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Wifi Enabled, Remote Controlled, pcDuino Powered, Video Surveillance Robot
Summary Status
Abandoning this project. The power port broke off the pcDuino. Need it for full functionality. Maybe someone can solder it back on and the device would be usable again.
Click here to read the latest status on my blog.
Description
Pete Prodoehl, self-proclaimed expert and consummate Maker, asked me to play around with a pcDuinoV2 that the 'space had sitting around. I am tasked with making something awesome with it. One idea I had was to make a wifi enabled, remote controlled video surveillance robot.
At first, I was thinking that the robot could roam around the Makerspace, controlled by curious people on the internet. On second thought, that would be a bit creepy. Plus, the robot would get under people's feet or stuck on stuff. Maybe the robot would be more accepted by the Makerspace members if it looked like a Dalek. Think about it. A five foot high Dalek driving around the Makerspace, controlled by someone on the internet. That is not at all creepy. Also, it would probably be pretty easy to add a speech synthesizer to the robot. The person on the internet could type in some text and the synthesizer would speak it – in a Dalek voice. “Exterminate! Exterminate!” Awesome!
Another idea would be to combine the robot with the elevated train project that was discussed on the Makerspace's Google Group a year or so ago. The original idea was to have an elevated train track that ran near the ceiling in every room of the Makerspace. The track was going to be a big loop around the 'space that the train with webcam ran on. In this case, instead of a train, the remote controlled robot would be on the track. People could make it move around and point the camera at interesting things. The robot would not get in anyone's way and possibly be less creepy.
Bill of Materials
| Part Desc | Vendor | Part Nbr | Qty | Unit Cost | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pcDuinoV2 | Amazon | B00HCZH6WG | 1 | $74.99 | $0.00 (donated to MMS) |
| Adafruit Motor/Stepper/Servo Shield for Arduino v2 Kit | Adafruit | 1438 | 1 | 19.95 | 19.95 |
| DC Motor for wheels | ?? | ?? | 2 | ?? | ?? |
| Servo motor for camera | ?? | ?? | 2 | ?? | ?? |
| Wheels | ?? | ?? | 2 | ?? | ?? |
| Caster wheel | ?? | ?? | 1 | ?? | ?? |
| Base of robot | ?? | ?? | 1 | ?? | ?? |
| Camera | ?? | ?? | 1 | ?? | ?? |
External Links
I would love to have ideas about what robot base to use, camera, or anything else about this project. My Makerspace wiki page has links to contact me.
Project Tasks
| Task | Status |
|---|---|
| | Done |
| | Done |
| Determine robot base to use | Not started |
| Procure parts for robot | Not started |
| Procure parts for webcam | Not started |
| Assemble robot | Not started |
| Connect pcDuino to robot | Not started |
| Install software on pcDuino to remotely control robot | Not started |
| Test remote control from PC on internet | Not started |
| Test remote control from phone or tablet device | Not started |
| Get pcDuino working with camera | Not started |
| Install software to share video with remote user | Not started |
| Test complete robot | Not started |
Makerspace Members
