Hello all, i'm new to this robot building thing and i had some questions. I've never built a robot before and was really looking into getting the lego mindstorm nxt set. I've came very close to buying it, but in a way i feel like it is kind of cheating, seeing how it is all put together for you and it seems to me to be proprietary
Ok here is what i have so far for my first mini robot. I want a basic robot that moves back and forth, and maybe have a light sensor so it doesnt straight run into things.
THINGS I KNOW I STILL NEED
--robot chassis
--wheels
--light sensor
THINGS I'VE PICKED OUT
http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/984 My basic gears/motors to make the thing spin
http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1173 Rechargable batteries, i'm not sure how much power i'm going to need or mah ?
http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1216 Microcontroller to control what exactly, the gears/motor right ?
that's all i have so far. I'm worried about the microcontroller, will it come with instructions on how to program it ? I want to build from scratch and build small, i feel if i do it this way i will learn a lot more then the likes of the nxt. Also the more i learn i can slowly add more and more things to a kit.
I'm curious if you guys can give some insight on to the parts i've selected, and any additional parts i need. Is a voltage regulator required ?
That part kind of confuses me a bit.
Your help is appreciated
MY GOAL
end result of years of playing with these varios parts mortors servos and ect is to build a robot that will go to the fridge, open the fridge up and grab a pop out if it and bring it to me. Sound a little extreme/lazy, i'm sure it does. I just think it would be cool. I could see myself spending hours programming different tasks/voice commands, eccetra into it.
Also what do you guys think about prebuilt robot kits like the nxt, or the floor vacuming robot that they turned into a kit, can't remember the name. Also i saw microcontrollers with lcd screens on it, what's that all about ? I know this is a lot in one email but i appreciate any information you can provide. The simpler the explanation the better
Thanks,
Justin