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Build Your Own Robot For About $89
usgrant writes: "The Robotics Club of Yahoo has grown to 500+ members over the last two years, and now they have created a little something of their own. A few months ago they released their own public robot kit called TRaCY. The kit goes for $89 and has the basic features: IR detection, BASIC Stamp II programmable chip, bump sensors, light sensors, servo motors ...
The chip is programmable and is made by Parallax. Write the code on your comp, and upload to the robot through a serial port. The wizards at TRCY even added sample source code to have the 'bot wander the room. (Sorry, I don't think the software has been ported to Linux...)
They also released the 'parts' list and a PDF manual for instructions. Lots of people contributing to this on their free time, and looks like some new developments are coming in the near future. "
Comment removed based on user account deletion
There's lots of affordable robot kits over at robotstore.com, no this isn't an ad I just happen to get their catalog. Or for 25k a day you can rent the 60,000 pound firebreathing car eater Robosaurus.
Who's going to be the first to enter one of these in robot wars
Then again... why exactly would we want to port this to linux?
I can understand porting the PC front-end to linux so we can use our machines to programme it but why the robot itself?
You only need an OS like linux (or whatever) in the robot itself if it's going to be really clever (or if you want it crunching SETI as it wanders around) And this will tend to require a bigger processor, more ancillary components, bigger batteries, heavier construction, beefier motors, bigger batteries etc etc....
A totally different type of robot altogether
Hohum
troc
Troc's dubious podcast and blog: http://www.trocnet.net
Sorry, but I think this is "Interesting" enough to cancel out the "Offtopic"-ness. Would someone care to explain this thing? From the context, I guessed that it would cause something "Bad" to happen, as in to give the hypothetical Windows-liker something to think about, though a crash seemed a bit much to hope for, since, come on -- it's just a local URL.
So, I fired up the ole VirtualPC, after making a copy of my C-drive disk image file (let's see you back up and restore a real PC that easily), and tried it. I first looked for the corresponding file, but I didn't see anything called "con" on my "C:"; I thought maybe it was just an NT thing (I only virtually run Win95 on my G4), but it still worked -- at least VPC is bug-for-bug compatible with the real thing. Now I have to know: What is this thing? From the form of the URL, I guessed that it might be some sort of system executable, maybe being called recursively and causing a stack overflow or something. Is that even close? Also, on what versions of Windows does it work?
By the way, IJLS:
I also have to agree with EnglishTim who, further down, wonders how good an idea this is from an advocacy standpoint: after suffering unknown loss of data and/or damage to his system, will the victim blame: (a) Microsoft, for making such a shoddy OS; (b) himself, for being stupid enough to bite at an obvious trap; or (c) you, for putting it there?
An even worse thought: what if some script kiddy, instead of defacing a web site he had "0wn3d" with juvenile graffiti, were to just replace the "HREF=" of some of the site's links with this, so that people would see the site as usual, but get unexplained crashes?
David Gould
David Gould
main(i){putchar(340056100>>(i-1)*5&31|!!(i<6)<< 6)&&main(++i);}
Hehe nice analogy. Exactly. It's pretty funny to watch the often knee-jerk reaction around here to any new piece of hardware, which is basically, "What will it take to run Linux?" All around the world, there are efforts underway to port chairs, phone poles, alligators, keyboards, toasters, etc. to Linux. ;)
BTW the robot has a BASIC microcontroller so programming wouldn't be a total bitch. It's certainly a step up from the old Z80 chips we used to write assembly code for to control our robots. Nevertheless, not portable to Linux.
--
I think there is a world market for maybe five personal web logs.
But seriously folks, wander on over to LynxMotion for some nifty robotics. I got their first Hexapod 2 walker kits a couple of years ago.
The usual disclaimer about not being part of the company, blah blah
-=Bob
But really, is there a market for a voice controlled MP3 robot stereo? And the most important thing - will it run Linux (which is by the way, not Red Hat)?
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
mount a little LCD display on the front, a little chip to control it. A microcontroller attatched to a tiny wireless reciever.. Map out the company floorpan for him. Send a message to Bill in accounting that 'suits' are the root of all evil. See how upset the suit is when he has no idea who sent that little bugger with the LCD in.
See Bill run. Funny, funny Bill. See techies laugh. Silly, silly techies.
------------------------------------------
If God Droppd Acid, Would he see People???
