Monday, January 28, 2013

In Other News

My friends at www.RobotBASIC.org have released their new robot kit for a low introductory offer. http://robotbasic.org/6.html The robot is build to go along with their RROS chip.  What they offer is unique I think because you can't program the chip in a traditional microcontroller way like the Ardiuno or Basic Stamp.  Their RROS chip is pre-programmed with software for a preset interface options.  Normally with a Basic Stamp type microcontroller you could pick any of it's 16 i/o pins to be an input or an output.  With the RROS chip, each pin is assigned to something or an optional something.  For example pin 1 might be set for either sonar or IR sensor, and so on. The nice part is it is designed to work with their RobotBASIC program which is free.

I find it interesting in its design and concept.  It does not match up with my design interests in robotics right now but I wish my friends at RobotBASIC very good luck with their kit.

And in other news....I really need to try to watch the TV show 60 Minutes more often.  They often cover interesting subjects like March Of The Machines from this last Sunday on 1/13/13.  The video can be see here: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50138922n  This article says the A3 or Association of Advancing Automation was not happy with the 60 Minutes piece.  http://www.roboticstrends.com/consumer_education/article/60_minutes_robotics_segment_stirs_controversy/?utm_source=RobTrendsWeekly&utm_medium=email

I'd didn't see anything wrong with the piece.  What do you think?

Robot Vs. Tiger. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbpXw95WbHE If it had a J2 Laser I bet the cat would have chased it.

And incase you missed it, CHARLI The Robot Gangnam Style:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmeJvkN4ntI  "Oppa is Gangnam style.......Eh- Sexy Lady oh oh oh oh"

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Red J2 Out the Door

The customer's finished J2 in a custom red paint scheme was shipped last week along with a bonus, the new J2 Laser. 

The J2 laser consists of a bracket, a micro servo, a 5V red dot laser module and connecting wires.  The new laser module will be an option for J2 robots or available as a separate module from www.J2RScientific.com


Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Heat Shrink Tip

When soldering it is a good idea to cover a solder joint of wires with heat shrink.  Sometimes if you have a solder joint with a bulge or sharp edges sticking up you can cause the heat shrink to tear when it is heated and shrinks. 

To avoid this:
  1.) Cut the heat shrink tubing so it will more than cover the solder joint of the wire.
  2.) Place the heat shrink over the solder joint of the wire.
  3.) Apply heat first to the each end of the heat shrink so it shrinks around the wire
  4.) Apply a modest amount of heat to the center of the heat shrink so it shrinks but is not too tight around the solder joint.

For larger solder joints you can use a thin covering of electrical tape around the soldered wires then use a large diameter of heat shrink tubing.  This will help protect against sharp edges of the solder from tearing through the heat shrink.

And if you are used to using a lighter for heat shrink, think about investing in a heat gun.  It'll make your projects much easier and safer.

Happy Roboting!

Saturday, January 5, 2013

In The Lab Now

Two new J2's are in the lab.  The silver one is a rebuilt J2 I made for myself.  It is the first of a new set of J2 robots that will be used for further research into collaborative game play, human interaction and hunt/avoid behavior.

The awesome looking red one is a custom J2 for a new customer.  The customer let me take a little creative license when he requested it in red.  I made the arms and wheels black to really make the red body and base pop.  The customer gave me a thumbs up on the color scheme so the assemble will be completed, programs loaded and tested and this sharp looking J2 will be shipping out soon.