tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71526252038296813172024-03-14T06:05:34.459-03:00miniBloqminiBloq is an open source graphical programming environment for Multiplo™, Arduino™, physical computing devices and robots.Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-50618305439416873972016-10-27T18:58:00.000-03:002016-10-31T18:24:05.274-03:00Root: A robot to teach coding from 4 to 99 years old<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="text-align: justify;">(<a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2016/10/root-un-robot-para-ensenar-programacion.html">Spanish version here.</a>) </span><span style="text-align: justify;">It's been nearly 2 years since I've posted anything on this blog, but today I want to show off what I have been working on during that time. Here it is...</span><br />
<span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span><span style="text-align: justify;">At the beginning of 2015 I joined a research group at the <a href="http://wyss.harvard.edu/" target="_blank">Wyss Institute, at Harvard University</a>, where we are working on new ways of doing educational robotics (which has been my main pursuit since 1993). The result of this work is <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya">Root</a>, for which we have launched a </span><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya" style="text-align: justify;">Kickstarter campaign</a><span style="text-align: justify;">:</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf6wMqh8JL1VBBlPjRCedhIkrN1omOqjAHm1b0yD7KfW332euQZgHb3e_S57zDwsRCJiYzQOwqh4QrdxZAqdMwzRqjdJrG2DTXjOXVGCVNek0nPdQkTxCoEx13XZPeuT8PqrJ8g5MGb8Nw/s400/Fractal_Root.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img alt=" https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF17QdIR9-e8A8XIBfXXnvKMGJMvPZAp4ELm3-LOo7pR1p4IRf6-ceREOh7AEoAZrEs6xPQBKLLej6iD3A4qO_0nSCeS2dDzbHAdYDB_wcWvymC4aQuVadqVf5QxmdT6Sia6K3LivfSk2L/s320/Example+-+Rocket+ship.jpg" title="" width="197" /></a><span id="goog_2122943283"></span><span id="goog_2122943284"></span><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfGlOd85QWY4BM6CQRv1iwVXYNpR7hbZCsMhAkrxGG7HxhI6ydJBIErZ33xfVeS0ZKqjw4_Ml0tmNg5OVbyVfWdKfhs6IvBl_H0krl3HrN5Kbh-LfdfRPBOLGayjO-O216Q0Si4GHKo8zP/s320/Example+-+Spiral+sketch.jpg" width="197" /></a><span id="goog_543840519"></span><span id="goog_543840520"></span></div>
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There are several features that make Root and it's companion software (called Root Square) unique. I want to mention some of them here.</div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">His world is the whiteboard</span></div>
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In the classrooms of many countries, the whiteboards are metallic. This makes it possible to attach magnetic accessories to them (like the ones we attach to our refrigerators). Root is a magnetic robot; although it can work perfectly over a table, the floor, or over a piece of paper or poster board, it can also work vertically on a magnetic whiteboard. This is not a minor detail: the whiteboard is a great tool/arena for building the world with which the robot interacts. This can even be done while the robot is running, in an interactive way, opening up a lot of unique activities. Additionally, whiteboards offer another big advantage: if you have ever seen a robot competition, you probably know that creating the physical environment for the robot to compete is often complex and expensive. But whiteboards allow us to build complex 2D worlds by just drawing, which is in itself an interesting activity.<br />
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">A lot of sensors, and something else</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQM28o_2n3p3ZfPwtLz575B5TFsTGv3csSXweUr69T1zDb3eWFhKCZSB05OPP5HJ0jA7KUVY8KKk_9_-KRqjuteWCD1ncGyPnZs-zML4y9cu-zrwH52W16GNOGiERSOThX6G4QcvELNGsI/s1600/root_marker_whiteboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQM28o_2n3p3ZfPwtLz575B5TFsTGv3csSXweUr69T1zDb3eWFhKCZSB05OPP5HJ0jA7KUVY8KKk_9_-KRqjuteWCD1ncGyPnZs-zML4y9cu-zrwH52W16GNOGiERSOThX6G4QcvELNGsI/s200/root_marker_whiteboard.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></ul>
<span style="text-align: justify;">Not any magnetic robot can live in a whiteboard. Root features some important elements that makes its life there easier and, let's say, much more productive. </span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">First, Root has an grip in its geometric centre <b>to hold a standard marker</b></span><span style="text-align: justify;">. </span><b style="text-align: justify;">An internal motor lets the robot to lift and drop the maker, and to do the same with the included eraser </b><span style="text-align: justify;">(which is part of the robot too)</span><span style="text-align: justify;">. Until now, it might not look very different from other drawing robots...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmNzP_vxmzXQT4UwnOLbmamn_f9_Sa8Nea-irax9ujrfAA0X7j-4OlcdnqfunPp1ATOml-hoU15GwGnLvpyZk2oeMPJQC9gfkwUSW6Z2Xjye04j8Xvo3sq5B3Z439DjV84A6-0MedsvRaY/s1600/root_glow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmNzP_vxmzXQT4UwnOLbmamn_f9_Sa8Nea-irax9ujrfAA0X7j-4OlcdnqfunPp1ATOml-hoU15GwGnLvpyZk2oeMPJQC9gfkwUSW6Z2Xjye04j8Xvo3sq5B3Z439DjV84A6-0MedsvRaY/s200/root_glow.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">But, Root </span><b style="text-align: justify;">can draw with high precision</b><span style="text-align: justify;">, due to a big set of internal sensors (</span><b style="text-align: justify;">high resolution encoders, a 3D accelerometer and a 3D gyroscope</b><span style="text-align: justify;">) that work together with its precision motors. This feature is more complicated that it first appears because Root must<i> compensate for gravity</i> (which should not be underestimated).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS6zEEtNkdtam2CXa0DcOAq3JxqJRAyNUrJ0TKOciHRk3N9uH-wq1LO770WHPHOw13eLDOFRRGHgG4o0VuDb5zqgIXXD9oNJDJMEa_RvT_GPrrV4QC59USs7XmGSyA1HEhi9Xrb16sfJ-/s1600/root_bottom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS6zEEtNkdtam2CXa0DcOAq3JxqJRAyNUrJ0TKOciHRk3N9uH-wq1LO770WHPHOw13eLDOFRRGHgG4o0VuDb5zqgIXXD9oNJDJMEa_RvT_GPrrV4QC59USs7XmGSyA1HEhi9Xrb16sfJ-/s200/root_bottom.jpg" width="185" /></a></ul>
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Finally, and this is probably his most important feature: Root has </span><b style="text-align: justify;">32 color sensors</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> on its bottom. This is kind of equivalent to a 1D camera, or a small <i>color scanner</i>. This group of sensors enable the robot to interact with people's and other robot's drawings. For now, </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Root can differentiate up to 5 colors</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> (black, white, red, blue and green). The number of activities that can be done using just this sensor is quite large </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #545454; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">– </span><span style="text-align: justify;">particularly on whiteboards. The most important aspect of this sensor is that it's very easy to use with young kids, and yet powerful enough for complex problems you might encounter in a college-level class. It's versatile, robust, and easy to program. But the activities you do with it can be as challenging as the user wants...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwbjmieHbWIepsOG0tSBGZfltzIQFxOcc1-WcCryubp5G6w9_HfTaix2huGXOdKvEE1C5YX9Dqde641DxWei2aqAzLG_bDjcthDmb6WTpC3wjNRPvd7WaCRicgz6CT0C35cvvXbSbirUa/s1600/Example+-+Color+guitar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwbjmieHbWIepsOG0tSBGZfltzIQFxOcc1-WcCryubp5G6w9_HfTaix2huGXOdKvEE1C5YX9Dqde641DxWei2aqAzLG_bDjcthDmb6WTpC3wjNRPvd7WaCRicgz6CT0C35cvvXbSbirUa/s200/Example+-+Color+guitar.jpg" width="123" /></a></div>
