Chris, you always take me back to my school days of robots and BBC Micros in these videos, and I thank you greatly for that. As great as modern tech is, the idea that we can move a robot with a computer seems as fresh now as it was over 40 years ago and with your delivery, doubly so. Top stuff indeed!
I have to admit that the Pico is more impressive than I first thought. I really like the 3D printed bracket you created. With that being said, your friends Friction and Gravity haven’t always friendly with me. “Ouch, me fall down!” “Looking forward to your next video.” says Zeberdee.
@@KennethScharf More always seems to be better. My first computer was a Timex Sinclair 1000 and with its memory expansion pack it had a whole 16 k of memory. Now I suspect 16 gb of memory is a little small for my needs. LOL. With that being said, I do hope the next version of the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W gets more memory too. We can only hope.
@@perrymcclusky4695 My MSX1 machine has 64K of memory (only 23K available for BASIC) and I was able to make almost everything I can think of, just remeber to not include unnecessary libraries. Programming back then was more exciting.
With our friend Christopher we go back to childhood. But today I could see this robot bringing my glass of Sunday night whiskey from the bar to my chair. I have until Christmas to finalize it. Thanks.
Glad I was able to get to this before the day ended. The fact we can do this kind of thing with such a low cost and time investment (relatively speaking) is so amazing to me.
Woohoo! Back to robots and Raspberry Pi stuff!... Yep, a screen, little arms, a camera which feeds back to the interface, and oh look, we have a baby Vector Robot!!! 😊 All we need to do then is add voice commands!🤔 Really happy for this video, it's exactly what I've been struggling with getting working... Thank you soooo much!
Very tightly put, both in hardware (looks almost like a little chair on caterpillars) and software (you have almost real time reaction to the web controls) 👏
3.. 2.. 1.. Activate! I loved watching Robot Wars back in the day, so this is interesting for me. Nice how you can attach these boards together to control a Robot. And make a simple webpage as a GUI controller. Thumbs up, Chris! :)
Robot Wars was an excellent show. :) The Zumo chasis is apparently popular in "mini sumo" robot competitions, as a front "bulldozer" blade is available to slot into the front, whilst keeping the footprint within 10x10cm (which are apparently the rules).
Now you can remotely play with your pets and check the house at the same time (So many possibilities, OMG). Open Source is where it's at. Excellent video as usual Christopher, and have a good rest of your weekend. As Always, Be Smart and Stay Safe.
Hello Chris, That's an amazing project because of simplicity and practicality reasons, I'm sure that you know all what I'm about to say but just to let others know that there is always a space for improvement as you mentioned in the video, Regarding the html code, you can actually use one form element (without specifying it's action) and then set required formaction on the submit buttons, also, instead of send the html in each response, you can send it only when the request is empty, and to prevent the page from reloading after submit you cam specify a target where the response will be delivered to, so it may look like this
anyways, it will not make it faster but it may save a few bytes in the response, If it's up to me I'll use XHR or WebSocket API for faster response time Sorry for the long post but I just get excited 😁 Thanks once again Chris and have a nice week!
What a fun video! One comment is that it felt a bit rushed. I am used top a more measured pace from your videos. Not a knock, just an observation. The documentation you provided is excellent and goes far beyond what most videos provide. Thanks much for that. I do hope you return to this project and look forward to what you do with it.
Neat. I like it. The one thing I have never ever seen done is for the Pico W to be turned into an open access wifi hotspot to control robots etc. It's always done on another network or as a secure hotspot with IP login.
Gotta love the Zumo. And the Pico. And the web interface. Easily accessed parts and code... Very cool project Chris, thanks for another great video. 😎👍
i love watching your videos every sunday it's my favorite way to end the weekend by watching explaining computers and is the fascinating favorite thing to do of mine
This is precisely the kind of thing that I enjoy most! I tried to get an RPi RP2040, but was forced to settle for a board with the RP2040 included. The Cytron Maker Pi RP2040 includes 2 motor relays and 7 discrete 4-pin Grove connectors. So far it has been a disappointment, but that's likely because this is so different from using Python via GPIO on a Zero W or other CPU packing RPi. It would interest me to see the Maker Pi board run through its paces in your most capable hands as I am without much joy using the board so far. Perhaps you could repeat today's exercise using the Maker Pi RP2040? The whole smash cost me $12 and it will do as I require ... eventually!
