We’ve seen all kinds of robots lately but some of them are more usefull than others. For example this wall climbing robot has incredible practical applications. The Waalbot as it is named can climb walls due to some special material applied to it’s legs. This material has this tiny “legs” on all of it’s surface which stick really well to the surface. Currently the technical dificulty is that the same robot cannot climb different kind of surfaces, so you got a smooth surface climbin Waalbot, another one for rough surfaces.
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.
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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]
