Arduino has grown almost exponentially in popularity since it was first released and is well known in the world of robotics as an inexpensive, highly versatile and easy to learn software and hardware platform for electronic and robotic experimentation. However, the introduction of the Raspberry Pi single board computer is one of the first real indications of a tendency to make electronic experimentation affordable to the masses. Priced at not too much higher than an Arduino, many people who are looking to get started in robotics don’t know which to choose, or where to start. So if you are new to robotics and are wondering where to start and what to get, this article is here to help.
My grandson (8) is a clever lad and is interested in getting into programming. Next year they’ll be using either Arduino or Raspberry pi ib class ( no one seems to know what the core hardware is… ) I’d like to get him a Kit to get started - say a Pi Zero with PSU, Keyboard & Mouse and some sort of output - an LED display to scroll words on may be a good start. He is very into Lego / Meccano ( builds it all himself) so making Robots / powered models will be his first big target / project …) Anyway what do you suggest as a starter kit? Keith .
Hello,I wanted to make a project on an artificially intelligent robot,consider Siri or Google Assistant,one like them.A robo which can talk and understand(i dont want it to be huge).And can move on its own on orders.One which is embedded with alot of information and intelligence.What would you suggest me?Arduino or Raspberry pi.It would multipurpose robot tho.
@Muhammad Afnaan At a very minimum you would need a Raspberry Pi, and you may even want to consider a mini form factor motherboard with normal Pentium chip (helps with complex voice recognition, fast internet searches etc).
@Charles Terry The most an Arduino can handle in terms of vision processing is the CMuCam (which offloads this from the microcontroller). Generally a Pi is best for images / videos.
@Panashe Mombeyarara It depends on the features you want to have. If it involves normal analog / digital sensors and actuators, you can get away with using a microcontroller. If you move into more advanced features like 2D / 3D mapping / camera or vision systems, consider a Pi or a single board computer.
@Absar Unless you need “high level” programming like a vision system, 3D mapping etc. (or want to code in Python), a microcontroller / Arduino should work in most cases if you are building something hobby-grade.
Sir… What if I wanted trace an arena with robot and also want to stop at a correct position without any error in position and nor in orientation. Is there any solution??
Hello, i am currently building an autonomous roaming robot with a robot arm on top of the rovers chassis. I am using an Arduino Mega to control the motors, motor driver, ultrasonic sensors and servos. I am then using a raspberry pi, pi camera and object recognition. Once the robot has detected an object, the robot will approach it, pick it up and then take it back to its starting position. In your opinion, is this a good combination or would you just use the raspberry pi?
Hello, I am trying to build a motor controller for an electric car and we are in the process to decide which microcontroller we have to use. so could help me to decide which one we may use!
@john If it’s a manned vehicle, you should have a redundant system in place no matter what the choice. If there’s no “high level” processing required, a normal microcontroller like Arduino can do the trick, though you may need a few. For more information, we’d need a lot more in terms of specs and encourage you to post on the RobotShop Forum.
Hi, I’m building an RC car and i want it to be operated from my laptop. I want the RC car to be able to send video back to my computer over wifi. Would you recommend using the raspberry pi connected to an arduino(arduino handles motor and servo) or use the raspberry with a hat such as https://4tronix.co.uk/blog/?p=1224?
@Brandon It’s the question of how an Arduino would handle real time video - it’s really not meant for that. Just based on this, the Pi becomes the better solution.
Hi, I know some c++, though not an expert by any means. I would like to make a simple robot. Not sure what way I want to go about it, but I want it to navigate fully autonomously using a small camera to avoid obstacles. That’s the challenge I have set up for myself. Which board should I choose? Thanks!
) I’d like to get him a Kit to get started - say a Pi Zero with PSU, Keyboard & Mouse and some sort of output - an LED display to scroll words on may be a good start. He is very into Lego / Meccano ( builds it all himself) so making Robots / powered models will be his first big target / project …) Anyway what do you suggest as a starter kit? Keith .