Many thanks. This is an excellent tutorial that helped me develop my WiFi controller + WiFi Rover which circumvents the use of a webpage interface. Things will get really interesting when RPi unlock the BT on the Pico W, and I look forward to your update when this happens!
Agreed -- a Bluetooth driver for the Pico will be a great advancement, not least for making wireless robot controllers. And I understand we will get this fairly soon now.
@@ExplainingComputers The updated SDK was released yesterday with BT support in C/C++. As you said, it should not take too long for MicroPython to include this.
Another very interesting video & as always well presented & explained, thanks for this Chris. An interesting application for the Pico W & components could be used in a Model railway system, wirelessly controlling a loco's direction & speed, the other 2 functions could be used for uncoupling/coupling! I have seen this accomplished at model railway exhibitions controlling models wirelessly using an iPhone which is quite impressive, they are are quite expensive setups. My Sunday is now complete & looking forward to the next video :)
This is fantastic and I will be using these concepts for a future project. As always, I enjoy how these are presented in a fun and simple to understand format Chris. To add, as a small safeguard, I would use a simple clip that would go on both sides to hold the Pico W in place. That would be in case the robot does dive off the table's edge and ends up upside down.
@@ExplainingComputers I would love to see some more of your 3d printing videos. Your skill, knowledge and ability to explain technology is fantastic and I can't get enough of your content.
I am impressed beyond any realistic right to be... I'd better watch out that I don't break any applicable laws at this rate. 😉 Nice robot and video, sir. Thank you. Be safe.
Importing 2 variables for your wifi, is not for when the device gets stolen, just for video publication (no need for blurring), it also prevents having to change your daily wifi password that may be embedded in various other wifi devices. also some wifi routers have guest network options (+active hours), i would use those. Or make the pico W an access point
Considering how much the Raspberry Pi is used in education, perhaps this is something that you could focus on in order to increase your viewership. Because this is a very fun little project, and immediately usable for students. The two main issues there is that students are usually not very rich - so likely wouldn't become Patreons - and that Raspberry Pis (Pies?) are nigh impossible to find at the moment.
Really nice demo! Pico W definitely works much better than ESP8266. I built the same kind of robot with ESP8266 before and the Wifi dropped whenever the motors' emf affected the voltage supply to the microcontroller slightly. I probably should buy myself a Pico W and rebuild that robot again.
What a good little robot! Now I'm wondering if it would be possible to put a camera on there so it could see where it's going... 🤔 Anyway, great video as always! It just isn't Sunday without a new EC upload. :)
Greetings! :) I've put a camera on a Pi Zero robot in the past -- ua-cam.com/video/pK0XvjiP2qk/v-deo.html The Pico W (only being a microcontroller) lacks the processing power.
Great little project Chris, have had fun making the original design & then making some changes. Replaced the L298N motor board with the more efficient TB6612FNG. Changed the code to include speed control, primarily to slow the turns and add timing to make 90 degree turns. Added an led & coding to indicate when the robot is connected to the server. Added some styling to improve the appearance of the Control & to include some more buttons for future addition of programable leds
Cool. One suggestion for the future, instead of having it display or transmit its IP do a video on how to determine the MAC address for a device and setup your router to give a device a static IP. Super easy to do solution for home servers.
Ah, but the problem is that router control panels are not standardized -- so there is sadly no way I can do a video on setting a fixed IP that will work on all hardware.
A good idea for my grandson's next Pico programming lesson. It would make some sense to call the move_stop() before each move_somewhere() to save having to press the stop button between moves.
What you say would not work -- how would the code know when to execute the stop?! :) You do not have to press the stop button between moves -- as you can see in the demos.
@@ExplainingComputers - Why would it not work? Each _def move_forward()_ etc. could just include move_stop() at the top before setting each output bit for the H bridge driver. While technically not needed (as you show) it might be easier on the motors not to slam from forward to backwards especially if you included a small delay after each move_stop(). Right turn, stop for 0.5 seconds, left turn. The bigger the robot or motor, the more important it would be to allow it to stop before changing directions. When driving a car most of us come to a stop before slamming the car into reverse... although it would be fun to watch otherwise. ;-)
@ElmerFuddGun Yes, certainly it would work to include the command to prevent potential damage to larger motors as you describe. But that is not what the comment I responded to is about! :) It suggested that it would remove the need to press "stop" between moves, which is not necessary.