<span style="text-align: justify;">One should note that Root is not only meant for basic activities, it's <b>one of the robots equipped with most sensors in its market segment</b>.</span><span style="text-align: justify;"> In addition to the previously mentioned 32 color sensors, hi-res encoders, 3D accelerometer and 3D gyro...Root features 2 ambient light sensors, 4 touch areas on its top, 2 bumpers, an internal battery sensor, and 4 magnetic surface sensors on its bottom (which allow it to improve the way it drives on metallic surfaces). </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Regarding expansion, third party </span><span style="text-align: justify;">boards and other accessories (like </span><a href="https://www.raspberrypi.org/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">Raspberry Pi</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, </span><a href="https://www.arduino.cc/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">Arduino</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, </span><a href="https://www.microbit.co.uk/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">BBC Micro:Bit</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, cameras, sensors, etc.)</span><span style="text-align: justify;"> can be connected through an USB-C connector on the robot's back</span><span style="text-align: justify;">. Root has also 16 multicolor (RGB) LEDs, and a piezo speaker with which it can play musical notes. For connectivity, Root can talk to any Bluetooth Low Energy device, like most modern tablets, mobile phones, laptops and desktop computers.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cibwSqJMCcghjGldNQNLJdQA1L65WA3VZUNKDRtggdnizg6NY3Ty4nnzRLyoSl6CR9hdlH4RIBbv7sAQvhHiUZAe_3d-B7WP-5fpbpmdfApOMi44AqxlYtET3cNr0apIUmgdPh6raXLI/s1600/GIF+-+camlift.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cibwSqJMCcghjGldNQNLJdQA1L65WA3VZUNKDRtggdnizg6NY3Ty4nnzRLyoSl6CR9hdlH4RIBbv7sAQvhHiUZAe_3d-B7WP-5fpbpmdfApOMi44AqxlYtET3cNr0apIUmgdPh6raXLI/s400/GIF+-+camlift.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large; text-align: justify;">New multi-level software for all ages</span><br />
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A big portion of the research effort was dedicated to the software. Currently, in the educational robot market, there is no single product that can be used to teach coding from very early ages, like 4 year-old, all the way to college level. Think about a 4 year-old kid: in general, she/he doesn't know to read/write, and is not able to count to numbers bigger than 20. A graphical programing environment that really addresses this group is also very useful for older people who were never exposed to coding before. In making an interface that young kids can understand, you must introduce some limitations. While we wanted an easy entry, we didn't want to limit what people could create, so we chose to make Root Square, Root's companion software, <b>multi-level</b>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURNnew0lEg5owup0hvP_SUBrYQDs1G7fiki7FAHhiGq_wOT1gobF3zTM-3PVbzLKa1uyIBh4M3R-NMxayItjV8Lifrq3d4uAincUtBai1oZES6f3UpgMju9rjHxSLZBpen_VMA1oLPLup/s1600/Multilevel.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURNnew0lEg5owup0hvP_SUBrYQDs1G7fiki7FAHhiGq_wOT1gobF3zTM-3PVbzLKa1uyIBh4M3R-NMxayItjV8Lifrq3d4uAincUtBai1oZES6f3UpgMju9rjHxSLZBpen_VMA1oLPLup/s400/Multilevel.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Square Level 1</span><br />
Root Square's Level 1 interface has been designed to be accessible for kids as young as 4 or older kids who have never experienced coding before. I have personally seen adults happy they created their very first ever program with Square Level 1. So far, Level 1 as some unique features that make it uniquely easy to program with:<br />
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<li>It's probably the most interactive programing environment for robots out there: Not only does it not need compilation, but also <b>the user's program can be modified while it's running</b>. This puts Level 1 in a very different category when compared with traditional interpreters. Adding, deleting or modifying instructions (blocks) even inside a running loop is absolutely possible; the user's program will just keep running with the new modifications. This capability makes it ideal for working with young kids, as they are really <i>playing</i> with the code while it runs. This also facilitates introducing programming in the classroom, where time is always at a premium. No more slow compile, upload and test cycles.</li>
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<li><b>It's been optimized for touch screens.</b> Many currently available robots can be program now with graphical programing languages. Most of them follow the same paradigm which, let's say it, it's based in developments mainly done between 1995 and 2005 (so let's put it clear: this was 21 to 11 years from now). Square was designed breaking some of the "accepted rules", which were no more than just legacy stuff designed for desktop computers.</li>
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<li>There has been a lot of effort invested in optimizing the relationship between the number of elements (blocks) that build a program, and the powerfulness of that program. This means that in Root Square, the user programs are <b>short</b> when compared with other graphical languages currently in use. But being short does not mean at all that the algorithm is hidden or not designed by the user. The student must still create each rule or response for the robot. Level 1 is completely events-based and thus with very few blocks it's possible to solve complex situations that in other environments require far more syntactic complexity. Often, the programs can run exactly the same as in other environments, but the Root Square program is shorter and easier to follow. I would like to explain more about this, but let's leave that for a future post.</li>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Level 2 and Level 3</span></div>
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For more advanced users or the beginners who reach Level 1's limits, Root Square provides another graphical programing language: Level 2. Both levels are accessed from the same app in a very simple way, and previous Level 1 code can be automatically translated to Level 2 to ease the transition. Although Level 2 is more similar to other existing environments, it still brings some newnesses that make it more agile, more powerful and more friendly. Finally, the programs created with Level 1 and Level 2 can be converted into <a href="https://www.python.org/" target="_blank">Python</a>, <a href="https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript" target="_blank">JavaScript</a>, or <a href="https://swift.org/" target="_blank">Swift</a> code (Level 3). Root offers a rich and open API and a development kit (SDK) that opens the door to all kinds of advanced applications and interactions with other devices:<br />
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4T_rxjvVXtEZy-NqLWIlj3I_YO9doJFF0DSnW7zP5lnqLfy_NpT2mpjglx-Drh1jnVPcQbby8-FUjCmO8jw1trdxUDNNXok7brgwUHZrs-wQDx4YTBRUUaaxme7dI7NT1BU2Ik2dafLsK/s640/Root_tracking_small.gif" style="cursor: move;" width="640" /></a></div>
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I hope to publish more about Root's details during the upcoming weeks. For now, the most important thing is to make it happen. Everyone can help through the <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya" target="_blank">Kickstarter campaign</a>. Thanks!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-70058820969137633282016-10-24T18:01:00.003-03:002016-10-31T18:24:57.030-03:00Root: un robot para enseñar programación de 4 a 99 años<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="text-align: justify;">Hace casi 2 años que no publico en este blog, pero hoy puedo mostrar el resultado de lo que vinimos haciendo durante ese tiempo. Así que aquí va...</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Desde principios de 2015 pasé a formar parte de un grupo de investigación en el <a href="http://wyss.harvard.edu/" target="_blank">Wyss Institute, perteneciente a la Universidad de Harvard</a>, donde estamos trabajando en nuevas formas de hacer robótica educativa (que ha sido mi principal área de interés desde 1993). El primer resultado es <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya">Root</a>, que fue lanzado hoy a través de una </span><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya" style="text-align: justify;">campaña de Kickstarter</a><span style="text-align: justify;">:</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf6wMqh8JL1VBBlPjRCedhIkrN1omOqjAHm1b0yD7KfW332euQZgHb3e_S57zDwsRCJiYzQOwqh4QrdxZAqdMwzRqjdJrG2DTXjOXVGCVNek0nPdQkTxCoEx13XZPeuT8PqrJ8g5MGb8Nw/s400/Fractal_Root.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF17QdIR9-e8A8XIBfXXnvKMGJMvPZAp4ELm3-LOo7pR1p4IRf6-ceREOh7AEoAZrEs6xPQBKLLej6iD3A4qO_0nSCeS2dDzbHAdYDB_wcWvymC4aQuVadqVf5QxmdT6Sia6K3LivfSk2L/s320/Example+-+Rocket+ship.jpg" title="" width="197" /></a><span id="goog_2122943283"></span><span id="goog_2122943284"></span><a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfGlOd85QWY4BM6CQRv1iwVXYNpR7hbZCsMhAkrxGG7HxhI6ydJBIErZ33xfVeS0ZKqjw4_Ml0tmNg5OVbyVfWdKfhs6IvBl_H0krl3HrN5Kbh-LfdfRPBOLGayjO-O216Q0Si4GHKo8zP/s320/Example+-+Spiral+sketch.jpg" width="197" /></a></div>
