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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. "
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.
>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
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