What are we going to do tonight Brain?
I'd like to append a law to Asimov's list:
The robots are going around killing everybody! Just wait a few days and there'll be a patch on windowsupdate. *ahem*
Trolls, it must be cool to be that bored.
Nice pictures, add a front end and a solar cell and slotless slot car here we come.
I see even classic Slashdot is now pretty much unusable on dial up anymore.
[end karma killing humor]
Q: What do you think about American Culture?
A: I think it's a good idea.
Q: What do you think about American Culture?
A: I think it's a good idea.
(adapted from Gandhi)
No, at first glance it would seem that until you can design circuits, you're stuck building someone else's designs, but this is not the case, and kits like this one figure into why:
:-)
Most good kits have information on how and why the circuit works, and break it down into its various simpler subsystems. This allows you to understand what is happening on a basic level, and gives you an idea as to the various methods and approaches to problems. There is also often "alternative things to try" info, which shows how to derive different behaviour from a circuit by changing different component values. Thus you get a hands-on feel for what is going on. After you've built or looked at a few kits, and have even a basic grasp of what components do, you can follow the circuits a bit closer, and get a lot more out of the "how it works" info. Then you can experiment with your own changes, and start making your own circuits by finding one that does roughly what you want and then altering it slightly to fit the bill. Now you really start learning. As you get better at altering circuits, you can achieve your goals from circuits less and less suited to your task. Futhermore, as you are familiar with the subsystems that make up a robot (eg motor drivers, sensor circuits etc), you can design your own robot by building it out of the various subsystems that will do the stuff you want (or close enough that you can modify them).
By now, you're building a sort of "clip-art" library in your head of circuit sub-subsysytems - useful component configurations that crop up everywhere. Then you start cut&pasting these configurations to make major differences in circuit functionality. And soon you can actually design your own circuits (to a limited degree - but becoming less and less limited), but by now you've been designing original robots for a fair time.
Qualities like optimisation, elegance, efficiency, simplicity, etc are harder to learn by osmosis and are probably easier to aquire via a solid education.
The point is that you don't have to be able to design circuits before you can design robots - there is a gradual progression of being able to modify circuits to your own unique ends, and additionally of being able make new complex circuits by combining existing subsystems, thus you can create new and original designs long before you have full mastery of the field.
The length of the process would depend on how much time you spend on the hobby. I've spent very little time on it, so it's taken over a year to get to the point where I can design new circuits but much prefer to find a really well-designed and efficient circuit optimised-to-hell-and-back, and modify that (even if of significantly different purpose), thus benefiting from the brilliance of someone who knows a lot more than me
I've used the Basic Stamp for several projects in the past (and present!), and I have found the 'P-BASIC' language fun to use. The projects I've used the Basic Stamp for have ranged from controllers for complex electric doors (that require several motions with different motors in succession, where the stamp registers each motion as complete and starts the next motion) to complex remote operations piggybacked on top of X10 involving sensors, servos, etc etc.
:)
The film industry has used them for some time now for set design and filming equipment - to a greater extent than most people realize. They're cheap, almost infinately flexible, and don't have too rough of a learning curve.
Those of you that are dismissing them as worthless toys ought to have a closer look at them to see what they have been used to create. If you use your imagination you can come up with tons of great things to do with these things. I hate to do that anymore though (imagine), as I've come up with enough such projects to fill three lifetimes!
I hesitate to say this here in fear of killing my karma, but I'd say the usefullness of them surpasses their LEGO counterparts by a significant margin. If you're into such projects, have a look at them, you won't be disapointed.
