With all the hardware and software required to operate a robot on a single 35x70mm PCB; the 3DoT is the brain, power, and the controller of any robot. Plug in motors, fire up the app, and you’re ready to go.
The 3DoT is supported by an extensive, easy-to-use Arduino library to allow the development of custom software, and the ArxRobot App to control your robot via Bluetooth. Even better, the Arxterra Control Panel that allows you to control your robot, remotely, from anywhere in the world, with high definition video and audio feed.
For more specialized purposes, Expansion Shields can be purchased, or, for the more hardware-savvy, designed from open source templates.
Everything about the 3DoT is designed with 3D printed, laser cut and other homemade robots in mind – from the small form factor to keep print times minimal, to easy USB charging on board.
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Any and all feedback is welcomed, let me know in the discussion!
Hey Hackaday! If you are interested in trying out the 3DoT board for one of your projects, it will be available soon on Crowd Supply so we can place a bulk order!
The kind of things people are making with the 3DoT board ;) Note the computer does not have to be on the same network, it could be anywhere in the world.
I think the layout could use some work, but the prototypes of the ARM 3DoT using an NRF52840 chip are doing great - being able to use almost any pin for anything makes the board a lot more flexible!
Of course, the AVR processor is still preferred for educational purposes, for ease of use explaining the 8-bit architecture and simple assembly language.
Both versions now also have a QR code to guide you to the app download and setup instructions. Funnily enough it seems like adding the QR code to the board made the PCB manufacturers increase the print quality of the silkscreen, since the rest of the silkscreen also looks sharper now.
If you believe in teaching from the ground up, this is something you will want to check out. Most engineering educational content starts at highest level, using graphical blocks and buttons to press, but we're going to try to use the 3DoT board to teach how things really work, instead of how to press buttons.
The workshop is two parts, each probably an hour long. By the end of the first workshop the students can make the robot's motors and lights turn on and off, and at the end of the second workshop it can follow a line drawn with black marker. All programmed in machine code.
And here's what the chassis used by CSULB students look like! Note the IR sensors are not soldered in this edition since the students will be soldering them to the optimal distance themselves.
Just shipped out 3DoT starter kits to CSULB students for their assembly and c++ electrical engineering class. VERY excited about 80s-style this packaging :)
Just found this... I'd *love* to see a modification of this for use with the QMK firmware for custom keyboards. IIRC all you'd have to do is make the BT module optional and make the outputs just a straight breakout from the 32u4...
The main reason is for user friendliness, since Arduinos are all ATmega, so everything is compatible and the knowledge and experience gained can carry over directly. It's nice if the largest amount of info, library support etc. etc. already out there can be used with the 3DoT. The chip is also plenty powerful to drive a telepresent robot and doesn't require a separate usb-to-serial chip so it seemed like the best choice for < $2 a piece. Great question nonetheless and I'd be interested to hear what you would have used yourself.
Arduino Due is an Arm, as well as Arduino Zero and all recent Arduinos. There are also Arduino cores for pretty much any modern chip out there.
Personally I would pick either SAMD21, SAMD51 or NRF52, because then you could run CircuitPython with it, and use with the children a language that they may already be familiar with from the school and that they are likely to use when they grow up, instead of an exotic assembly and not-quite-c++ mix. Also the fact that you don't need any software on the computer to program them is a plus.
Last time I checked, SAMD21 was around $1 in 5k quantity.
de∫hipu Thank you for the great feedback! I'm quite set on the current setup but might consider non-atmega version in future when the popularity of arduino Unos and the 328p start to fizzle out.
Just found this... I'd *love* to see a modification of this for use with the QMK firmware for custom keyboards. IIRC all you'd have to do is make the BT module optional and make the outputs just a straight breakout from the 32u4...