Ant - v2 - Micro Tracked Robot

This was a robot that used a MC68HC11 cpu, all circuit boards were hand etched, the drive motor gearboxes are made from PCB material. The robot was able to sense objects using its IR sensors, chase or hide from light/dark sources and ocassionaly pickup tinfoil balls and move the about....

Circuit designs, platform and orginal inspiration all from the MIT AI Robotics lab in the mid/late 90's.

Robot was destroyed in a fire, Ant V3 is the next incarnation of this platform.

 

 

 

Chases light, picks up tinfoil balls and carries them around.

  • Actuators / output devices: 2 x track drives w/hand made gearboxes, one grip/lift front manipulator.
  • Control method: autonomous
  • CPU: MC68HC11A1 w/32K Ram (built on the MIT 6.270 course board)
  • Power source: 4 x 50Mah Sanyo NiCad Cells
  • Programming language: Interactive C/Assembly routines
  • Sensors / input devices: 2 x IR Object, 3 x CDS Light, IR Remote Control
  • Target environment: indoor

This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://community.robotshop.com/robots/show/ant-v2-micro-tracked-robot

Very impressive! Was it made

Very impressive! Was it made from scratch or was it a kit?

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us… -Marianne Williamson

now that is pretty damn
now that is pretty damn cool. I like the micro tracked bots, so what did you use for the tracks btw? It almost looks like some lego chain stuff from a long time ago.

thanks! it "was"

thanks! it “was” impressive.

 

It was fully hand made, the circuit board was made with and old program called TraxMaker and then laser printed onto heat transfer paper, ironed onto a bare PCB and acid etched. The CPU board has fairly good detail, the “top” I/O board was abit rushed. Gearboxes are made in a similar fashion, from PCB boards and then drilled and gears/idlers and motors installed.

tracks are lego!
You picked off the lego gears huh? Yes those are the "mid" size gears from Lego and are Lego tracks. I like the tracked bots as well, I sort of seem to keep building them :wink:

Very nice work! Bummer it
Very nice work! Bummer it was lost.

when you say lost in a fire…
was the ant the source of the fire? :slight_smile:

the most awsome thing ever

the most awsome thing ever