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!
Harvey Moon‘s Drawing Machine is, at its core, a pen attached to two belts that are both suspending it over a page and controlling its movements. Taking its cues from computer data, the Drawing Machine can reproduce any digitized picture or photograph, except the results are more akin to print-making in that every creation is unique with its own idiosyncrasies. Filmed at Maker Faire Bay Area 2011.
Last year when we did the Make: Robot Build, where readers were challenged to make a CoasterBot using dead DVD media (aka “coasters”) as the main bot building material, we were amazed at the ingenuity and resourcefulness of many of the entries.
I love the thought of controlling a robot through one-to-one gesture correspondence. Taylor Veltrop built this excellent Veltrobot based upon a Kondo KHR-1HV robot, and worked out how to control it using a Kinect and Willow Garage’s Robot Operating System. Taylor has posted docs and source code here, in case you want to build your […]
Malte Ahlers’ delta robot (site is in German) uses a Kinect as a controlling device. [Via Hacked Gadgets]
Chris the Carpenter is giving his wife a ride, Jaimie’s robot is bigger than him, MarkusB keeps launching rockets, Stoerpeak has made a cheap robot arm that can copy moves, and LMR is written in sweets by mogul’s m&m sorter #3. All this in what will be the last weekly version of The Latest in Hobby Robotics, as we’re changing the format of the show to be a monthly tutorial video.
Craig Smith of South Milwaukee, WI, built this Yoda with moving eyes and ears. We all love Yoda. Some have the life size statue in their home. But this thing tops them all. Built from a Halloween mask, the Yoda stands about life size. The eyes were cut out of the mask and the head […]
During Maker Faire Bay Area 2011, we caught up with Lindsy Lawlor, creator of one of the most popular attractions at the Faire– Russell the electric giraffe. With the help of his English programmer, also named Russell, the rolling, walking, talking giraffe bot gets better every year with new sounds, touch sensors, and lights.
