3 ms·

Fascinating! I want to get into this type of stuff. But I have no idea where to start, I just have just a CS degree and 3 years experience as a developer.

taneq 1y ago
Arduinos and hobby servos. No, neither of them are "industrial grade" and yeah, you'll reach their limits pretty quickly, but building a physical thing that does stuff is (in my experience) a huge motivator. Or if you're already all over the basics, figure out what kind of stuff you want to build and then try and build it. :)
- Paddywack 1y ago
  Can you recommend where to find beginners projects that “do stuff”.
  - Retr0id 1y ago
    Just like the article, there's a huge amount of hobbyist-accessible projects on youtube, you can click around the recommended videos.
  - sitkack 1y ago
    Grab a servo and start playing with it.
  - taneq 1y ago
    https://hackaday.com/ https://hackaday.com/ - cool projects and interesting stuff https://news.sparkfun.com/tags/tutorial https://news.sparkfun.com/tags/tutorial - tutorials on embedded software, electronics, etc. https://learn.adafruit.com/ https://learn.adafruit.com/ - electronics tutorials
  - Mars008 1y ago
    To begin with you can get a cheap robotic kit from Amazon, there are many of them, and put it together. That's probably the easiest and fastest way. From here you can read more about servos and controllers, modify its mechanics and software.
adolph 1y ago
I recommend a Brachiograph build. It will introduce you to some fundamentals of PWM and inverse kinematics. It is well documented but not cookie-cutter. Using a Raspberry Pi will give you more direct access to running the servos than the microcontroller experience. All the parts are infinitely reusable afterward if you don't want to keep it around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Jh1daCl60 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Jh1daCl60 https://www.brachiograph.art/ https://www.brachiograph.art/ https://github.com/evildmp/BrachioGraph https://github.com/evildmp/BrachioGraph Sample Supply List for $80 budget: Pi Zero with header $20: https://www.adafruit.com/product/6008 Power supply $9: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1995 SD Card $10: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1294 Three hobby servos $18: https://www.adafruit.com/product/169 Breadboard wires $5: https://www.adafruit.com/product/153 Breadboard $5: https://www.adafruit.com/product/64 Glue, popsicle sticks, pen and paper $10
ErigmolCt 1y ago
A solid place to start is building something simple

taneq 1y ago

Arduinos and hobby servos. No, neither of them are "industrial grade" and yeah, you'll reach their limits pretty quickly, but building a physical thing that does stuff is (in my experience) a huge motivator. Or if you're already all over the basics, figure out what kind of stuff you want to build and then try and build it. :)

Paddywack 1y ago
Can you recommend where to find beginners projects that “do stuff”.
- Retr0id 1y ago
  Just like the article, there's a huge amount of hobbyist-accessible projects on youtube, you can click around the recommended videos.
- sitkack 1y ago
  Grab a servo and start playing with it.
- taneq 1y ago
  https://hackaday.com/ https://hackaday.com/ - cool projects and interesting stuff https://news.sparkfun.com/tags/tutorial https://news.sparkfun.com/tags/tutorial - tutorials on embedded software, electronics, etc. https://learn.adafruit.com/ https://learn.adafruit.com/ - electronics tutorials
- Mars008 1y ago
  To begin with you can get a cheap robotic kit from Amazon, there are many of them, and put it together. That's probably the easiest and fastest way. From here you can read more about servos and controllers, modify its mechanics and software.

adolph 1y ago

I recommend a Brachiograph build. It will introduce you to some fundamentals of PWM and inverse kinematics. It is well documented but not cookie-cutter. Using a Raspberry Pi will give you more direct access to running the servos than the microcontroller experience. All the parts are infinitely reusable afterward if you don't want to keep it around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Jh1daCl60 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4Jh1daCl60 https://www.brachiograph.art/ https://www.brachiograph.art/ https://github.com/evildmp/BrachioGraph https://github.com/evildmp/BrachioGraph Sample Supply List for $80 budget: Pi Zero with header $20: https://www.adafruit.com/product/6008 Power supply $9: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1995 SD Card $10: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1294 Three hobby servos $18: https://www.adafruit.com/product/169 Breadboard wires $5: https://www.adafruit.com/product/153 Breadboard $5: https://www.adafruit.com/product/64 Glue, popsicle sticks, pen and paper $10

ErigmolCt 1y ago

A solid place to start is building something simple