YourITronics

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]

The Ants are a community of cubic-inch microrobots at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab. There are two main goals for this project. The first is to push the limits of microrobotics by integrating many sensors and actuators into a small package. The second is to form a structured robotic community from the interactions of many simple individuals. The inspiration behind this idea comes from nature — the ant colony.

The Ants: A Community of Microrobots: [Link] 

This AVR controlled autonomous robot is programmed to follow the brightest light in the room. It uses two wheels and a ping pong ball as a third wheel. Really simple components here and it runs on three AA batteries to sweeten the deal.

Robot follows the light with a ping pong ball: [Via] - [Link]