I was taking a bunch of stuff to my local e-waste place. The people at the e-waste place sometimes take some of the waste that others bring and sell it for cheap. I went in to look at what they had and this Rovio sitting on the counter. As there really isn't prices for anything except computer monitors I offered the guy $5.00 for it. He told me that the back wheel is not working and accepted my offer.
I got the Rovio home and opened the top to find the wire's solder joint had broken for the rear wheel ground. A quick fix and the robot is going again. Also when under the hood looking around noticed that it has the foundations for an awesome project platform if I want to command it with a Raspberry Pi. Encoders, sensors for finding home, and the servos to control the mast are some of the things I noticed.
Here is a link to the WowWee website and more information about Rovio: http://www.wowwee.com/en/products/tech/telepresence/rovio/rovio
It is cool to see that we have junkyard robots now. Maybe we need a robot rescue center.
I ABSOLUTELY Raspberry love I got the Rovio home and opened the top to find the wire’s solder joint had broken for the rear wheel ground. A quick fix and the robot is going again. Also when under the hood looking around noticed that it has the foundations for an awesome project platform if I want to command it with a Raspberry Pi. Encoders, sensors for finding home, and the servos to control the mast are some of the things I noticed best article rewriter
I’ve got the Rovio too, it’s just been sitting in my room for a year, tested it a few months ago so at least I know it still works. Unfrotunately, I haven’t had the time nor an idea of a project it would be insteresting to see what you can do with this.
I was also saddened to see two Rovios gathering dust at a local fab lab on a shelf. No clue if they still work (no batteries) and not enough time to get them working again. When we carried them, the returns were largely due to people having issues setting them up - they required a lot of support. Hope you bring that one back to life!
If you’re interested, certainly give it nlife or use it as the base for a project. If you find it’s just ending up sitting on a shelf, maybe post it on the LMR marketplace?
I plan to do something with it. Just need to find the time. I also have a IRobot create and a robotic arm I am working on. Need to find time to post those projects too.