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Hay varias características que hacen únicos a Root como robot, y a su software (llamado Root Square, aunque de ahí en más lo voy a llamar simplemente Square). Quiero mencionar algunas a continuación.</div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Su mundo es el pizarrón</span></div>
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En las aulas de numerosos países los pizarrones son metálicos, de modo que se les pueden adosar accesorios magnéticos, como los que pegamos en la puerta de la heladera. Root es un robot magnético: si bien puede funcionar perfectamente en una mesa, en el suelo, o sobre un pedazo grande de papel o cartulina, también puede trabajar verticalmente en un pizarrón moderno. Esto no es un detalle menor, ya que el pizarrón es una gran herramienta para construir el mundo con el cual Root interactúa. Esto se puede hacer incluso con el robot funcionando, de forma interactiva, lo que abre muchísimas posibilidades. Adicionalmente, los pizarrones tienen otra ventaja importante: quien alguna vez ha participado en competencias escolares de robots, probablemente esté familiarizado con lo difícil que resulta construir el <i>entorno</i> en el que los robots deberán competir. Muchas veces esto también implica gastos adicionales importantes. Los pizarrones, en cambio, nos permiten armar mundos complejos bidimensionales sin más que dibujar, lo cual además es una actividad interesante.<br />
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Muchos sensores, y algo más</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQM28o_2n3p3ZfPwtLz575B5TFsTGv3csSXweUr69T1zDb3eWFhKCZSB05OPP5HJ0jA7KUVY8KKk_9_-KRqjuteWCD1ncGyPnZs-zML4y9cu-zrwH52W16GNOGiERSOThX6G4QcvELNGsI/s1600/root_marker_whiteboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQM28o_2n3p3ZfPwtLz575B5TFsTGv3csSXweUr69T1zDb3eWFhKCZSB05OPP5HJ0jA7KUVY8KKk_9_-KRqjuteWCD1ncGyPnZs-zML4y9cu-zrwH52W16GNOGiERSOThX6G4QcvELNGsI/s200/root_marker_whiteboard.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></ul>
<span style="text-align: justify;">No cualquier robot magnético podría vivir en el pizarrón. Root tiene varios elementos que hacen que su vida en el pizarrón sea, vamos a decir, más productiva. </span><br />
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Primero que nada, Root tiene </span><b style="text-align: justify;">un encastre en su centro geométrico para colocar un marcador</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> (de los comunes, nada especial). </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Un motor interno le permite bajarlo y subirlo, así como también bajar y subir un borrador</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> que ya viene incorporado. Hasta acá, esto no es tan diferente de otros robots tipo "tortuga".</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmNzP_vxmzXQT4UwnOLbmamn_f9_Sa8Nea-irax9ujrfAA0X7j-4OlcdnqfunPp1ATOml-hoU15GwGnLvpyZk2oeMPJQC9gfkwUSW6Z2Xjye04j8Xvo3sq5B3Z439DjV84A6-0MedsvRaY/s1600/root_glow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmNzP_vxmzXQT4UwnOLbmamn_f9_Sa8Nea-irax9ujrfAA0X7j-4OlcdnqfunPp1ATOml-hoU15GwGnLvpyZk2oeMPJQC9gfkwUSW6Z2Xjye04j8Xvo3sq5B3Z439DjV84A6-0MedsvRaY/s200/root_glow.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Segundo, Root </span><b style="text-align: justify;">puede dibujar con mucha precisión</b><span style="text-align: justify;">, debido a un grupo de sensores (</span><b style="text-align: justify;">encoders de alta resolución, un acelerómetro 3D y un giróscopo 3D</b><span style="text-align: justify;">), que trabajan en conjunto con sus motores de precisión. Esto ya es más complicado, sobre todo teniendo en cuenta que Root <i>sabe como compensar la gravedad</i> (a la que no hay que subestimar nunca).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS6zEEtNkdtam2CXa0DcOAq3JxqJRAyNUrJ0TKOciHRk3N9uH-wq1LO770WHPHOw13eLDOFRRGHgG4o0VuDb5zqgIXXD9oNJDJMEa_RvT_GPrrV4QC59USs7XmGSyA1HEhi9Xrb16sfJ-/s1600/root_bottom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS6zEEtNkdtam2CXa0DcOAq3JxqJRAyNUrJ0TKOciHRk3N9uH-wq1LO770WHPHOw13eLDOFRRGHgG4o0VuDb5zqgIXXD9oNJDJMEa_RvT_GPrrV4QC59USs7XmGSyA1HEhi9Xrb16sfJ-/s200/root_bottom.jpg" width="185" /></a></ul>
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Tercero, y esto es quizá lo más importante: Root tiene </span><b style="text-align: justify;">32 sensores de color</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> en su parte inferior. Esto es equivalente a una cámara unidimensional, o dicho de otro modo, a un pequeño <i>scanner color</i>. Este grupo de sensores le permiten interactuar con lo que las personas y otros robots dibujan. Por el momento, </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Root puede distinguir hasta 5 colores</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> (negro, blanco, rojo, azul y verde). La cantidad de actividades que se pueden hacer utilizando este sensor es realmente alta. Pero lo más importante, es que al sensor de color se lo puede utilizar de forma muy sencilla, comenzando con niños muy pequeños, o de forma mucho mas compleja, incluso a nivel universitario. Es versátil, robusto, y fácil de programar; o tan difícil como se quiera...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwbjmieHbWIepsOG0tSBGZfltzIQFxOcc1-WcCryubp5G6w9_HfTaix2huGXOdKvEE1C5YX9Dqde641DxWei2aqAzLG_bDjcthDmb6WTpC3wjNRPvd7WaCRicgz6CT0C35cvvXbSbirUa/s1600/Example+-+Color+guitar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwbjmieHbWIepsOG0tSBGZfltzIQFxOcc1-WcCryubp5G6w9_HfTaix2huGXOdKvEE1C5YX9Dqde641DxWei2aqAzLG_bDjcthDmb6WTpC3wjNRPvd7WaCRicgz6CT0C35cvvXbSbirUa/s200/Example+-+Color+guitar.jpg" width="123" /></a></div>
<span style="text-align: justify;">Pero como la idea de Root no es sólo hacer actividades básicas, vale notar que </span><b style="text-align: justify;">es uno de los robots equipados con más sensores en su segmento de mercado</b><span style="text-align: justify;">. Además de los 32 sensores de color, y los mencionados encoders de alta resolución, el acelerómetro 3D y el giróscopo 3D, Root cuenta con 2 sensores de luz ambiente, 4 zonas táctiles en su parte superior, 2 bumpers, un sensor interno de batería, y 4 sensores de campo magnético en su parte inferior (que le permiten mejorar la forma en que interactúa con superficies metálicas). </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Finalmente, un conector USB-C permite montarle placas y otros accesorios (</span><a href="https://www.raspberrypi.org/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">Raspberry Pi</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, </span><a href="https://www.arduino.cc/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">Arduino</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, </span><a href="https://www.microbit.co.uk/" style="text-align: justify;" target="_blank">BBC Micro:Bit</a><span style="text-align: justify;">, cámaras, sensores ultrasónicos, etc.). Root tiene además 16 LEDs multicolor (RGB), y un parlante con el que emite notas musicales. Y ya que hablamos de conectividad, Root cuenta con Bluetooth Low Energy, lo que hace que pueda conectarse a todo tipo de dispositivo móvil o a computadoras modernas de escritorio de forma muy pero muy fácil.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cibwSqJMCcghjGldNQNLJdQA1L65WA3VZUNKDRtggdnizg6NY3Ty4nnzRLyoSl6CR9hdlH4RIBbv7sAQvhHiUZAe_3d-B7WP-5fpbpmdfApOMi44AqxlYtET3cNr0apIUmgdPh6raXLI/s1600/GIF+-+camlift.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6cibwSqJMCcghjGldNQNLJdQA1L65WA3VZUNKDRtggdnizg6NY3Ty4nnzRLyoSl6CR9hdlH4RIBbv7sAQvhHiUZAe_3d-B7WP-5fpbpmdfApOMi44AqxlYtET3cNr0apIUmgdPh6raXLI/s400/GIF+-+camlift.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large; text-align: justify;">Nuevo software multinivel para todas las edades</span><br />