That looks like fun. I'd be interested to hear if you could calibrate it so that you could have buttons for different amounts of turn. For example 'turn 90 degrees left'. I guess you'd need to use that ratio for the motors to work out how long a full turn took as a starting point. Or maybe you could implement variable speed control to the motors.
Hi Graham. What you ask could be done in two ways. The simple way, as you say, would be to run the motors for a certain length of time -- using sleep command -- having worked out/experimented to get the right length of time. And this would basically work, although it would not be that accurate, as the time would change when the batteries wear down, the tracks could slip, etc. A more sophisticated solution would be to work out the number of motor rotations required, and to fit encoders on the motors so that this could be monitored. If you look at the CU shots of the motors, you will see the shaft extends out of the back, which can allow an encoder to be fitted to measure their actual rotation. So the motors would be run in a loop that would terminate when the number of rotations for a 90 degree turn was reached.
@@ExplainingComputers Another option would be to add a accelerometer/gyroscope module. Most don't seem super accurate, but you shouldn't have to worry about battery voltage.
@@ExplainingComputers Do you mean a DIY encoder ( just a transparent plastic disc with few centered stripes, a photoresistor and small LED as light source), that would be a very nice upgrade to the project, especially if you can glue a pencil to it and then 3d printing a turtle cover for it, that will be a real Logo 😎💯
You could also do this with stepper motors. They're a little more complicated to control but you can accurately move the motor in fractions of a rotation.
@@rgbii2 @ExplainingComputers I've experimented a bit with the MPU6050 accel/gyro module but as yet haven't found an application to use one in my robot car projects. I'd be very interested in how to use it to control the turns in this and the other cars I've built.
Thanks for another inspiring video! I will build the Pico W Robot (unfortunately Amazon no longer has supply of the Zumo chassis, but I have been able to source one in Australia). Have 3D printed the bracket - assumed 20% infill and no support - it did OK spanning where the switch is located. Looking forward building the end product ... 🤖
As a logistician and ex software engineer (professional reconversion but still geeking), the gravity isn't my best friend. Damn it! Newton! What have you done? 😁 Technically, it's not a robot but a ROV. A really cute one, by the way. 😉 The Pandora box is open. You must connect it to Skynet to see what happens. 🤣
Technically, it is most certainly in a robot. A robot is mechanical device under programmatic control, and this is exactly what is going on here. The motors do not respond to controls (as in an ROV), but to a program in turn operated by controls -- which here is an ROV program! :) There seems to be a lot of confusion about what the term "robot" means these days. :)
@@ExplainingComputers The limit is really thin between them. A quadcopter like a DJI one with all the complex behaviours embedded in it or remote controlled by pushing only a button is surely called a drone or a flying robot. But a program that translate/transmit simple orders/inputs like a remote control to a vehicule, can it be called a robot ? It remembers me my philosophy courses back in the day. We had only 4 hours left to try to answer this question and I never succeeded. :D
Hi friend I have been really busy with work recently so I have a nice back cataloque of yours vids to warch :) well I wanted to say happy to see more of your awesome vids, thos one in particulair peeks my interests, how about making it into a series and seeing how far we can push the upgrades of the bot? Suggestions: underfacing edge sensors, when the gamma value changes, stop. How about a small arm that folds and extends, and then the real challenge! A camera on the arm to detect beverages through ML, grab them and return them to the own, like a beer-bot or say cola-bot? 😆
very entertaining Chris. As an extension of this project, might i suggest the code be developed to incorporate the necessary functions for the robot to visit the fridge and fetch me a cheese sandwich.
@@ExplainingComputers Thanks! I have two Meccanoid robots from Meccano and I would like control their motors through a different source, I’m so glad I have finally found my answer!
Wonderfully put 🤖. I made some tests with a recovered hexapod/spider like creature and a ESP32 dev board via BLE to control it via an Android phone. The Raspberry Pi Pico W is a wonderful alternative for such projects. Thanks for sharing. 👍
Exit bottom left to rousing applause. There was no extended encore with robot out in the wild negotiating terrain or traffic, though the sequel is greatly anticipated. Perhaps then ...
