Robohub.org
 

Ringo: An Arduino-powered robot bug for kids

by
13 March 2015



share this:

Ringo Purple 800xRingo is a friendly pet robot bug based on the Arduino UNO that was inspired and co-designed by my 1st grade daughter Hailey and my 3rd grade son Parker, who are both already writing C code. We started out intending to build just one robot together, but we realized something much greater could be done in producing Ringo for the masses. There is only a few days left of our crowdfunding campaign – we hope it will catch the curiosity of young engineers and also have a particular appeal to girls who may not otherwise become interested in coding and technology.

Ringo sports a handful of sensors and goodies including a 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, communication and line following sensors, six RGB LED’s, a music chirper, onboard battery charging, and more. The robot is pre-loaded with 10 different behaviors, enabling a user to begin playing with it right out of the box using the included IR remote control.

Code is written using the Arduino IDE and is compatible with standard Arduino functions. As Ringo is fully open source, users are encouraged to look at the source code for the included behaviors and begin to edit and customize. Tutorials will be published before shipments begin, making it easy to get started. More advanced users will be challenged to find interesting applications for the collection of sensors and smarts including swarming behaviors. The upcoming Plum Geek website will host an area for code exchange where users from around the world can build on eachothers’ code and collaborate. Favorite behaviors will be highlighted for new users to download and play with.

Ringo_3

Virtual pets are typically appealing to children, but Ringo’s advanced capabilities and open source hardware will make it a favorite among people of all ages and introduce them to STEM technology. The development intentionally played on the cute, buggy persona so Ringo would have an appeal to girls who are largely under-represented in the computer science field.  Ringo could be the perfect way to introduce them to the joys of programming.

The project reached its funding goal in just over 24 hours, and to date, has raised over 450% of that goal. There’s only a week left, so go back the campaign to get in on the first production run if you’re interested. Plum Geek will also be donating Ringo units to schools and building a school curriculum based on the robot so your support will go a long way to putting this interesting robot in the hands of students.

Ringo_1 Ringo_2

tags: , , ,


Kevin King is the founder of PlumGeek.
Kevin King is the founder of PlumGeek.





Related posts :



We are pleased to announce our 3rd Reddit Robotics Showcase!

The 2021 and 2022 events showcased a multitude of fantastic projects from the r/Robotics Reddit community, as well as academia and industry. This year’s event features many wonderful robots including...
30 May 2023, by

European Robotics Forum 2023 was a success!

One of the highlights of the conference for us was our workshop "Supporting SMEs in Bringing Robotics Solutions to Market", where experts gave insights on how DIHs can create a greater impact for SMEs and facilitate a broad uptake and integration of robotics technologies in the industry.
28 May 2023, by

Helping robots handle fluids

Researchers create a new simulation tool for robots to manipulate complex fluids in a step toward helping them more effortlessly assist with daily tasks.
27 May 2023, by

Robot Talk Episode 50 – Elena De Momi

In this week's episode of the Robot Talk podcast, host Claire Asher chatted to Elena De Momi from the the Polytechnic University of Milan all about surgical robotics, artificial intelligence, and the upcoming ICRA robotics conference in London.
26 May 2023, by

Building a Tablebot

There was a shortage of entries in the tablebot competition shortly before the registration window closed for RoboGames 2023. To make sure the contest would be held, I entered a robot. Then I had to build one.
23 May 2023, by

Making drones suitable for cities

Unmanned aerial vehicles will make their way into urban skies only if the safety of people below can be ensured.
21 May 2023, by





©2021 - ROBOTS Association


 












©2021 - ROBOTS Association