If you’re into robotics then you must know about the sumo competitions between autonomous robots. Seeker II is one of the competitors who proved his good design in battle. In this project you will have all the information you need to build yourself a mini-sumo robot.

The Seeker II is using a PIC16F876 providing four analog to digital converters for sensors, timing functions, a PWM output to control the motors and also allows for future calibration, testing and debugging. The robot is equipped with two range finding sensor from Sharp, GP2D12, placed right at the front and connected to analog inputs A0 and A1 of the PIC. Other two Fairchild QRD1114 sensor are placed at the bottom and used as edge finders and are connected to analog inputs A2 and A3.

The robot comes with two wide wheels which offers a good amount of traction, each wheel having its own motor. The motors, Faulhaber 1717, are driven by a SN754410 h-bridge IC controlled by the PIC. If the EN input is set high than Y output of the h-bridge will be same as the A input, if EN is set low then the Y output is turned off on the SN754410. The PIC controls the speed of the motors with PWM.

Ports C7 and C6 are used for serial communication, to watch, test and debug software, as well as to read log files from EEPROM.

In the link you will find block diagram, schematics and code for microcontroller.

Mini-sumo Robot: [Link]

“Bilbo, look out for the Dragon!” cried Frodo. “Dragon? Nonsense! There hasn’t been a Dragon around here for a thousand years!” said Bilbo… but little did he know what some people are building in their dungeons. Presenting “Puff” the fire fighter Dragon. I bet Smokey the Bear will lose his job soon, as forest fire prevention mascot.

The Dragon, once it finds a fire, has it’s eyes fixed on it, closes in and puts the fire away with his breath. He he I know what your thinking but it’s napalm glands are only active in angry mode. If he fails to put down the fire after two sweeps, he backs away to save his skin.

This project is based on an Arduino processor and MotorShield. Two gear motors with 224:1 ratios and PolyMorph axle extensions are used for movement. Puff moves his head to left and right with the help of a servo and does that in a 60-120 degree range. His “eyes” are two light sensing resistors, each one placed at the end of a heat shrinking tube so that localization of the fire is more precise. Also you must isolate the back of the resistors as well, for the same reason.

Once his eyes are fixed on the fire his breath comes from a little fan and it’s motor. A Sharp IR sensor provides cliff and obstacle detection. You will have to angle it so that it’s focus point falls at 10cm away on the floor. The Dragon’s head is made of paper that you can print with your desired model.

So get your scissors and build a Dragon!

Fire Fighter Dragon: [Link] – [Via]

This is a very interesting DIY project, a little Segway, off course it won’t carry you but it will self balance. The brain of the robot is the Arduino board, the entire robot is powered from a battery,  although the author tried to keep the cost to minimum the final “price” was above 300$.

The sensor for the balancing algorithm was a 2 way accelerometer and one encoder in each motor, all the electronics was bought as a kit, since the author as he stated, a programmer. This can be encouraging for those who want to replicate the robot, since you don’t need to be a hardware guru to build it.

The control algorithm needs a lot of adjusting, trial and error tests and patience.

The balancing robot has one major inconvenient, how to get it up? It is a lot of fun doing it and certainly it is a noticible achievement, but in lack of control it will just stay in one place. I recommend this project to students who want to experiment with different control algorithms like PID, Fuzzy.

Balancing robot: [Link]

This application explains how to make a light detector for ARobot. This can be used to tell when a light is on or off, whether the robot is inside or outside, or for light following. This is a simple expansion and does not require soldering if using a breadboard.

It does assume that you have attached a breadboard and an expansion cable to the ARobot . This circuit and the light sensor could be mounted and soldered to a perf board and located to a movable head. Multiple light detector sensors could be used to detect the direction of light.

Light Detector Application: [Link]

This robot spider is controlled by a powerful Parallax microcontroller that fits the job perfectly. You can also use it under other projects , being a powerfull microcontroller it fits many jobs. The robot is fitted with the following sensors:

1x ultrasonic sensor (Deva-tech SRF04)
2x sensor with micro-switches Actuators:
3x Standard Model servos for the musculoskeletal
1x Micro servo to the pan of ultrasonic sensor “

Thats pretty impressive, and the robot looks really cool.

Robot Spider Powered by a Parallax Microcontroller: [Link] – [via]

But the designers think that this problem can be solved by developing a new “sticking” material that will be applied on the robots legs. Just imagine the practical applications of something like this: the robot could go into tight spaces inspect pipes, structures, wires.
click more to see the video:
Wall Climbing Robot Could Come In Handy: [Link]

This robot doesn’t look too good, but it servers its purpose, it proves that it can be done at home. The bot its based on Qwerk, a robot processor board very popular these days. The Qwerk is made to control myriad robots; it can control up to four motors and sixteen servos, while interfacing to sensors with eight analog ports, sixteen digital I/O, and an i2c bus. It also has two USB sockets so that robots may include a USB webcam and a wireless 802.11 network adapter.

The home linux robot its built mostly of what was around a computer webcam taken apart and modified to see infrared light, some wheels from a toy airplane, etc.

The Home Linux Robot: [Link]

RF is truly the best way to remotely control a robot. But RF communications are not for beginners who often stumble on various problems. For example the way you design your boards has a great impact on your signal. Doing it wrong could mean signal deviance. That’s why it’s recommended to use RF boards that come in pair, already assembled. They’re not too expensive and you can avoid allot of trouble.

RF Modem Robotics Project: [Link]

Taurus 2 is the second version of the Taurus Robot build by Andrew. The main reason for building Taurus2 was to fix the errors from Taurus, and there were some nasty errors:

• Size Matters – Taurus was too big. The problems I had exponentially increased with the size. Forces were greater, as well as the price of everything. I will limit T2 to about the size of a shoebox.
• Friction – Treads were bad. Caused way too much torque in the system. Bye-bye treads, hello large synchronous high traction wheels.
• Chains, Gears – Bad. Very bad. The main reason for failure. I refuse to use them again. Ever. Servos have built in gear boxes, and are easily controllable. I will use them.
• Terrain – Taurus did not conform to terrain as expected (partially due to tread failure). T2 will have a dynamic terrain conforming system. And it’s a simple design as well.
• Steering – Treads made turning nearly impossible due to friction. Ive decided to independently control each wheel for T2.

And here is what Taurus2 will feature:

• zero degree turning radius
• near omni-directional movement (singularities at maximum servo rotations)
• simulated rack and pinion movement
• dynamic terrain conforming

The project is really great, and Andrew provides all the source files and CAD designs so you don’t have to worry about anything, you just have to start the project.

Taurus2 a reborn-ed robot: [Link]

BEAM is a type of robotics that stands for Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics, and Mechanics. BEAM robotics focus on simplicity and do not use any programming to accomplish their tasks. Many of the robots are either photophobic or phototropic and will react to their light source accordingly.

Beam Robots: [Link]