Hardware - check. Soldering - check. Breadboard - check. Coding - check. All adds up to my kind of project and video. Great stuff Chris!
Respectfully, I’m Impressed with the response time. It executes the commands almost immediately.
Good job.
Chris, you always take me back to my school days of robots and BBC Micros in these videos, and I thank you greatly for that.
As great as modern tech is, the idea that we can move a robot with a computer seems as fresh now as it was over 40 years ago and with your delivery, doubly so.
Top stuff indeed!
I think that, because our brains are so intensely programmed to react to independent objects that move, we will always be fascinated by robots. :)
I am a computer science major with an interest in robotics and engineering. These videos are incredible. Thank you.
I have to admit that the Pico is more impressive than I first thought. I really like the 3D printed bracket you created. With that being said, your friends Friction and Gravity haven’t always friendly with me. “Ouch, me fall down!” “Looking forward to your next video.” says Zeberdee.
:)
I wish the pico came with more than 2mb of flash, some third party clones (such as Adafruit) have 8 or 16mb of flash. They do cost a bit more though.
@@KennethScharf More always seems to be better. My first computer was a Timex Sinclair 1000 and with its memory expansion pack it had a whole 16 k of memory. Now I suspect 16 gb of memory is a little small for my needs. LOL. With that being said, I do hope the next version of the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W gets more memory too. We can only hope.
@@perrymcclusky4695 My MSX1 machine has 64K of memory (only 23K available for BASIC) and I was able to make almost everything I can think of,
just remeber to not include unnecessary libraries.
Programming back then was more exciting.
@@ahmad-murery Yes, truly back then programming was fascinating!
With our friend Christopher we go back to childhood. But today I could see this robot bringing my glass of Sunday night whiskey from the bar to my chair. I have until Christmas to finalize it. Thanks.
Whiskey-bot!
Wow that was very impressive , I was thinking I can't understand the code but your explanation was exceptional. I understood everything.
Glad I was able to get to this before the day ended.
The fact we can do this kind of thing with such a low cost and time investment (relatively speaking) is so amazing to me.
Robot stuffs always seem cool. And you've explained the steps so eloquently. Great stuff ! Thanks.
Have a productive and fun week ahead!
Zumo robot had come to said goodbye
Thanks for all the amazing content. So sorry I can't give more but I wanted to give something.
Your support is appreciated, thanks. :)
I love your videos!! Especially when you start with... "Right..." I find myself saying it with you.
Woohoo! Back to robots and Raspberry Pi stuff!... Yep, a screen, little arms, a camera which feeds back to the interface, and oh look, we have a baby Vector Robot!!! 😊 All we need to do then is add voice commands!🤔 Really happy for this video, it's exactly what I've been struggling with getting working... Thank you soooo much!
Thaks for this, and good luck with your project. :)
The project episodes are always my favourite
Very tightly put, both in hardware (looks almost like a little chair on caterpillars) and software (you have almost real time reaction to the web controls) 👏
Thanks!
Thanks for your support, most appreciated. :)
3.. 2.. 1.. Activate! I loved watching Robot Wars back in the day, so this is interesting for me. Nice how you can attach these boards together to control a Robot. And make a simple webpage as a GUI controller. Thumbs up, Chris! :)
Robot Wars was an excellent show. :) The Zumo chasis is apparently popular in "mini sumo" robot competitions, as a front "bulldozer" blade is available to slot into the front, whilst keeping the footprint within 10x10cm (which are apparently the rules).
Now you can remotely play with your pets and check the house at the same time (So many possibilities, OMG). Open Source is where it's at. Excellent video as usual Christopher, and have a good rest of your weekend. As Always, Be Smart and Stay Safe.
My dogs would try to eat it lol
@@AJ-Palermo I'm sure with your fantastic mind, you'll find a way to keep your best friend from eating the device. As Always, Be Smart and Stay Safe.
I have been waiting for a video like this since the Pico W was released!
OMG I've been watching this channel for years and never knew you had an Amazon store. Gonna check it out!
:)
Lovely tutorial Christopher! We'll share it on the blog soon.
