How To build a simple robot

By Roger Arrick every week I receive many e-mails from people who want to start building robots. Usually, people want to do that from scratch by simply using parts found in the house or at the hardware store and Radio Shack. As a manufacturer of robots for 30 years, here's my take on this topic. -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ WHAT'S A ROBOT? Firstly, we will decide what a "robot". In my view, a car is not a remote control robot because it has no brains of its own. It has no way to take a decision on its own. If you want to build a machine that merely responds to your remote control, then just use a remote control car or other toy. But I do not think you can call it a robot. Although the robot has an edge of the brain, it can still accept instructions from an operator and to be called a robot to be a robot, it should have the capacity to think - to make decisions. This may seem difficult at first but really tiny computer can be programmed to make decisions. Here is an example of a decision of a small robot with a small brain could make: IF LEFT FRONT WHISKER SENSOR ON THEN STOP, GO BACKWARDS 2 FEET, TURN RIGHT, CONTINUE. This is a very common "IF-THEN 'statement. A machine that can execute the instruction is actually a robot. Therefore, the conclusion is that to be called a robot, you really need a brain and a captain how to schedule it. --------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ ----- HOW TO COMPLICATED AS IT? I want to encourage you, but I be honest, the construction of a robot is not easy. Now, if you talk about a small building blocks base using and making distance, whereas it is pretty easy, but you do can not call it a robot because it has no brain. Lego Mindstorms have a brain and we will talk about that later. If you want to build a robot from scratch, you will need the following: Design and build a base. Locate and drive and the purchase of rudder. have access to drill press, band saw, sander (and often a machine). Design and construction of the circuit motor drive (s) . Design and construction of a micro controller. Design and construction of sensor circuits. learn to program and write programs from scratch. It is a task that a normal person would take several months or years. Indeed, as the former president of the Dallas Personal Robotics Group, I know engineers who spent several years just to have a working mobile. I am not trying to discourage