Beobot is the product of the emerging power of open source software as well as the entry into the market of consumer grade robotic devices that previously only existed in industrial as well as scientific applications. For instance, servomotors are now widely used in remote control (RC) hobby vehicles. Given of the nature RC racing, these servos must be cheap, durable and have ample torque for their size. Additionally, the motors used to run RC cars have become more powerful allowing for the construction of larger lower cost RC vehicles. The Beobot is based upon such a vehicle. The Traxxas E-Maxx RC car was one of the largest electric RC cars on the market. It is a 4-wheel drive truck that is able to reach speeds over 35 MPH, and is servo controlled. This provides as easy interface to computer control.
Additionally, it should be noted that many RC cars including gasoline powered RC cars are also servo controlled. Thus, with some creative judgment, the base component vehicle could take on many forms. At this point: we should also note the imitations of using off the shelf servos.
The design of a robot is of course more than taking a computer and dropping it on a drive train. The choice of the computer is also important. The server market of computers has created an ideal computer form for our robot called PICMG.
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