Awesome, thank you!
Hello Chris,
That's an amazing project because of simplicity and practicality reasons,
I'm sure that you know all what I'm about to say but just to let others know that there is always a space for improvement as you mentioned in the video,
Regarding the html code, you can actually use one form element (without specifying it's action) and then set required formaction on the submit buttons,
also, instead of send the html in each response, you can send it only when the request is empty,
and to prevent the page from reloading after submit you cam specify a target where the response will be delivered to, so it may look like this
anyways, it will not make it faster but it may save a few bytes in the response,
If it's up to me I'll use XHR or WebSocket API for faster response time
Sorry for the long post but I just get excited 😁
Thanks once again Chris and have a nice week!
Your suggestion for the form button is very neat -- I had not thought of that. Thanks for sharing the code.
@@ExplainingComputers My pleasure, and I really appreciate your reply 👍
Amazing. I just saw the old video of the robot as I searched a lot of words recently about electronics.
Great content as always. I really like going from simple to complex as the project develops. Next, let's add a joystick for control!
My favorite way to spend Sunday morning!
Greetings Leslie -- and a silver medal for being super early! :) I hope that all is well with you.
What a fun video! One comment is that it felt a bit rushed. I am used top a more measured pace from your videos. Not a knock, just an observation. The documentation you provided is excellent and goes far beyond what most videos provide. Thanks much for that. I do hope you return to this project and look forward to what you do with it.
There was a lot to pack into this video! :)
Thanks Chris, this looks heaps of fun, and as you said: lots of opportunities for additional features.
Neat. I like it. The one thing I have never ever seen done is for the Pico W to be turned into an open access wifi hotspot to control robots etc. It's always done on another network or as a secure hotspot with IP login.
I think this video from the amazing Kevin McAleer is what you are looking for -- ua-cam.com/video/2Y42DSZpR0w/v-deo.html
@@ExplainingComputers I think you're absolutely correct.
Afternoon Chris, greeting form Cape Town, South Africa. Awesome video, thank you!!!
Greetings from the UK! :)
Gotta love the Zumo. And the Pico. And the web interface. Easily accessed parts and code... Very cool project Chris, thanks for another great video. 😎👍
Thanks Steve! :)
Very much looking forward to the continuing adventures of the Pico Zero W Robot 😁 Great video Chris. Thank you.
Brilliant stuff as always Chris, thanks! (I bet Zebedee would love to replace his spring with that chassis)!
What a fun project Chris - can't wait to see what's next for the little robot.
Greetings Chris. :)
Hardware and coding, doesn’t get any better than that. Thanks 👍👍
Greetings. :)
"I love the smell of micro-robotics in the morning"...! Thanks for the presentation!
Yes, indeed. There is a particular smell from the operation of small motors. :()
i love watching your videos every sunday it's my favorite way to end the weekend by watching explaining computers and is the fascinating favorite thing to do of mine
Thanks for watching! :)
@@ExplainingComputers you are welcome
This is precisely the kind of thing that I enjoy most! I tried to get an RPi RP2040, but was forced to settle for a board with the RP2040 included. The Cytron Maker Pi RP2040 includes 2 motor relays and 7 discrete 4-pin Grove connectors. So far it has been a disappointment, but that's likely because this is so different from using Python via GPIO on a Zero W or other CPU packing RPi.
It would interest me to see the Maker Pi board run through its paces in your most capable hands as I am without much joy using the board so far.
Perhaps you could repeat today's exercise using the Maker Pi RP2040? The whole smash cost me $12 and it will do as I require ... eventually!
Many thanks. This is an excellent tutorial that helped me develop my WiFi controller + WiFi Rover which circumvents the use of a webpage interface. Things will get really interesting when RPi unlock the BT on the Pico W, and I look forward to your update when this happens!
Agreed -- a Bluetooth driver for the Pico will be a great advancement, not least for making wireless robot controllers. And I understand we will get this fairly soon now.
@@ExplainingComputers The updated SDK was released yesterday with BT support in C/C++. As you said, it should not take too long for MicroPython to include this.