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Enorme parte del esfuerzo de investigación hecho con Root se hizo del lado del software. Cuando uno mira en el mercado actual de robots educativos, no hay realmente un producto que pueda ayudar en la enseñanza de programación desde edades de alrededor de 4 años hasta la universidad. Pensemos que a los 4 años, un niño generalmente no sabe aún leer y escribir, y muchas veces, no puede contar hasta números mayores que 20. Un entorno gráfico de programación que realmente funcione con niños de 4 años puede incluso ser útil para personas de mayor edad que nunca en su vida hayan sido expuestas a clases de programación, pero aún así, pronto quedará limitado en adultos. Es por esto que Root Square, el entorno de software que acompaña a Root, es <b>multinivel</b>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURNnew0lEg5owup0hvP_SUBrYQDs1G7fiki7FAHhiGq_wOT1gobF3zTM-3PVbzLKa1uyIBh4M3R-NMxayItjV8Lifrq3d4uAincUtBai1oZES6f3UpgMju9rjHxSLZBpen_VMA1oLPLup/s1600/Multilevel.gif" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhURNnew0lEg5owup0hvP_SUBrYQDs1G7fiki7FAHhiGq_wOT1gobF3zTM-3PVbzLKa1uyIBh4M3R-NMxayItjV8Lifrq3d4uAincUtBai1oZES6f3UpgMju9rjHxSLZBpen_VMA1oLPLup/s400/Multilevel.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Square Nivel 1</span><br />
El Nivel 1, como ya decíamos, está pensado para niños de 4 a 6 ó 7 años, o para aquellos un poco mayores que nunca programaron. He visto personalmente adultos felices tras haber hecho el primer programa de su vida con el Nivel 1 de Square. El Nivel 1 tiene algunas características realmente únicas, algunas de las cuales se aprecian más a medida que se utiliza:<br />
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<li>Es quizá el entorno actual más interactivo que existe para programar robots: No sólo no necesita compilación (ni "tiempo de subida" de la computadora o el dispositivo móvil al robot), sino que es incluso posible modificar un programa mientras éste está en funcionamiento, lo que lo coloca en una categoría diferente con respecto a los intérpretes tradicionales. Quitar, agregar, o modificar instrucciones inclusive en el interior de un ciclo (loop), es absolutamente posible: el programa del usuario simplemente seguirá funcionando con las nuevas modificaciones. Este tipo de capacidad lo hace muy útil con niños pequeños, quienes prácticamente juegan con el código mientras éste corre. Pero además agiliza mucho el trabajo en aula, donde el tiempo siempre es escaso.</li>
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<li>Está optimizado para pantallas táctiles. Muchos robots cuentan actualmente con sistemas de programación gráfica. La mayoría siguen el mismo paradigma, que hay que decirlo, está basado en ideas que en su mayoría tiene origen alrededor de desarrollos realizados entre 1995 y 2005 (vamos a decirlo claro: desarrollos de 21 a 11 años al día de hoy). Square fue diseñado rompiendo algunas de las "reglas aceptadas", que no eran más que herencia de software desarrollado básicamente para computadoras de escritorio.</li>
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<li>Se trabajó mucho en optimizar la relación entre la cantidad de elementos (bloques) que componen un programa, y la potencia de dicho programa. Esto quiere decir, que en Square Nivel 1, los programas son <b>cortos</b>, cuando se los compara con otros entornos gráficos actuales. Pero no por esto esconden el algoritmo, que aún tiene que ser creado por el estudiante. Está basado completamente en eventos, y con muy pocos bloques se pueden resolver situaciones que en otros entornos hoy por hoy requieren más complejidad sintáctica (aunque al analizar el programa, los algoritmos son los mismos, sólo que menos concisos). Me gustaría explayarme más sobre este punto, pero sería largo. Espero poder mostrar más ejemplos pronto.</li>
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<span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Nivel 2 y Nivel 3</span></div>
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Para aquellos usuarios más avanzados, o para quienes alcanzan el límite de la capacidad de Nivel 1, Square cuenta con otro entorno gráfico, llamado Nivel 2. Ambos se acceden desde la misma aplicación de forma muy sencilla. Si bien Nivel 2 es más similar que Nivel 1 a otros entornos existentes en muchos aspectos, también incorpora algunas novedades para hacerlo más ágil, más potente, y más amigable. Finalmente, los programas creados con código de Nivel 1 y Nivel 2, pueden ser convertidos en código <a href="https://www.python.org/" target="_blank">Python</a>, <a href="https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript" target="_blank">JavaScript</a>, o <a href="https://swift.org/" target="_blank">Swift</a>. El entorno para trabajar con dichos lenguajes se llama Nivel 3, y allí Root ofrece una completa API abierta y un kit de desarrollo (SDK), que abren las puertas a todo tipo de actividades avanzadas e interacciones con otros dispositivos:<br />
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4T_rxjvVXtEZy-NqLWIlj3I_YO9doJFF0DSnW7zP5lnqLfy_NpT2mpjglx-Drh1jnVPcQbby8-FUjCmO8jw1trdxUDNNXok7brgwUHZrs-wQDx4YTBRUUaaxme7dI7NT1BU2Ik2dafLsK/s640/Root_tracking_small.gif" width="640" /></a></div>
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Espero poder en las próximas semanas ir publicando algunos otros detalles de este desarrollo. Por ahora, lo más importante es que para hacerlo una realidad, contamos con la ayuda de todos en la <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1509453982/root-a-robot-to-teach-coding?ref=du29ya" target="_blank">campaña de Kickstarter</a>.<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-90286531443007080962014-12-23T03:01:00.000-03:002014-12-23T03:01:32.371-03:00Post #100 and a good cause<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Well, this is the <b><span style="color: lime;">post #100</span></b>. But I will not make a project summary nor announce a new miniBloq version (sorry!). This time is about my good friend <a href="http://www.linzeecraig.com/" target="_blank">Linz</a>. As far as I know, Linz was the first employee of <a href="https://learn.sparkfun.com/" target="_blank">Sparkfun's Education Department</a>. He also was the person who accompanied me when I went to Sparkfun for the <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1374" target="_blank">Hackers In Residence</a> program, where we extended some of miniBloq's capabilities. But Linz is not at Sparkfun anymore. For several months (and for the second time in his life), we was in Africa, just teaching technology to a lot of people. And now, Linz wants to return there, specifically to Uganda. And that's why he needs some help from us. To achieve that goal, he launched a <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/linzcraigteched/diy-technology-for-east-africa-a-documentary" target="_blank">Kickstarter campaign</a>. All the details are on that link.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="360" scrolling="no" src="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/linzcraigteched/diy-technology-for-east-africa-a-documentary/widget/video.html" width="480"> </iframe>
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Here is another interesting <a href="http://www.makerobotsnotwar.com/" target="_blank">link describing Linz's work</a>. Sharing also helps!<br />
Thanks!</div>
Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-5173067958417132262014-11-21T17:12:00.000-03:002014-11-21T17:12:44.060-03:00miniBloq + AERobot on Wired!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/affordableeducationrobot/" target="_blank">AERobot</a> and miniBloq were featured today on a nice <a href="http://www.wired.com/2014/11/10-dollar-education-robot/" target="_blank">Wired article</a>:<br />
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<a href="http://www.wired.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/robot-kids-inline1-660x429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.wired.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/robot-kids-inline1-660x429.jpg" height="416" width="640" /></a></div>
