Making a robot can be an incredibly rewarding experience. Itโs the perfect combination of creativity, engineering and problem solving. However, if youโre just getting started in robotics, it can also be overwhelming. To make things easier for those who are just starting out, weโve 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!
This YouTube ‘commercial’ for the unreleased Parrot AR.Drone quadricopter has ‘maker’ all over it. Get an idea, shoot a slick video, throw in a funky beat, share on the web. Is this the future of maker businesses? The idea is neat — RC that you don’t have to control via IR; as long your phone […]
Spencer G, and his pals Laeo and Ava, built these nifty Mindstorm robots to wander around the living room. His Kid NXT blog is a hoot! Mindstorms with friends
Now that we’ve had a little time to recuperate from all the excitement of judging the contest, here is a more detailed look at the ‘bots:
Del Hatch, who was at the Faire last year showing off his Mendocino Solar Motor, made a big splash again this year with his chess playing robot, which uses an off-the-shelf sensory chess board and robot arm together with the open-source chess engine GNUChess.
Jason Lentz shows off his impressive cardboard exoskeleton at Maker Faire. To hear Jason tell it, the arms were the only tricky part to make. There’s more info at the project’s Facebook group and in Jason’s Flickr collection.
You command the gripper to open and close, and control wrist motion of 120 degrees, an extensive elbow range of 300รยฐ, base rotation of 270รยฐ, base motion of 180รยฐ, vertical reach of 15″, horizontal reach of 12.6″, and lifting capacity of 100g. Added features include a search light design on the gripper and a safety gear audible indicator on all 5 gearboxes to prevent any potential injury or gear breakage during operation. Award-winning kit assembles with simple hand tools. Ages 10 and up.
Ah, 2006…
Er, wait, I meant to say: Ugh! 2006! No doubt a hundred years from now future history will recall, as I do, that the only really good thing that happened in 2006 was the first appearance of Russell the Electric Giraffe at the San Mateo Maker Faire. The years have gotten steadily better since then, for me at least, and certainly for the Faire, and, it would appear, for Russell himself, who is now a five-year Maker Faire veteran. We heart you, oh gentle glowy grazing one. Long may your lava-lamps shine.