Thanks
Thanks Paul, most appreciated. :)
Another very interesting video & as always well presented & explained, thanks for this Chris. An interesting application for the Pico W & components could be used in a Model railway system, wirelessly controlling a loco's direction & speed, the other 2 functions could be used for uncoupling/coupling! I have seen this accomplished at model railway exhibitions controlling models wirelessly using an iPhone which is quite impressive, they are are quite expensive setups. My Sunday is now complete & looking forward to the next video :)
Hi Alan. What's shown in the video could indeed easily be applied in a model railway . . and I can imagine servos controlling signals too! :)
The Sprog controller which uses JMRI for programming is a very interesting solution for model railways.
I, for one, attest that I am more excited than I should be. Explaining Computers has coined a new meaning for "computer porn". Luv a bot!
Wow not only educational, but fun to watch, thanks Chris.
Thanks. :)
Great walk-through.
Great project with the RASP. Pico
Thanks for sharing your expirence with all of us 😀
Another fantastic robot video Chris. Thank you.
Wish we had this around when I was a kid ! great demo....cheers.
Very kool little project, love seeing these videos.
Thank you so much for your insight.
Wow. You gave me some ideas. I did not know a pico could do all those things. I think I need to get to the store.
This is fantastic and I will be using these concepts for a future project. As always, I enjoy how these are presented in a fun and simple to understand format Chris.
To add, as a small safeguard, I would use a simple clip that would go on both sides to hold the Pico W in place. That would be in case the robot does dive off the table's edge and ends up upside down.
Unquestionably amazing!
Rich and incredible content as always.
Thank you, Chris.
Totally-inspired yours.
Thanks! Inspired is good. :)
Once again the Funk Master Flex himself "The Barnatt" brings us the latest in ghetto tech. Massive respect from all the G's across the nation.
Great video. I learned something new with this presentation.
Thanks
It's an itchy chin moment, very interesting!....Thanks for another enjoyable video!
That's a very cool project. Complete with a 3D printed part. I enjoyed it very much.
Sunday my favorite day! Already have a nice day Christopher and going to watch it with my breakfast interesting as ever too
Greetings! :) And a bronze medal for being the third viewer this time.
Woot, more amazing content!!!
Thanks. :)
@@ExplainingComputers I would love to see some more of your 3d printing videos.
Your skill, knowledge and ability to explain technology is fantastic and I can't get enough of your content.
I am impressed beyond any realistic right to be... I'd better watch out that I don't break any applicable laws at this rate. 😉
Nice robot and video, sir. Thank you. Be safe.
Importing 2 variables for your wifi, is not for when the device gets stolen, just for video publication (no need for blurring),
it also prevents having to change your daily wifi password that may be embedded in various other wifi devices.
also some wifi routers have guest network options (+active hours), i would use those.
Or make the pico W an access point
Considering how much the Raspberry Pi is used in education, perhaps this is something that you could focus on in order to increase your viewership. Because this is a very fun little project, and immediately usable for students. The two main issues there is that students are usually not very rich - so likely wouldn't become Patreons - and that Raspberry Pis (Pies?) are nigh impossible to find at the moment.
Really nice demo! Pico W definitely works much better than ESP8266. I built the same kind of robot with ESP8266 before and the Wifi dropped whenever the motors' emf affected the voltage supply to the microcontroller slightly. I probably should buy myself a Pico W and rebuild that robot again.
What a good little robot! Now I'm wondering if it would be possible to put a camera on there so it could see where it's going... 🤔
Anyway, great video as always! It just isn't Sunday without a new EC upload. :)
Greetings! :) I've put a camera on a Pi Zero robot in the past -- ua-cam.com/video/pK0XvjiP2qk/v-deo.html The Pico W (only being a microcontroller) lacks the processing power.
@@ExplainingComputers Aw, damn. It's still a good little robot!
@@ExplainingComputers Apologies for the extra reply but let me be the first to congratulate you on 100 million video views on the EC channel! 🎉
Great little project Chris, have had fun making the original design & then making some changes.
Replaced the L298N motor board with the more efficient TB6612FNG.
Changed the code to include speed control, primarily to slow the turns and add timing
to make 90 degree turns.
Added an led & coding to indicate when the robot is connected to the server.
Added some styling to improve the appearance of the Control & to include some more
buttons for future addition of programable leds
Excellent! :)
I really enjoy the content you do of this nature!