AERobot is the result of a development by <a href="http://people.seas.harvard.edu/~mrubenst/" target="_blank">Mike Rubenstein</a> and <a href="http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~rad/" target="_blank">Radhika Nagpal</a> at the Self-<a href="http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/ssr/" target="_blank">Organizing Systems Research Group</a> at <a href="http://www.harvard.edu/" target="_blank">Harvard University</a>. It's a super cheap (< $10) robot, and it receive the first prize in the software category (guess which software they have used!) and the second prize in hardware category, at the <a href="http://robotics-africa.org/2014-design-challenge" target="_blank">AFRON Ultra Affordable Educational Robot Design Challenge (2014)</a>. Congratulations for the AERobot team!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-78966868392391993202014-08-27T14:59:00.000-03:002014-08-27T14:59:31.610-03:00Tech book for kids!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I just wanted to share today in this short post a new <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/the-technical-alphabet-reinventing-the-abcs?ref=nav_search" target="_blank">Kickstarter campaign</a> from <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/" target="_blank">STEM Center USA</a>, the creators of the <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/pi-bot/about-pi-bot/" target="_blank">Pi-Bot</a>, one of the robots that can be programmed with miniBloq (take a look to <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jubejlpjdo65e1v/miniBloqPi-BotUserGuide.pdf" target="_blank">this guide</a>). This time they have developed the <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/the-technical-alphabet-reinventing-the-abcs?ref=nav_search" target="_blank">Technical Alphabet</a>, an book aimed to introduce children to technology in a fun, educational way. Here is the video, and <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/the-technical-alphabet-reinventing-the-abcs?ref=nav_search" target="_blank">this is the link to the Kickstarter page</a>:<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="360" scrolling="no" src="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/the-technical-alphabet-reinventing-the-abcs/widget/video.html" width="480"> </iframe></div>
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Enjoy!</div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-87151952524251222942014-07-14T20:03:00.002-03:002014-07-14T20:05:11.494-03:00New beginners' guide for Pi-Bot and miniBloq!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
After a <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/pi-bot-the-next-great-tool-in-robotics-learning-pl?ref=nav_search" target="_blank">successful Kickstarter campaign</a>, the <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/pi-bot/about-pi-bot/" target="_blank">Pi-Bot robot</a> is here, and the <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/" target="_blank">STEM Center USA</a> has released a new nice guide, called <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4ehpupkewre111x/AACZ5SY7OoWlnSKHXNkE7a9da/MiniBloq%20Installation/miniBloqPi-BotUserGuide.pdf" target="_blank">Programming Pi-Bot with miniBloq (PDF)</a>. It's a document aimed to help beginners to start easily programming the Pi-Bot using miniBloq:<br />
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There are a lot of other useful documents about robotics in their <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/pi-bot/downloads-/" target="_blank">Pi-Bot Downloads page</a>. Also, there is a special miniBloq version, optimized for the Pi-Bot, <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4ehpupkewre111x/AAAuNO0jmVnlwqCNpSbjtpxZa/MiniBloq%20Installation" target="_blank">which can be downloaded from here</a> or <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/pi-bot/downloads-/" target="_blank">from here</a>.<br />
I want to say thanks to the <a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/" target="_blank">STEM Center USA</a> team for this great work!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-12698899312525440562014-05-15T18:41:00.001-03:002014-05-15T18:44:35.280-03:00Using miniBloq as an IDE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
One of the main features of the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2014/05/minibloqv082-released.html">new v0.82 version </a>is that it allows to make text coded programs. And not just in C/C++ and Arduino-compatible syntax, but also in Python and, if the community adds more targets, in nearly any imperative/OOP language (such as JavaScript, Java, Ruby, etc.). Although in future versions this will be simpler and I'm improving the user experience as much as I can, right now it's fully functional. And it has a feature which I really like: the possibility of switching between a text and a graphical program at anytime during the development. This way, you can make fast test with the blocks, while programming the core of your application with the full power of C/C++ (or whatever language your hardware is using with miniBloq). Let's see how to create an example text coded <b>"echo"</b> program for an Arduino board:<br />
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1. Open miniBloq (we will be using Arduino Mega 2560 for this example, but you can select any other Arduino-compatible board from miniBloq's hardware list):<br />
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2. Since we will create the whole code for the project, we don't want to initialize the board automatically. So we will change the first call to initBoard, for a call to the function <b>go()</b>:<br />
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What does this mean? It means that at the very beginning of your program, it will do nothing but calling the <b>go()</b> function. And what is the <b>go()</b> function? Is a function that you will write by your own, and where your program will start. It's like the <b>main()</b> function in C/C++, but we can not name it <b>main() </b>because that name is already used internally by the Arduino kernel (I will post more about this soon). In "Arduino terms", the <b>go()</b> function is equivalent to the <b>setup() </b>function.<br />
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3. Add a new <b>cpp</b> file (created just as a text file). First, go to the <b><span style="color: yellow;">File->Add</span></b> menu:<br />
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save the <b>component</b> (miniBloq's jargon for your <b>program</b>):<br />
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And inside the component's folder, create the text file:<br />
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We will name it echo.cpp but you can use any (valid) name of your preference:<br />
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You will see this message box when you change the file extension from <b>txt</b> to <b>cpp</b>. Of course say <b>Yes</b>:<br />
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Now, you will see the echo.cpp open in the file editor in miniBloq:<br />
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You can hide the blocks editor to gain space in the screen to work with your text file:<br />
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4. Let's add some code there. You will need to include the <b>mbq.h </b>file, which gives you access to the libraries for the motors, the sensors, the <a href="http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage" target="_blank">Arduino API functions,</a> etc.:<br />
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5. If you compile that, it should compile just fine, but it's an empty program. Now, please try the following piece of code, which is our final echo program:<br />
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<span style="color: #e69138;">#include <mbq.h></span><br />
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void <span style="color: blue;">go</span>()<br />
{<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="color: blue;">serial0</span>.begin(<span style="color: lime;">115200</span>);<br />
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<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="color: orange;">while</span>(<span style="color: orange;">true</span>)<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>{<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="color: orange;">if</span> (<span style="color: blue;">serial0</span>.available())<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>{<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>int inByte = serial0.<span style="color: blue;">read</span>();<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="color: blue;">serial0</span>.print((char)inByte);<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>}<br />
<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>}<br />
}<br />
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6. Run it and you will see how it works by using miniBloq's terminal:<br />
