Sample Robots
Here are a few of the many choices you have to pick from if you want to participate in the LVBots Challenge.
You can build and program a bot with Lego Mindstroms! This is a very popular way for kids and teens to create an autonomous robot. They can be programmed with the easy Lego graphical "drag and drop" programming language, or, for more control, with the Not Quite C (NQC) language.
You can also purchase a robot kit, and even modify it with your own ideas. Some popular robot kits are:
The Solarbotics Sumovore - $89
This is a great little sumo robot kit that can compete with no programming required. It also will do line following standard.
You can also get a microcontroller brain board for it, and program it with your own code. The kit requires soldering.
The Mark III - $92
This is another nice sumo robot kit that comes with a PIC microcontroller. It programs with the computer serial port,
and sample code is available. It cam be programmed in BASIC, C, Assembly and other languages. The kit requires soldering.
The Parallax SumoBot - $149
A great beginnaer Sumo kit. Two can be purchased as a competition kit.
Available in USB or serial version. BASIC stamp based, so very easy to program. No soldering Required
The CBA Robot - $89
This robot kits looks to be too large for a mini sumo, but is programmed with the BASIC Stamp, a very easy controller for beginners.
The kit requires soldering.
The BOE-Bot robot kit - $199Also from RadioShack - $150
Another popular robot kit. Too big for mini-sumo, but available with lots of options, including line following. Available in USB or serial version. Also BASIC stamp based, so very easy to program.
You can also find robot kits from:
http://www.lynxmotion.com/
http://www.budgetrobotics.com
http://www.robotstore.com
http://www.acroname.com
Finally, you can build your own bot using plastic, metal, or wood. Buy a controller or build your own to design the entire robot from the ground up.
If you choose to buy a controller, the
Pololu Orangutan and Baby Orangutan are good choices for an inexpensive, yet powerful robot brain.
Pololu also has
Motor Controllers
for all sizes of motors.
