S3 Robots in Production

Ari Alvarez at Simply Tronics posted this report and the fantastic photos above about the production of Parallax's new S3 robot which is underway right now! Ari, a former Parallax employee said,

 "Usually we cannot distribute any information about the products we are manufacturing for other companies, but in this case Parallax allowed SimplyTronics to talk about S3 production. They were so nice to even list SimplyTronics as manufacturer of the S3, printed on the plastic shell itself.

As the testing lab confirms FCC, CE, Prop 65 and other test results we are moving the S3 robots into production. The first units will be arriving to Parallax soon!"

Simply Tronics has been in operation since 2005 supporting Parallax Inc offshore manufacturing and component sourcing in Asia. Their online shop is here.

Can't wait for this robot to be available to by and play with! I love the whole Scribbler family of robots! They have more features and serious capability in their price range that any robot on the market, yet are simple enough for a child to learn to us! Great robot from a great company! Plus Parallax has the best technical and customer support ever! As soon as I know they are for sale - I'll let you know!

Exciting Things Coming from Parallax!

Fun stuff is on its way from Parallax Inc. - Robots for Education. This is the new S3 robot which is coming soon. It features a hacker port on the surface of the new green robot. Anxiously awaiting this being on the shelves! 

Special thanks to Ken Gracey at Parallax for giving us this video peek!

I, Robot Cover Art

Publishing in 1956 (two year's before me!) by Signet Press, the cover of Isaac Asimov's I, Robot has got to the the coolest ever! Check out that price of 35¢  What a classic! I love this book...

SRS's 2016 Robothon T-Shirt

Updated...

A new design in Blue has replaced the...

Original White

My friend Carol Lynn Hazlett made this post today on Facebook. She says, "Here is an early preview of this year's SRS's Robothon 2016 T-shirt. The design is by my brother Robert Rosenburgh." 

Love the design and already have my name in hat to get one!

Brooklyn Robot Foundry

Saw a great video about this place and what the do on Facebook. It is the Brooklyn Robot Foundry and you can visit their site here and on Facebook here.

A little video sample...

You can even have a party there for children or adults!

Blockly for the Propeller and S3

Ken Gracey at Parallax shares great news about the work of summer interns developing Blockly for the Propeller for use with the new S3 robot. Read all about it here.

Current T Shirt Want List

Posted below is my current T Shirt Want List and the source for each. Let me know if you know of one that I need to add to the list... My friend Carol Lynn Hazlett always keeps me posted about the latest SRS Robothon T Shirt!

Parallax BOE Bot Front, White at Cafe Press

Parallax BOE Bot Back, White at Cafe Press

Home Brew Robotics Club, Navy at Cafe Press

Vitruvian Robo, Cardinal Red at Cafe Press

CMU Robotics Club Front, Black at Zazzle

CMU Robotics Club Back, Black at Zazzle

99 Great Links!

Check out the links here. The graphic and introductory description below are from the source. Here also is a description of the field of Mechatronics from wikipedia (there is great graphic there too!).

Mechatronics is an exciting, interdisciplinary field that combines electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, materials, robotics, and control systems. This is a great field for technically minded engineers who enjoy working on software, hardware, and everything in between.

Mechatronics has applications in manufacturing, aeronautics, and any other industry that relies on automation. It is not only intellectually stimulating, but offers a wide array of job opportunities in academic and industrial settings. Anyone with an engineering mindset and a broad set of interests could find endless rewarding challenges in the field of mechatronics, and as robotics continue to gain popularity in manufacturing, military, and even home-use applications, there will be no shortage of jobs in the industry. There are sites here that cater to advanced mechatronics students and professionals, as well as those just starting out. This is not a ranking list, since the info presented covers such diverse territory across the disciplines of mechatronics, robotics, haptics, and electrical engineering overall.

Mars Explorers Wanted Posters

This and other great free poster files are available here.

Fascinating!

Asimov's First Law of Robotics Broken

The use of a robot to end the life of the Dallas gunman has started some conversation about robotics. This idea had not occurred to me until I saw a friend's post on a robotic's forum - Asimov's First Law of Robotics has been broken. Here is the Wikipedia article about Asimov's Laws of Robotics.

The Three Laws of Robotics (often shortened to The Three Laws or Three Laws, also known as Asimov's Laws) are a set of rules devised by the science fiction author Isaac Asimov. The rules were introduced in his 1942 short story "Runaround", although they had been foreshadowed in a few earlier stories. The Three Laws, quoted as being from the "Handbook of Robotics, 56th Edition, 2058 A.D.", are:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws

This article from Snopes was linked in my friend's post. Then there was this article from The Guardian. I would imagine that more discussion will come from this. I am beginning to see comments on social media already. Still processing this myself...

Thanks for making me think Eric!

Mid-summer Update from Parallax!

Exciting news from Parallax here - Parallax Insider News.

'We Conquered Jupiter': Juno Enters Orbit

A recap of the July 4 excitement as NASA's Juno spacecraft entered orbit around Jupiter. After an almost five-year journey to the solar system's largest planet, Juno successfully entered Jupiter's orbit during a 35-minute engine burn. Confirmation that the burn had completed was received on Earth at 8:53 pm. PDT (11:53 p.m. EDT) Monday, July 4, 2016 - just as planned. 

An unbelievable accomplishment! NASA and JPL make it look easy - it is not!

Fun News from Episcopal Cafe

Episcopalian in space? Astronaut Kate Rubins will be tonight!

Interesting article from Episcopal Cafe. I know Rubins' Mom and Step-father (both Episcopal clergy) from my seminary days!

Update: Follow-up video below. You can also check on news from the International Space Station (ISS) on Facebook here.

Another Update: She is there! See here.

Juno in July!

The Google Doodle for July 5 announces that NASA's Juno spacecraft is now in orbit around Jupiter! Juno began its journey on August 5, 2011 and arrived right on time on July 4, 2016!

Read all about it a NASA's Juno Mission page. Below is a brief mission video from NASA. JOI!

Fun Fact - Three LEGO figurines representing the Roman god Jupiter, his wife Juno and Galileo Galilei are aboard the Juno spacecraft! See here also! HA!

TV Robots Anyone?

Take the quiz here on MeTV's website.

NASA's Valkyrie Humanoid Upgraded - MORE!

Sethu Vijayakumar (front right), Maurice Fallon (front left), and Zhibin Li (second from right) with the Edinburgh Valkyrie team

NASA's Valkyrie Humanoid Upgraded, Delivered to Robotics Labs in U.S. and Europe: The NASA humanoid is ready to start training for simulated Mars missions at research universities and labs around the world! Photo above at the University of Edinburgh.

Valkyrie Robot

Meet Valkyrie, NASA JSC's DARPA Robotics Challenge humanoid robot. A glimpse of the future?