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Finally, if you want to use blocks to test, you just need to select <b>initBoard() </b>in the Start block, and start adding your blocks there. The files that you have added will remain there (unless you close them). Once you want to return to the text coding, just select <b>go() </b>again in your start block.<br />
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In a future post, I want to show you how to work with multiple file projects. But probably you can just try to experiment a bit by yourself using the <b>Add file </b>feature.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-28552043102542082362014-05-07T01:34:00.001-03:002014-05-07T01:38:08.646-03:00miniBloq.v0.82 released!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><b>Here are some of the new features and improvements:</b></span></div>
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<b style="color: orange; font-size: x-large;">miniSim!</b></div>
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This is a new, simple 2D robot simulator designed to help teaching simple robotics principles for those who don't own a robot:</div>
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<b><span style="color: lime; font-size: large;">Complete new XML backend</span></b></div>
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These are good news for all the developers, manufacturers and advanced users who want to add new hardware and custom blocks. Now you can do it just editing XML files! I will work on the Developer's Guide in the next days to explain how.</div>
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<b><span style="color: yellow; font-size: large;">A lot of new hardware</span></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
Thanks to the new backend, there is a lot of new supported hardware (specially robots!), including: <a href="http://pi-bot.org/" target="_blank">Pi-Bot</a>, <a href="http://arcbotics.com/products/sparki/" target="_blank">Sparki robot</a>, <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12097" target="_blank">SparkFun RedBot</a> and <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11575" target="_blank">RedBoard</a>, <a href="http://arduino.cc/en/Main/arduinoBoardLeonardo" target="_blank">Arduino Leonardo</a> and the new <a href="http://multiplo.org/" target="_blank">Multiplo's</a> DuinoBot.v2.3, both in HID and in CDC modes...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEz8SfFyIGEP8qHn5mpixadKQXYD2kcpyOCVfP0vSh860z6d13ZmSg4MjviRw8WErV_Bjv6wcQWV3Jyp6F_IaX_wEov0pXprwbP4ed46TC0yy58f-tNKuIv2Pb-i536bWCX7gwwXMw1b0E/s1600/Robots.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEz8SfFyIGEP8qHn5mpixadKQXYD2kcpyOCVfP0vSh860z6d13ZmSg4MjviRw8WErV_Bjv6wcQWV3Jyp6F_IaX_wEov0pXprwbP4ed46TC0yy58f-tNKuIv2Pb-i536bWCX7gwwXMw1b0E/s1600/Robots.png" height="388" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><b>Write both graphical or text based programs</b></span></div>
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Or even combine graphical with text-based programming anytime during the development of your program. The new miniBloq can even work as a (simple) standard IDE!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuuho5Q6wuc7gwvhSlJed8Du-DR2AFRJBe0WVNemtpdHhQYyIe6ZlBdIA9gSsLTqc65U9K_vpBGquuxuo0xwQONZLtiwc6LWe1jNjHS4SSSV1nwMiYwIbUMv3EuHpJoJnswHQfi-_YuUm/s1600/textProgramming.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuuho5Q6wuc7gwvhSlJed8Du-DR2AFRJBe0WVNemtpdHhQYyIe6ZlBdIA9gSsLTqc65U9K_vpBGquuxuo0xwQONZLtiwc6LWe1jNjHS4SSSV1nwMiYwIbUMv3EuHpJoJnswHQfi-_YuUm/s1600/textProgramming.png" height="406" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;"><b>And many other features...</b></span></div>
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li style="text-align: justify;">miniBloq is now faster and it remembers its settings (like the selected hardware, the screen dimensions and the serial port). Also, you can associate <b>mbqc</b> files to it in order to open them with double click.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">Of course, there are more blocks and bug fixes.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">A LOT of examples! And they has been rearranged. Check them with the <b><span style="color: yellow;">File-Examples</span></b> menu, and remember that most of the examples are under the <b><span style="color: yellow;">DuinoBot</span></b> folder. And don't worry if you don't have a DuinoBot board: most of those examples run on an regular Arduino.</li>
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<b><span style="color: magenta; font-size: large;">Portable Python + OpenCV!</span></b></div>
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Advanced users will find this really interesting: miniBloq now includes <a href="http://portablepython.com/" target="_blank">Portable Pytnhon</a> and <a href="http://opencv.org/" target="_blank">OpenCV</a> to do some more advanced activities with interactive programming (not graphical yet) and computer vision. <a href="https://learn.sparkfun.com/resources/67" target="_blank">Here is a tutorial from SparkFun</a>, wrote at during <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1374" target="_blank">my Hackers In Residence</a> early this year (thanks Linz!).<br />
<b><span style="color: cyan; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
<b><span style="color: cyan; font-size: large;">Downoad it it now!</span></b></div>
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This is the <a href="http://minibloq.td-er.nl/miniBloq.v0.82.Beta.exe" target="_blank">direct link to get the v0.82</a>. Enjoy!</div>
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To read more about all the changes (and known issues), take a look to the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/p/versions-changelog-and-known-issues.html" target="_blank">changelog</a>. Finally, as many of you already know, miniBloq has moved to GitHub. So the complete source code is available from the online repository: <a href="https://github.com/miniBloq/v0.82" target="_blank">https://github.com/miniBloq/v0.82</a>. You can both replicate the repo, or just use the <span style="color: yellow;"><b>Donwload ZIP</b></span> button there to get the complete source code. </div>
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In future posts I will be talking about some of the new features in this version...</div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-58392207568833951712014-04-20T17:32:00.003-03:002014-04-20T22:12:53.649-03:00miniBloq + RedBot + OpenCV + Free tutorials!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As many of you already know, we started a collaboration between SparkFun and miniBloq at <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1374" target="_blank">SparkFun's Hacker-in-Residense Program</a> during last February. There, we integrated some of the SparkFun's sensors and boards with miniBloq. Among the new supported hardware are the <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11575" target="_blank">RedBoard</a> and the <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12097" target="_blank">RedBot's board</a>. Finally, I wrote a <a href="https://learn.sparkfun.com/resources/67" target="_blank">new tutorial</a> (thanks Linz Craig for the edition!), which you can download from SparkFun Education's <a href="https://learn.sparkfun.com/" target="_blank">website</a>. Also, here are the direct links for both the PDF and the ODT (LibreOffice) documents:<br />
<br />
PDF: <a href="https://cdn.sparkfun.com/assets/4/2/9/b/2/HIR2014.miniBloq.RedBot.RedBoard.en.pdf" target="_blank">https://cdn.sparkfun.com/assets/4/2/9/b/2/HIR2014.miniBloq.RedBot.RedBoard.en.pdf</a><br />
ODT: <a href="https://cdn.sparkfun.com/assets/1/a/f/1/0/HIR2014.miniBloq.RedBot.RedBoard.en_1.odt" target="_blank">https://cdn.sparkfun.com/assets/1/a/f/1/0/HIR2014.miniBloq.RedBot.RedBoard.en_1.odt</a><br />
<br />
Among other things, there is an activity to take advantage of the Python interpreter now shipped with the <a href="https://github.com/miniBloq/v0.82" target="_blank">v0.82 miniBloq version</a>, to use OpenCV to track a color object, and thus control the robot remotely (using XBee, or Bluetooth) as a virtual joystick:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhP7h1cYUX2PEjcQnF-Ik1QAOXah3ac4gwdmqZG_x1tHSAppov2p_V5p3Gjp16f7gpAJJW7tXhDIFGGAAoUHAsNrk644btktajHDZgTnwCp868wPCP_wq69yAeuKQl5wPW1qGUxQU98z01/s1600/openCVTracking.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhP7h1cYUX2PEjcQnF-Ik1QAOXah3ac4gwdmqZG_x1tHSAppov2p_V5p3Gjp16f7gpAJJW7tXhDIFGGAAoUHAsNrk644btktajHDZgTnwCp868wPCP_wq69yAeuKQl5wPW1qGUxQU98z01/s1600/openCVTracking.png" height="315" width="400" /></a></div>