Thanks. :)
Thanks for the video! Very easy to understand. 😄
Thanks for watching! :)
Super video Chris 👍 thanks
Cool. One suggestion for the future, instead of having it display or transmit its IP do a video on how to determine the MAC address for a device and setup your router to give a device a static IP. Super easy to do solution for home servers.
Ah, but the problem is that router control panels are not standardized -- so there is sadly no way I can do a video on setting a fixed IP that will work on all hardware.
@@ExplainingComputers True, but you could always show the method for the top three router brands and cover most people.
A fun project. Thanks Chris.
Super! Thank you! I didn't know about
great work.... explains all the key points of robot making.... awesome 😍😍😍
Thanks. 😀
A good idea for my grandson's next Pico programming lesson. It would make some sense to call the move_stop() before each move_somewhere() to save having to press the stop button between moves.
What you say would not work -- how would the code know when to execute the stop?! :) You do not have to press the stop button between moves -- as you can see in the demos.
@@ExplainingComputers - Why would it not work? Each _def move_forward()_ etc. could just include move_stop() at the top before setting each output bit for the H bridge driver. While technically not needed (as you show) it might be easier on the motors not to slam from forward to backwards especially if you included a small delay after each move_stop(). Right turn, stop for 0.5 seconds, left turn. The bigger the robot or motor, the more important it would be to allow it to stop before changing directions. When driving a car most of us come to a stop before slamming the car into reverse... although it would be fun to watch otherwise. ;-)
@ElmerFuddGun Yes, certainly it would work to include the command to prevent potential damage to larger motors as you describe. But that is not what the comment I responded to is about! :) It suggested that it would remove the need to press "stop" between moves, which is not necessary.
@@ExplainingComputers Er... That is exactly what I was suggesting
Love this projects...excelente vídeo.. I am getting old but I believe this would be an excellent hobby... Wish you well
Nice project, and I think Zebedee managed without an 'R' for most of his career!
Ah, I stand (spring) corrected. :)
I have absolutely no interest in some of your videos but i do enjoy watching them lol.. Am i slowly becoming a tech geek? 🤣🤣🤣
Thanks for the interesting video. Way too smart for my abilities! Keep up the good work Sir!
Wow, I must put my order in for some hardware. Excellent video thanks
Thank you for the content. A fun robot project. Cheers!
That looks like fun. I'd be interested to hear if you could calibrate it so that you could have buttons for different amounts of turn. For example 'turn 90 degrees left'. I guess you'd need to use that ratio for the motors to work out how long a full turn took as a starting point. Or maybe you could implement variable speed control to the motors.
Hi Graham. What you ask could be done in two ways. The simple way, as you say, would be to run the motors for a certain length of time -- using sleep command -- having worked out/experimented to get the right length of time. And this would basically work, although it would not be that accurate, as the time would change when the batteries wear down, the tracks could slip, etc.
A more sophisticated solution would be to work out the number of motor rotations required, and to fit encoders on the motors so that this could be monitored. If you look at the CU shots of the motors, you will see the shaft extends out of the back, which can allow an encoder to be fitted to measure their actual rotation. So the motors would be run in a loop that would terminate when the number of rotations for a 90 degree turn was reached.
@@ExplainingComputers Another option would be to add a accelerometer/gyroscope module. Most don't seem super accurate, but you shouldn't have to worry about battery voltage.
@@ExplainingComputers Do you mean a DIY encoder ( just a transparent plastic disc with few centered stripes, a photoresistor and small LED as light source),
that would be a very nice upgrade to the project, especially if you can glue a pencil to it and then 3d printing a turtle cover for it, that will be a real Logo 😎💯
You could also do this with stepper motors. They're a little more complicated to control but you can accurately move the motor in fractions of a rotation.
@@rgbii2 @ExplainingComputers I've experimented a bit with the MPU6050 accel/gyro module but as yet haven't found an application to use one in my robot car projects. I'd be very interested in how to use it to control the turns in this and the other cars I've built.
Perfect, I just started the same project! I think I can make it work now.
Good luck!
Nice video, regards from México, I like your raspberry videos. Thanks
Greetings!
Enjoyed it immensely! Gracias 👏👏👏👏👏🙏🏼
Great video. I’m working on a Pico project for controlling servos. This helps immensely. Thanks.
