I would really like to do robotics programming in Java. It seems that the RoBoard RB-110 Single Board Computer might be capable of running the Java VM since it can run Windows. What I’m not sure about is the instruction set needed for the VM. Will a 386DX be adquate?
The other possibility is the BiPOM ARM9 GadgetPC (ARM Linux or Debian). It has enough memory and runs Linux. The question does it run Java or Java Embedded?
I’ve looked into things like nanoVM, but it is a very limited implementation.
Borhaug, Thanks for your suggestion about C. I’m currently programming an Arduino in C, but I really want some of the facilities of Java like threading.
As for the Javelin, it’s pretty outdated at this point ( Java 1.2 ) and has been discontinued by Parallax.
I came across the boards made by Phigets and sold by Robotshop which appear to be used in connecting a PC to various sensors. They even support Java, but on the PC. I’m now thinking of buying an Intel Atom and motherboard to control a robot. An Atom would give me a much wider choice of computer languages and a lot more memory.
Providing battery power, though, is beyond me. It’s not clear to me what parts are needed. I could buy a cheap netbook and be done with it, but that would add too much weight for what I’m thinking of.
What I think I need is the power supply for a netbook or laptop, After doing an Internet search, I haven’t found anyone who sells such a beast.
I have a dead laptop which I’m considering canabilizing, but don’t know if I can remove the power supply stuff without getting stuck with extra unneeded parts.
Any suggestions? I don’t see this approach being used much.
It turns out that the PhidgetsSBC Interface Kit 8 / 8 / 8 w 4 Port USB Hub supports a much more up-to-date version of Java on its embedded microprocessor. I am still looking for a way to run an Intel Atom on batteries.
It seems that Intel’s new E6XX Atom processor for embedded systems may be what I’m looking for. Since it runs the x86 instruction set, it should run Sun’s (now Oracle’s) Java. So far, I haven’t found anything on single board computers for sale to individuals, though. Perhaps RobotShop will be selling them at some time in the future.
The latest on Java is that recently Oracle has released Embedded Java which runs on ARM, Power PC and x86 based computers. I recently purchased a Chumby based widget that runs Linux and it seems Embedded Java runs on it.
To bring things up-to-date, I bought an Insignia Infocast from BestBuy. It’s a Chumby clone with its board supplied by Chumby Industries. Runs all the Chumby apps.
For those who don’t know, the Chumby people actively support hacking the Chumby platform. With the help of the Chumby developers and some of the many people in the Chumby forums, I managed to get Oracles’s Embedded Java for ARM running on this clone which runs Angstrom Linux. JavaVM, an open-source version, also runs on the Chumby.
I’m now in the process of putting together an iRobot Create robot controlled by the Chumny clone. I’m hoping to use Scala to control the robot since Scala runs on the Java VM
If you are looking into a platform that could run Java Applications,you might want to consider the Genesi EFIKA MX.Wich is very similar to a netbook, except it has no built in display and it is less power hungry.
the Suns Java virtual machine works in many more platforms than the x86. Basically anything that runs Linux is able to run a Java virtual machine. As suggested before, the Genesi EFIKA MX runs Linux as any other netbook does.
We are always seeking new technologies so we are certainly interested in bringing platforms that support the new Intel processor.
I might not have the answer you are looking for, but maybe an alternative. If you are only familiar with the Java language, and thats your reason for choosing java, it is a very short way to the c programing language. It might be a good alternative, if java turns out to be a hassle. C also often is the first language to be supported when new micro controllers hit the marked, and a lot of great libraries do exist for the c language. Last but not least, c is hyper fast, and gives great control at bit level.
You should be able to get some Java VM for most any common Linux distro. If you want something small and very power efficient we made jstamp.com and it runs up to 40 hrs off a 9V transistor battery with the clock turned down. We had a line of robotics boards prototyped but for many reasons never released commercially. But it is now pretty much obsolete. We also have tstik.com which is slower but does threads, reflection, float objects, etc and can also run a full webserver with servlets. It’s not realtime and will need to pause for GC periodically.
Sadly AFAIK there isn’t a commercial implementation of real time Java on affordable small hardware. Three companies at least are working on Android on top of RT Linux. Sun Squawk is a small VM for ARM and others but the absurd licensing cost (as in $100K and up) has kept anyone from adopting it. If you want to try it get a Sun SPOT kit from sunspotworld.com - it’s a great little device.
It turns out that the Graperain ARM SBC Interface Kit 8 / 8 / 8 w 4 Port USB Hub supports a much more up-to-date version of Java on its embedded microprocessor. I am still looking for a way to run an Intel Atom on batteries.
A single board computer is also an option, but have you considered the Javelin Stamp from Parallax? This was made specifically for people interested in using Java as the main programming language and is quite popular. There should not be anything preventing Java from being installed on a system that can run a normal version of Linux (Debian) or Windows XP.
