Servo - May 2009

FIGURE 11A.

FIGURE 11B.

FIGURE 12.

Robotis Bioloid Kits

The Bioloid system components are similar to the LEGO NXT kits in that the actuators and supporting members can be assembled in ‘building block’ fashion to create bipedal robots, multi-axis arms (like CrustCrawler’s AX- 12 Smart Arm),

interesting creatures, wheeled robots, commercial proof-of-concept mechanisms, or anything that you can think of that needs intelligent motion control. The Robotis Ollo kits are also very similar to the LEGO system in that they use plastic snap-together parts to assemble simple kits for younger robotics experimenters from ages 7 to 10. The Robotis Beginner’s

Kit priced at $349 is a great start in learning this new type of servo technology but many experimenters begin with the $899 Bioloid Comprehensive Kit shown in

Figure 13.

The Comprehensive Kit comes with 18 AX- 12 Dynamixel actuator servos, a CM- 5 controller, an AX-S1 sensor module, and over 100 plastic structural brackets with associated fasteners from which you can create over 12 different robots. These include the popular bipedal humanoid robot, a quadruped puppy, robot dinosaurs, six-legged insect robots, and an autonomous exploratory robot.

Unlike dedicated kits, these kits can be configured in any fashion you desire in developing a robotic, computer-controlled mechanism. The top end “Expert Kit” at $2,999 is a bit beyond most experimenter’s budgets but has found uses in university and industrial applications. Robotis is proud that it furnished 50 kits to the US Naval Academy.

You can go to robotis.com to look over their line of products or to crustcrawler.com or robotshop.com to buy a kit. As mentioned earlier, their downloadable manuals are easy to understand with few translation problems.

Final Thoughts

There are many amazing robotic products made in Korea. The EveR-1 and EveR- 3 female humanoids from KITECH that first made the scene back in 2006 will evolve into the EveR- 4, which is expected to debut in 2010, as well as a male version.

Newer versions of the HUBO are seen on TV and in the news around the world. Robot home appliances from Korea are first rate and very functional. It appears Korea will be in the forefront of robotics for years to come, both in industrial and domestic applications. SV