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Pengyou
 
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Newbie here

Post by Pengyou »

I have browsed your forum but cannot find a "general" category to post my question. I am looking for an inexpensive robot with at least 5 axis of control. I will be teaching an after school robotics club next year - possibly even next semester - and am looking for recommendations. The robot has to have some kind of interface that will let it be connected to a computer, preferably USB. Each of my students has a notebook computer. I want them to be able to create the robot's program on their computer, then connect to the robot to run the program. Please forgive me if this question is already posted. I welcome any referrals to other posts or sites as a response. I am willing to buy an "intermediary", such as arduino or raspberry pi if it will let me connect to a pc.

A bonus...if it is possible to connect the robot to one computer and then let the students access the robot through the network in the classroom, or by bluetooth.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

What is your budget? There are a lot of robots built around an Arduino or Raspberry Pi. Robot platforms like the Zumo or BOE Bot have a 2-motor differential drive system, but can be expanded to offer additional degrees of freedom. Here is one example of a Zumo platform with a pan/tilt head:
https://learn.adafruit.com/pixy-pet-rob ... ng-pixycam

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Pengyou
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by Pengyou »

Thanks! That is a cool link, but I think a robotic arm would be more practical for my uses unless there was wifi to control the robot - though I could be wrong. I am looking to spend no more than $250. Less than that is certainly ok :)

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

You could add a CC3000 module to the Pixy/Zumo bot for WiFi connectivity. https://www.adafruit.com/search?q=cc3000&b=1
That would be slightly over your budget. ($254)
$35 CC3000
$75 Pixy CMU Cam5
$100 Zumo Robot Base
$25 Leonardo
$19 Pan/Tilt kit

The Phenoptix arm is a low-cost option - but has only 3 axis - https://www.adafruit.com/products/2012
The OWI arm is a 5-axis arm, but has no feedback - https://www.adafruit.com/products/548
But with some work, it can be made into a controllable arm: http://www.instructables.com/id/Intro-a ... oull-need/

Lynxmotion makes some nice arm kits. But they start at about $275: http://www.lynxmotion.com/c-27-robotic-arms.aspx

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Pengyou
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by Pengyou »

Thanks! The Lynx motion seems to be the most useful to me - a little over budget but I will have to see if I can do a "federal government" maneuver and find money from elsewhere to buy it. When reading the descriptions they seem to use a proprietary language control system to control the robot. Is there any way to use a universal language like C+++ or Java to control these? The ideal scenario is to be able to not only teach robotics but also to teach a bit of programming that can be used in one of our programming classes.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The SSC32 versions of the arms use a proprietary servo controller & software.
The "botboarduino" version appears to use an Arduino-compatible processor, so you should be able to program it as you would an Arduino. However, I don't have any personal experience with this board.

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AlanCM
 
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Re: Newbie here

Post by AlanCM »

Thanks for the lively discussion - valuable to all of us. Please keep us posted on your findings.

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