Book Image

Building Smart LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Robots

By : Kyle Markland
Book Image

Building Smart LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Robots

By: Kyle Markland

Overview of this book

Smart robots are an ever-increasing part of our daily lives. With LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3, you can now prototype your very own small-scale smart robot that uses specialized programming and hardware to complete a mission. EV3 is a robotics platform for enthusiasts of all ages and experience levels that makes prototyping robots accessible to all. This book will walk you through six different projects that range from intermediate to advanced level. The projects will show you building and programming techniques that are used by engineers in the real world, which will help you build your own smart robot. You'll see how to make the most of the EV3 robotics platform and build some awesome smart robots. The book starts by introducing some real-world examples of smart robots. Then, we'll walk you through six different projects and explain the features that allow these robots to make intelligent decisions. The book will guide you as you build your own object-tracking tank, a box-climbing robot, an interactive robotic shark, a quirky bipedal robot, a speedy remote control race car, and a GPS-navigating robot. By the end of this book, you'll have the skills necessary to build and program your own smart robots with EV3.
Table of Contents (9 chapters)

Mechanical design

There are a lot of cool hardware features in this project. Let's discuss each one!

Drivetrain – tank tracks reapplied

Like the Security Tank we made in the last chapter, the Omnilander has two caterpillar tracks with tank-style steering. Recall that a robot with a tank drivetrain steers by varying the speed of the tracks on each side. In the Omnilander, one EV3 large motor powers each track; the left drive motor is plugged into port B and the right drive motor is plugged into port C.

The basic concept is the same for both robots, but the tracks themselves are different. While the Security Tank uses the rubber band-like tracks, the tracks on the Omnilander are made of the hard, grey plastic LEGO...