As always, all the code for the examples is packaged inside the <b>_examples</b> folder in miniBloq's official distribution.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6eMB8IWyYwliY4c5g4qcx3SMUPQ6BGBmP2NogD1gUolW85gzTlKN7xiTGr_fKQUb5v6CeBtGIRb-v4GOt3O69suHS0rAL1SGzRwmZ2Mbs_paEPVGzoz10oG1qHZ7HPv7HjLvw-QQQe6W/s1600/RedBot-Tutorial-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6eMB8IWyYwliY4c5g4qcx3SMUPQ6BGBmP2NogD1gUolW85gzTlKN7xiTGr_fKQUb5v6CeBtGIRb-v4GOt3O69suHS0rAL1SGzRwmZ2Mbs_paEPVGzoz10oG1qHZ7HPv7HjLvw-QQQe6W/s1600/RedBot-Tutorial-01.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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Feedback is welcomed!</div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-32388294567947867392014-04-16T01:33:00.001-03:002014-04-16T02:03:56.085-03:00miniBloq's derivative from Harvard wins design challenge in Africa<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/affordableeducationrobot/home" target="_blank">AERobot</a>, one of the participants in the <a href="http://robotics-africa.org/2014-design-challenge" target="_blank">The Ultra Affordable Educational Robot Project 2013/2014 Design Challenge</a> won the first prize in the software category, with a <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/affordableeducationrobot/home/software" target="_blank">miniBloq's derivative software</a>. The challenge is sponsored by the <a href="http://robotics-africa.org/" target="_blank">African Robotics Network (AFRON)</a> and <a href="http://www.ieee-ras.org/" target="_blank">IEEE Robotics and Automation Society</a>. AERobot is a team of the <a href="http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/ssr/" target="_blank">Self-Organizing Systems Research Group</a> from the <a href="http://www.harvard.edu/" target="_blank">Harvard University</a>. Here are some pics and videos:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/YhuoNB_y0Ms" width="560"></iframe></div>
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And please don't forget to take a look to their <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/aerobotcurriculum/home" target="_blank">awesome curriculum</a> (which won the Second Prize in the Curriculum category)! Of course, there are other really interesting projects in the <a href="http://robotics-africa.org/2014-design-challenge" target="_blank">challenge's page</a>. miniBloq is widely used in some countries with low costs robotics systems. I personally like these ultra low cost robotics platforms. I'm convinced that this kind of stuff can make a real difference. Here is a last video on how to program the AERobot with miniBloq:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/L0AMY9EIU4I" width="560"></iframe>
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Thanks Michael for the links!</div>
Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-79404701579884918822014-04-09T11:21:00.001-03:002014-04-09T11:21:10.896-03:00miniBloq + Pi-Bot!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I'm excited to announce the collaboration between miniBloq and the new <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/pi-bot-the-next-great-tool-in-robotics-learning-pl" target="_blank">Pi-Bot</a>. The goal of this collaboration is to include the Pi-Bot, which is a low cost, yet very capable robot, in the upcoming miniBloq.v0.82 version. The Pi-Bot has been designed at the<a href="http://www.stemcenterusa.com/" target="_blank"> STEM USA Center</a>, and it can be pre-ordered from its Kickstarter page:<br />
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<a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/pi-bot-the-next-great-tool-in-robotics-learning-pl" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnIaEP5Q8QcRshFlPHTeEBx495M0VaQ3cf8z6DHpqYcfxjp1hwO8gGdyJBJIhkTB9DZoWMlDMQxdE7b8pufMJb7zjemIThr5XtIXgW6PnPPSM6vkIdxsgNYl463ZWdP9Hynd3qIEK2rbgk/s1600/KS0.png" height="500" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can read more about <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1158090852/pi-bot-the-next-great-tool-in-robotics-learning-pl/posts/805076" target="_blank">miniBloq + Pi-Bot here</a>.<br />
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By the way, the upcoming <b>v0.82 version</b> will arrive with a lot of new features. Among them I can mention the capability of adding <b>text based functions</b> to a program, the new <b>XML backend </b>which provides an easy way to add new hardware and blocks, and a <b>small 2D robot simulator</b> called <b>miniSim </b>(more on this soon!). So stay tunned!</div>
Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-2620853335793359742014-02-10T15:13:00.001-03:002014-04-20T17:13:23.254-03:00miniBloq + SparkFun + upcoming v0.82 version!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I haven't been posting for a few months. But that's for a good reason: a lot of work, specially with the upcoming miniBloq version. Yes, the v0.82 is near. Some of you may remember an <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2012/06/year-after-kickstarter-campaign.html" target="_blank">old post</a> where I talked about the project's roadmap. Well, I'm happy to say that most of the promised features in that post are now a reality for the next version. But you may also wonder: when will the v0.82 be published? It's already there! But you will not find it in the downloads page, since it's not ready yet. But part of the hard work I've been doing also implied moving everything to a GitHub repository. So, if you are impatient (but tolerant, since this is an ongoing work), just take a look:<br />
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<a href="https://github.com/miniBloq/v0.82">https://github.com/miniBloq/v0.82</a><br />
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You can just download it using the "Download ZIP" button there and, after decompressing it, please find the executable miniBloq.exe file in this relative path (on your miniBloq folder):<br />
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source\Bin\Minibloq\mbq\v0.82<br />
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I know: no Linux version yet? I'm sorry about that, but as most miniBloq's Linux users know, we port it after the official release of the Windows version. And when will this happen? Most probably after I have finished my work at <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1374" target="_blank">SparkFun's Hackers In Residence Program</a>, where we are integrating SparkFun's hardware (sensors, robots, etc.) into minBloq! Thanks <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/" target="_blank">SparkFun</a>!<br />
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<a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1374" target="_blank"><img alt=" SparkFun HIR 2014" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiogKuXZqHVWd4ngkDUIlp4aobPsL69FqnnjTtUib_e4CJNC5L1_fkW1LPr0L4JRJIeqtE35rLY3N3z_1Am-cXGXTi65JgV-Q8KQAkXuwREwW1H8bgwEkopxKcvZ2g_dly25jL-lGTdEcSM/s1600/HIR.miniBloq.SFBlog.png" height="640" width="624" /></a></div>
I have some more really exciting news (mmm, like a 2D small robot simulator), but I will be posting about them on the next days. So stay tunned!<br />
Thanks!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-62574516894163841802013-11-11T01:11:00.001-03:002013-11-11T01:11:38.025-03:00Los robots cambian historias: Valeria Larrart at TEDxRioLimay<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='640' height='532' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/wLLEg2oqj3g?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-86232545012037325152013-07-25T14:59:00.002-03:002013-07-25T15:01:12.549-03:00Multiplo's Repository and the new Parts Library<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As many of you already know, Minibloq and <a href="http://multiplo.org/" target="_blank">Multiplo</a> are brother projects. We have been working a lot on Multiplo in the last months, and there is a new website, where we have released a lot of open source mechanical parts 2 weeks ago. These parts has been designed with one important goal: to be <b>fablab compatible</b>. This means that every Multiplo mechanical part can be manufactured using common tools found in the growing community of <a href="http://www.fablabinternational.org/" target="_blank">fablabs</a> and <a href="http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/" target="_blank">hackerspaces</a>, such as laser cutters, 3D printers and small CNC machines. So we designed them carefully, making them tolerant to differences in the materials, such as variations in the thickness, weight, etc.. There are more parts designed, and we will try to publish them soon.<br />
