Why?

Why? I saw this tonight at Target. Size 12 months!

Why are the coolest robotics' shirts sized for children only? This  one is very elegant - adult colors - subtle pattern - super cool! Why, I say, why?

When will this wrong be righted?

More S3 with Ping)))

Parallax S3 with Ping))) ultra-sonic sensor measure the distance to objects a 45, 90 and 135 degree and then drives to the nearest object.

The S3 in Action

Take a look at these great gifs from Parallax of the S3 in action...

Light Following

Line Following #1

Line Following #2

mēbo

mēbo - Saw this out at Toys-R-Us. Look pretty neat - check out the video below... $149.99 - that price seems be the msrp. 

Parallax S3 with Ping))) Hack

The S3 plays with its ancestors using this Ping))) ultrasonic sensor hack and some nifty BlocklyProp code from Ken Gracey.

Here is what Ken's BlocklyProp code looks like - the neat thing about Blockly code is that it explains itself - take a look (I did modify the if do minimum distance in the video example above so the S3 would turn before it bumps its next of kin!).

  

The loop repeats forever. A variable named distanceCM is set by the green block that measure distance in cm from a PIng))) on pin 5. The play tone uses that variable multiplied by 5 to create and play a tone. Motor speeds are decreased as the distance to an obstacle decreases. If the minimum allowed distance is reached, then the S3 rotates 180 degrees and the cycle begins again.

This complex bit of coding is a breeze with BlocklyProp! Give it try!

What's in a Name (tag)?

I found these great name tags made by Carson-Dellosa at The Teacher's Mart, a local teacher's supply store. I will use the tags at an upcoming robotic's workshop where I will introduce the Parallax S3 to a group of local librarians - who in turn will share them with lots of young people in our area. I made this one into a meme for Robotics Under the Stole.

Feelin' the Green?

Feelin' the Green! More on the Scribbler 3! Great job Miguel! Ken​, Miguel IS as excited as I am!

Eric​, Carol​, and Nikos are too!*

* The exclamation mark - ! is (freely used) is an inside joke - I was overusing it when helping write the S3 tutorials - Ken suggested that I use it less - he said, "We know you are excited..."