--SONET (who is not associated with the company(ies) related to this story by any means)
"Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don't recognize them." -Ann Landers
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do. --Benjamin Franklin
Where I go to school, we use the Parallax Basic X stamp chips in our Computer Control class. The interface is a really bastardized version of Microsoft Basic that you write in a really basic IDE (no pun intended). These things are really neat (in what you can do with them). We have used them in animatronics projects, some people chose these over our mit handy boards to drive their robots at Trinity Firefighting Robotics Competition (GREAT Robotics competition. http://www.trincoll.edu/events/robots/ (Some of the sights there include a walking robots (kinda like a duck.), other amazing homebrew robots, and teams from all over the world (Esp. Gov't sponsored teams from Israel). Although personally I prefer the mit handyboard (because I can use interactive c under linux to program it), the stamp chip has its advantages in size, weight, cost, lack of learning curve... but this is balanced by some minor speed, functionality, and complexity issues. Altogether the Parrallax BasicX chips are fun toys ;)
-invictus
-----------
#!/usr/bin/perl -sp0777iX+d*lMLa^*lN%0]dsXx++lMlN/dsM0j]dsj
$/=unpack('H*',$_);$_=`echo 16dio\U$k"SK$/SM$n\EsN0p[lN*1
--Ks9
You can't port the source of a robot to linux. The source serves one main purpose -- robot control. You typically create the source using an operating system (in any text editor), compile it for the target processor (be it Parallax, or others such as PIC microconntroler, Motorola 68hc11, etc) and upload/execute it. The code controls the servo motors and other electronics (sensors, actuators, etc). Porting to linux means you require a board with enough computer hardware to actually RUN linux. Now, this could be done but a small robot like that with an operating system as robust as linux is just overkill. Not to mention the hardware would be expensive. If you want to learn more about robotics, check out http://www.eos.uoguelph.ca/webfiles/zelek/05-340/0 5-340-syllabi.html This page contains a course I have taken and we built a robot that is to play 'soccer' recieving commands from a central computer. Now, 89 bucks is cheap (our robots are probably worth 500-700 bux CAN) but with the right knowledge you could probably bring that down quite a bit.
How is this different from Mindstorms? It sounds pretty similar, except that the software for MindStorms has been ported to other platforms (like Not Quite C).
darren
Cthulhu for President!
(darren)
Does anyone else find it a little disconcerting when a site starts out with "Welcome Slashdot Readers" and then tries to sell something? Personally, I do consider this story news, but I don't much care for the idea of sites viewing Slashdot news stories as an advertisement portal.
Wow, you just gave me a great idea. Robotic cock fighiting would be cool. Forget about those sissy MIT contests where a robot trie to complete an obstacle course. I can see it now...in the back of a seedy Mexican store...the animatronic horror as a special Killer Rooster Bot from Argentina lays into the robotic Little Yerry Seinfeld...brake fluid spewing everywhere...servos flailing dented rolled aluminum limbs...the smell of freshly drawn lubricant dripping over alloy frames...the sound of torn rubber fittings gnashing in gears... And, best of all, I'd have an excuse to grease up my big shiny cock. :-o
:-)
Am I the only one who saw that episode of Seinfeld about the cockfighting? Just think of it: PETA should give us a medal for this idea.
"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws."--Tacitus, *The Annals*
>Why use a cheezy microcontroller that you program in BASIC?
/damn/ cool, but most
Simplicity.
The Cirrus ARM SoC has 208 pins. It's in a TQFP (smallish surface-mount) package.
Have you ever tried to design and print a board
(Let alone hand-assemble) for a processor of that complexity on a hobbist budget?
On the other hand the PIC-based Stamp is a very
simple 28(4?) pin DIP, requires no external
memory, no PROM burner (just a serial link), and is very prevalent in the hobbist community.
I think the PIC is a good choice for a low-cost,
easy to build, easy to program robotics project.
Granted, the ARM SoC looks
hobbists can't afford the tools to design with something that complex.
Anyways, does a little 'Turtle' style 'bot really
need to have a system that powerful, let alone need to run Linux?
SoC datasheet: http://www.cirrus.com/ftp/pubs/ps7111db.pdf
--Kevin
=-=-=
The Basic 2 Stamp is just a PIC microcontroller with a nice serial interface and a Basic interpreter slapped on. Cost (for 1) about $100 or so (obviously this company gets it cheap in bulk).
Cost of just the PIC without the less useful attachments about $8.
There's no reason for a sig here.
Why use a cheezy microcontroller that you program in BASIC?
ARM7's are cheap. Specifically the Cirrus Logic ARM "system on a chip" series of embedded processors. Sound support, runs linux, up to 70MHz or so. Super cheap (around $20 in large quantities). And they probably use less power than these basic stamp module uprocs.
My other first post is car post.
As seniors at college we had to complete a group "Design Project" as a graduation requirement. We decided to try and make an device that would activly tune a guitar using small motors. I wanted to spec out a "fashionable" processor, such as something based on the 68000, and the thought of using an $80 Basic stamp purchased out of a jameco catalog irked me. But the darn thing did the job. I know, what's the point. I just felt like posting something for once.