Coming Soon: NUKE, and other ramblings....

It's been a bit quiet here, but that means stuff is getting done. NUKE: the Nearly Universal Kinematics Engine under development throughout this fall is nearing release -- a beta version should be out this weekend! This is the same software that powered all 3 of the winners of CNRG's Walker Challenge.

As we approach release, I've been adding a number of things into my code. Most people have probably noticed that I've putting a voltage divider circuit onto an analog port to measure the battery level (LiPOs don't like low voltage levels...). Up at CNRG, I had a bit of "duh, why didn't I think of that" moment when Jon Hylands suggested using the AX-12's onboard voltage measurement. So, without further ado, here's a snippet of code from Jon that will save your LiPOs (it's also at the startup of the default NUKE sketch):

float voltage = (ax12GetRegister (1, AX_PRESENT_VOLTAGE, 1)) / 10.0;
Serial.print ("System Voltage: ");
Serial.print (voltage);
Serial.println (" volts.");
if (voltage < 10.0)
    while(1); 

If you are running this code at startup, you'll want at least a 1000ms delay beforehand, or you won't get a real voltage reading.

-Fergs

CNRG Report, And A New Robot

So, Issy didn't fare so well in the Fire Fighting competition, he had a hard time staying off the walls, and in the one run he made it into the room his power connection broke off -- as they say at NASA, we've had an anomaly.

However, Issy did win the walker challenge, with an awesome time of 17sec.


2 other ArbotiX powered walkers took 2nd and 3rd in the walker challenge, so it was an awesome weekend for Vanadium. The bot that took 3rd was only finished minutes before the competition, we used NUKE to put an IK based gait on it less than an hour before game time, in the end, there wasn't enough time left to get the sensors mounted so it did the course with dead reckoning.

Since CNRG, I've been cleaning up NUKE code, and working on the Mammalian 3DOF template. I'm working on a new walker inspired by Little Dog, he's about 2/3 scale:




As for NUKE, a beta release should be out in 2-3 weeks, it'll be Alpha-release available via SVN late next week. We're shooting for PyPose V1.1 with NUKE to be out in early January.

-Fergs

Issy Goes Fire Fighting -- The Video

Issy is finally fighting fires, here's a video of one of his practice runs this afternoon:

-Fergs

Introducing Sally

I've posted a number of 'teaser' pictures along the way, of my latest bot coming together. So here she is: Sally, a salamander-inspired robot. Here's a video of her first steps.



Over the next several months I'll be working on her kinematics and weight distribution to make the walking more refined. And for anyone scared: No reavers were hurt (or disassembled) during the construction of this robot...

On other fronts, CNRG is just 2 weeks away -- but Issy is almost ready for fire fighting... video soon.

-Fergs

Bioloid Build Tips, #4

More SES Assemblies

I've been assembling a new robot this week, it's using a combination of Bioloid and SES parts.

The photo shows an assembly using SES tubing, SES HUB-08 parts, and the aluminum cubes from SES. I had to enlarge the holes in the red Bioloid parts in order for them to connect to the cube. The HUB-08 fits perfectly on the back of the Bioloid bracket.

-Fergs

Reaver Demo

I've been working on assembling a Biped for mech warfare for a little while now. I finally attached an ArbotiX to it, and started doing pose and capture:


More pics of Reaver:

Bioloid Build Tips, #3

Where to Buy Stuff, Part Two:
There aren't a lot of places to get M2 hardware these days. Your local hardware store likely won't carry it (most don't even carry #2-56 screws, 4-40 being the smallest they stock). Luckily, your hobby store probably has them. The 1/18th scale car craze is great for us robot builders: a number of the models use M2 hardware. The picture to the right shows Reaver's feet attached, using M2x4mm screws from a hobby shop.

Speaking of Reaver's feet, they look familiar, eh? Much of the SES stuff that doesnt specifically hold servos, is compatible with Bioloid if you're creative. The Bioloid brackets hall have 5/8" x 5/8" patterns, which align with many of the SES add-ons. Reaver is using a pair of BRAT feet, and I'm sure everyone has noticed that Issy has SES tube-style legs.

-Fergs