This video initially going to be about automating a model dalek with servos . . .
@@ExplainingComputers EXTERMINATE!
@@ExplainingComputers Can't wait for that.
@@ExplainingComputers I’d love to see that.
Thanks for another inspiring video! I will build the Pico W Robot (unfortunately Amazon no longer has supply of the Zumo chassis, but I have been able to source one in Australia). Have 3D printed the bracket - assumed 20% infill and no support - it did OK spanning where the switch is located. Looking forward building the end product ... 🤖
Thanks for this Peter. I used 20% infill too, but used support. I seem to have depleted Zumo supplies on many vendors. Good luck with your build. :)
As a logistician and ex software engineer (professional reconversion but still geeking), the gravity isn't my best friend. Damn it! Newton! What have you done? 😁
Technically, it's not a robot but a ROV. A really cute one, by the way. 😉
The Pandora box is open. You must connect it to Skynet to see what happens. 🤣
Technically, it is most certainly in a robot. A robot is mechanical device under programmatic control, and this is exactly what is going on here. The motors do not respond to controls (as in an ROV), but to a program in turn operated by controls -- which here is an ROV program! :) There seems to be a lot of confusion about what the term "robot" means these days. :)
@@ExplainingComputers The limit is really thin between them. A quadcopter like a DJI one with all the complex behaviours embedded in it or remote controlled by pushing only a button is surely called a drone or a flying robot.
But a program that translate/transmit simple orders/inputs like a remote control to a vehicule, can it be called a robot ? It remembers me my philosophy courses back in the day. We had only 4 hours left to try to answer this question and I never succeeded. :D
Friction and gravity have been my nemeses for quite some time. 🙃
Seems fun. Kids would like this.
❤😂 good morning great little sumo project.
Chris, I hope you know that you have many friends here! No need to start designing your own.
Nice one. :)
Love the upload great content as always! Didn't know you had an Amazon store I will definitely by components
Hi friend I have been really busy with work recently so I have a nice back cataloque of yours vids to warch :) well I wanted to say happy to see more of your awesome vids, thos one in particulair peeks my interests, how about making it into a series and seeing how far we can push the upgrades of the bot? Suggestions: underfacing edge sensors, when the gamma value changes, stop. How about a small arm that folds and extends, and then the real challenge! A camera on the arm to detect beverages through ML, grab them and return them to the own, like a beer-bot or say cola-bot? 😆
Hi Chris!. This looks like a very exciting project, indeed.
I hope you get a ton of views because this is a great idea for a Video especially since I was looking for if lol
very entertaining Chris. As an extension of this project, might i suggest the code be developed to incorporate the necessary functions for the robot to visit the fridge and fetch me a cheese sandwich.
The zumo robot had come to said good-bye 😂 he got me there
I really love how this is explained in a way that I can understand it! Can I use this tutorial on other robots?
Yes, what you see here will work with any two motor (up to 12V) robot.
@@ExplainingComputers Thanks! I have two Meccanoid robots from Meccano and I would like control their motors through a different source, I’m so glad I have finally found my answer!
This should work with an L2981 and a Pico W as here. But see also my setup using a Pi Zero with this robot: ua-cam.com/video/H1PIzxNdGGk/v-deo.html
@@ExplainingComputers Got it
Awesome!!! Love it Chris
Thanks Kevin. :)
Thanks for your efforts. Nice project :)
What next, getting a beer from the fridge and bringing it back to you. A job well done.
One can already see superior agility of the T 1000!
:)
Wonderfully put 🤖. I made some tests with a recovered hexapod/spider like creature and a ESP32 dev board via BLE to control it via an Android phone. The Raspberry Pi Pico W is a wonderful alternative for such projects. Thanks for sharing. 👍
9:39 Would it be better to power the Pico through VSYS instead of VBUS? VBUS could possibly backfeed the USB port, I believe.
Good point.
Exit bottom left to rousing applause. There was no extended encore with robot out in the wild negotiating terrain or traffic, though the sequel is greatly anticipated. Perhaps then ...
Uuhhh....Perfect...In suggestion....In next video, make this ZUMO say: - Hello. Christopher sent me to wish the world peace!
:)