PART II: Gettin' Dirty with It
Enough Beating Around the Bot, Let's Make Stuff!

Chapter 5: The Right Tools for the Job

The Basic Bot Builder's Toolbox
Must-Have Tools
Should-Have Tools
Make-Life-Easier Tools
Supplies
Thumbnail Guide to Digital Multimeters

Where's the Juice, Bruce?
Resistance Is Futile
You Light Up My Cadmium-Sulfide Sensors
Resources

Your Robot Workshop
Thumbnail Guide to Soldering

Desoldering Practice, Practice, Practice
Resources

Building a Ventilation System
Parts List
Safety First
The Absolute Minimum


Chapter 6: Acquiring Mad Robot Skills

Killer Kits


Rockit Sound-Controlled Robot
Spider 3 Walker
WAO-G
Carpet Rover 2 Combo Kit
Hexapod Walkers
CyBugs
Build Your Own Robot
Sumo-Bot
BOE-Bot
SolarSpeeder
Photopopper 4.2b
ER1 Personal Robot System

Robot Building System


LEGO MINDSTORMS Robotics Invention System
Fischertechnik
Robix Rascal Robot Construction Set
Robotix

Out-of-the-Box Bots


Sony AIBO
Sony SDR-4X
B.I.O.-Bugs
Roomba
Robomower
AmigoBot ePresence

Retro-Robotics


Androbots
Heathkit Heroes
RB5X
Other Cool "Antique" Robots

Armatron/Super Armatron
Omnibot
Maxx Steele
Big Trak

Thumbnail Guide to Electronics


The Greenie Theory
Making Greenies Dance
How to Become an Electronics Whiz in Four Easy Steps

The Absolute Minimum

Chapter 7: Project 1: Coat Hanger Walker

Gathering the Parts
The Parts List
The Tools and Supplies List
Freeforming the Bicore Control Circuit
Breadboarding the Bicore
Hacking the Servo Motor
Soldering Up the Circuit
Thumbnail Guide to Breadboards
Building the Walker Body
Making the Gears
Fabricating the Idler Shaft
Making the Idler Gear
Mounting the Drive Gear
Creating the Leg Assemblies
Testing the Fit
The Power Plant
Attaching the Battery Packs
Adding a Power Switch
Final Assembly
Further Experiments
The Absolute Minimum

Chapter 8 Project 2: Mousey the Junkbot


The Fine Art of Making "Frankenmice"
Gathering the Parts
The Parts List
The Tools and Supplies List
Building the Body
Alien Mouse Autopsy
Motor and Switch Placement
Installing the Control Switch
Understanding Mousey's Brain
A Brief Word About Mousey's Senses
Breadboarding the Circuit
Freeforming Mousey's Control Circuit
Mousey Gets a Pair of Eyes and a Wag in Its Tail
It's a Slightly Anxious, Light-Seeking Robot!
Playing with Mousey
Troubleshooting a Wayward Mousey
Further Experiments
The Absolute Minimum


Chapter 9: Project 3: DiscRover

AOL Just Got a Whole Lot Smarter
Gathering the Parts
The Parts List
The Tools and Supplies List
The Brains Behind the Bot
OOPic: The "Hardware Object"
Motorhead
Thumbnail Guide to Microcontrollers
Trash Recycling Through Bot Building
DiscRover's Body
Programming Your DiscRover
Our Motor Controller Code
Bump Whisker Code
Load 'n Go
Troubleshooting the DiscRover
The Mechanics
The Code
Further Experimentation

Add a Prototyping Area
Put Another Layer on That Robo-Cake!
Add Higher-Order Sensor Systems
Make Two DiscRovers Talk to Each Other
Build a CD-ROM Boxbot
Take Your OOPic Elsewhere

The Absolute Minimum

Go to Table of Contents, Part III
Back Table of Contents, Part I

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