Welcome to RickBot!
<-- VERY "UNFINISHED"! -->
Here, you will find out all the
information you need to implement and build your very
own RickBot. This project extends from the
Amélie project by an interface board and custom
firmware present in an EPROM. Part of the beauty of
Amélie is
the ability to change the EPROM and the
interface so that something else is possible. But you
aren't interested in that now. You just want to know how
to make a RickBot!
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Sensors
Every robot needs sensors, so it can tell
where it is - or rather - what it is about to hit.
Here I discuss the
"bump" sensors, and multiplexing. I
also discuss a
"line tracker" that allows
RickBot to
follow a line on the floor. There are other
ideas
too...
Additionally, you can find details of the
options board .
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Drive
control
As a robot needs sensors, it
needs motors. In the RickBot, the
motors are connected to wheels to allow independent
movement.
-
Application
code
Part of Amélie's
firmware is the BIOS. The other part? That's
the application code. It is what makes the
RickBot
"become".
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Possibilities
RickBot is a fairly simple
design. It is possible to
add more features, or to make it smarter. I cover a bit of
both.
Then, there is the "Hairy ideas!" section. One
thing that always annoyed me about "Robot
Wars" is that none of the robots were robots.
There were some pretty hairy designs, and some
impressive weapons... but the robots themselves were
nothing more than souped-up radio controlled toys.
To have a real robot war, we need to have
two autonymous
systems beating the crap out of each other for the
amusement of their creators and audience. I can't
claim to give you firmware sources for this (sorry,
but you will have to think for yourself on this
one!) but I will provide you with a few ideas of my
own.
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As with the Amélie
probject, RickBot is open source and
free for
non-commercial use (by that, I mean you don't make money
out of it - directly or indirectly). Contact me to
licence it for other use.
