a “passive exoskeleton,” because it does not have any servomechanisms and just amplifies the speed and reach of the wearer’s natural movements. That would be opposed to an “active exoskeleton,” which, you know, would be one that actually adds power to a movement. I dunno what good it may be, but it sure looks like fun. If nothing else, you could build one and sell rides in it at the county fair. [via Hack a Day]

Where Have All the Robots Gone?

Where Have All the Robots Gone?

Right after the Japanese earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster, I began jokingly mentioning to friends: “At least Japan has lots of robots that can help.” Then, as the days have worn on, and the tragedies mount, I started seeing comments on Facebook and blogs, asking: “Where are the robots!?” Where are the robots? Japan is […]

This Week in Hobby Robotics 02

Frits and Rik are back with another episode of This Week in Hobby Robotics! Find out what’s going on in the land of robots. Frits (from Denmark), who works professionally in web concept development, is the creator of Letsmakerobots.com, a popular international source for hobby robotics. His cohost, Rik (from Holland), is part of the […]

Polar Bear Spy Cams

Polar Bear Spy Cams

These covert cameras employed by wildlife videographer John Downer imitate natural elements of the Arctic Norwegian environment to grab an insanely closeup view of the polar bear’s journey. Jacob Resneck at Cool Hunting writes: Downer employs three types of cameras to track the lives of two mother bears as they lead their clubs across Arctic […]

Make It Last Build #3: Drawbot Winners!

Make It Last Build #3: Drawbot Winners!

Maker “colin.faulkingham’s” Drawbot entry oPossum5150 used shipping envelope cardstock to create this Drawbot pen holder We’re happy to announce the winners in our Make It Last Build Series Drawbot project. This time, we did a drawing of images from the MAKE Flickr pool (tagged: makeitlast). And the winners are: First Place Prize: colin.faulkingham Second Place […]