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Vex Pics from FIRST/LEGO/Vex Robotics Competition
antispam_ben writes "Last week's Slashdot article linked to CNN's coverage of the LEGO League robotics competition. LEGO League was only part of the event. I gave a short description and links to the original FIRST Robotics, LEGO League, and new Vex Robotics competitions in this comment. New from the local robotics mailing list is this page of pictures from the Vex competition."
And Vex offers autonomy when? LEGO offers is now, have for several years, for only $200 USD... I do have my facts straight. Get your head around the fact that robotic enthusiasts are more than FIRST, and what marketing really is... geez you can always spend tons of money on a robot, but anyone that claims to have the robot hobby answer for any competition is just wrong. Vex is nothing more than an Erector set with an R/C system added. It is not a robotics set... its just a clever R/C system, and it costs $100 more than a LEGO set that gives you both autonomy and remote control.
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And in reality, there's not enough CPU power to do very much at all.
The only logic you can really do with either is limited to very few cases.
The only way you could really get anything done is by providing a 802-11b network link real-time and having a general purpose computer do the heavy processing for what I'd consider a "moving I/O device".
We've had these Vexx at the Shack for several weeks now, and the only ones that I've seen show real interest in them have been the 18+ slashdot crowd sort (despite the supposed 12-14 age group that they're aimed at). I suppose that it's difficult to get a parent to spring for a $300 starter kit. When it comes down to that, or an iPod for Christmas, I have a feeling that I know which way most kids will lean. However, I do think that it's fantastic that money is being poured into something worthwhile for kids with brains in their heads. It really makes business sense if those are the sorts that RS will be looking to employ.
Ok, I seem to have answered some of my own questions by downloading the inventor's guide (76MB PDF File) from the Vex website.
With the exception of programming, the overall learning curve seems pretty minor. The hardware assembly is only slightly more difficult than comparable Lego kits, and does not seem to require the user to solder anything.
As for additional parts, it sounds like the best option is to purchase two starter kits and combine them into a larger, more functional robot. Although, I did find another site that sells less common Vex parts, such as a pneumatic pump system. It also appears the site will be selling add-on sensors in the near future.
Overall, Vex is looking to have a bright future ahead of it. I'm just hoping it doesn't get killed off due to a lack of market exposure.
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Lego robotics (by roboticists of any age), especially attempts at self-replication, should be well within the spirit of this thread, but I'll push the OT envelope with this link:
http://www.henrylim.org/Harpsichord.html
Yes, that's right, it's made of LEGO's (except for the wire strings) and plays. The mp3 of it sounds just dreadful, but it's like the waltzing bear, it's amazing that it waltzes at all...
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The stuff some of the kids come up with for these contests is somteimes quite amazing. I tagged along witha friend that was judgin g a local one last year and this one group of grade school kids (like 5th or 6th graders) built the most amazing robot I've ever seen....made me feel kind of embarassed about the handbuilt robot I had made for my senior design project as an EE undergrad. I think the advantage the kids have is that their imaginations have no grounding in what can realistically be accomplished. They seem to just try something without worrying about whether or nit it will work. Sometimes having experience doing things can make you a little jaded and doubt what you're doing.