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #444444;">The Parts Library</span></h3>
Although we still have to improve it a lot, we released what we have called the <a href="http://multiplo.org/parts-library/" target="_blank">Parts Library</a>. If you dig into it, you will find nearly 300 parts, with their 3D and 2D drawings, and even with an interactive 3D viewer (thanks to GitHub!). Here are some screen shots, but you can actually <a href="http://multiplo.org/parts-library/" target="_blank">go and see it by yourself</a>:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0MPAdUBu6Pq0R3YWleBCd95xYecKGyXqF5m2haktRBRtZz2C12XjModHD6hGv2OCTA3SFX3HEw8l1xH2DrVZClOvl-lieVa0Sjw4lXRQwDhq-LBxOv7vkjvcoP6N8CqkBSoAzm3CFUjzh/s1600/PartsLibrary0.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0MPAdUBu6Pq0R3YWleBCd95xYecKGyXqF5m2haktRBRtZz2C12XjModHD6hGv2OCTA3SFX3HEw8l1xH2DrVZClOvl-lieVa0Sjw4lXRQwDhq-LBxOv7vkjvcoP6N8CqkBSoAzm3CFUjzh/s640/PartsLibrary0.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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And here is the embedded GitHub's 3D viewer for each part:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0L1kswCbfZOwK6KSEEo2gAjq7QD_2KRHcXrcoS04O-GluYaLkCthPPnp2NTLFZWfp3Kx5pKwB_FUNWL8FuGNzedkU0pVOx8jBvcFpHLhH2EU9aFrETV2MN44BfnFPi_5mH1sNWfM1Vex_/s1600/PartsLibrary1png.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0L1kswCbfZOwK6KSEEo2gAjq7QD_2KRHcXrcoS04O-GluYaLkCthPPnp2NTLFZWfp3Kx5pKwB_FUNWL8FuGNzedkU0pVOx8jBvcFpHLhH2EU9aFrETV2MN44BfnFPi_5mH1sNWfM1Vex_/s320/PartsLibrary1png.png" width="320" /></a></div>
We still need to improve the whole website a lot, and we have plans to enhance the Parts Library as well as the Store and the online documentation soon, but if you want to download all the parts together, in a single zip file, you can always visit our GitHub repository: <a href="https://github.com/multiplo" target="_blank">https://github.com/multiplo</a> (the drawings for the parts are in the <a href="https://github.com/multiplo/mechanics" target="_blank">mechanics repo</a>).<br />
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Finally, I want to share here a video of one of the new N8 robots in action, assembled as a netbook carrier:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='420' height='315' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/LEmR7kU8CbY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-63501211314740158912013-07-24T11:15:00.000-03:002014-04-24T00:55:36.197-03:00Minibloq + LegoDuino<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Some time ago, <span 13px="" 18px="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" sans="" tahoma="" ucida="" unicode="">Jeroen Benschop published his <a href="http://www.benschop-plaza.nl/wiki/doku.php?id=public:legoduino" target="_blank">LegoDuino project</a>, which was also <a href="http://hackaday.com/2013/07/05/legoduino-for-kid-friendly-microcontrollers/" target="_blank">featured at Hack A Day</a>. Jeroen decided to use Minibloq as the programming environment for his platform, and also contributed with an experimental version with an improved backend (we talked about that version <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2013/05/experimental-changes-from-project.html">in this post</a>). You can download the modified version of <a href="https://googledrive.com/host/0B5gSV6UtaYVSckh0ZExxV2Y2cEk/Minibloq.v0.81.Beta.UP2.JB.zip">Minibloq for LegoDuino from here</a>, as well as get complete information about the project from <a href="http://www.benschop-plaza.nl/wiki/doku.php?id=public:legoduino" target="_blank">Jeroen's blog</a>.</span></div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-2084149075207053302013-07-23T13:10:00.001-03:002013-07-23T13:10:29.499-03:00Minibloq + Multiplo @ Tecnópolis 2013, Argentina<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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For the third consecutive year, <a href="http://store.multiplo.org/" target="_blank">Multiplo robots</a> are present in RobotGroup's space in <a href="http://tecnopolis.ar/2013/" target="_blank">Tecnópolis</a>, Argentina. Tecnópolis is Argentina's biggest expo of science and technology (50 hectares), and will be open for about 4 months:<br />
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You can find more information about RobotGroup's robotics exhibition here: <a href="http://tecnopolis.ar/2013/atracciones/ciencia-para-todos-robotica">http://tecnopolis.ar/2013/atracciones/ciencia-para-todos-robotica</a></div>
Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-387768233749767222013-06-10T12:27:00.003-03:002013-06-10T12:29:23.074-03:00Minibloq + Multiplo @San Luis, Argentina<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Mónica Paves, Director of <a href="http://www.robotgroup.com.ar/" target="_blank">RobotGroup</a> taught a course for teachers in the province of San Luis, Argentina, where nearly 2000 <a href="http://multiplo.org/" target="_blank">Multiplo</a> tech kits were distributed in public schools.<br />
Here are some pictures of the event:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAhbDqfewPCeie4iLDBGc1D-LKLU8cEoqMHu9RaewYRTYoG4oxqBDNot62vH3CaHWI6HY4qMjtvuEebf-fEzl67fjLDpwxYWjhglv4E1K66foMAGhyphenhyphenQH4n9QlROv6D1ZHUeHYQfnSxpDhx/s1600/image3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAhbDqfewPCeie4iLDBGc1D-LKLU8cEoqMHu9RaewYRTYoG4oxqBDNot62vH3CaHWI6HY4qMjtvuEebf-fEzl67fjLDpwxYWjhglv4E1K66foMAGhyphenhyphenQH4n9QlROv6D1ZHUeHYQfnSxpDhx/s640/image3.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-26525469908813084712013-05-22T11:56:00.000-03:002013-05-22T11:56:26.561-03:00SparkFun Electronic's ProtoSnap MiniBot tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We are glad that there is a new tutorial with Minibloq, made by <a href="http://sparkfun.com/" target="_blank">Sparkfun Electronics</a>, the: <a href="http://minibloq.td-er.nl/SparkfunMiniBo.Tutorials.en.20130519.zip" target="_blank">SparkFun Electronic's ProtoSnap MiniBot tutorial</a> (English, ZIP file). The previous link contains both PDF and ODT (LibreOffice) files with a tutorial made by Sparkfun Electronics, to use Minibloq with their <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11012" target="_blank">ProtoSnap MiniBot</a>.<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-72185294603904902192013-05-20T17:18:00.000-03:002013-05-20T17:18:27.998-03:00Minibloq in Croatia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
We want to congratulate Robert Sedak for his hard work in Croatia, where he encourages kids to work with robotics and open source hardware and software. This month, he was participating in the largest Open Source Conference in Southeast Europe: DORS/CLUC (<a href="http://2013.dorscluc.org/en/" target="_blank">http://2013.dorscluc.org/en/</a>). He talked there about <a href="http://arduino.cc/" target="_blank">Arduino</a>, Minibloq, and even <a href="http://multiplo.org/" target="_blank">Multiplo</a> (our open source, fablab-compatible robotics building system). Here are some pictures from his presentation:<br />
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By other way, Robert and two kids from his robotics club were guests on Croatian National Television because kids won first prise in Robotic Contest. Here is the interview in YouTube:</div>
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So we want again to say: thanks Robert and thanks kids for your work!</div>
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-77912388282872050472013-05-19T14:51:00.002-03:002013-05-19T14:51:56.170-03:00Experimental changes from a project contributor, for Minibloq developers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As you may already know, we really like to share the work of other people who wants to contribute to the project. A few weeks ago, Jeroen Benschop has uploaded an experimental version of Miniboq, based on makefiles, aimed to ease the adding of third party hardware and blocks. Although we will have a far better backend in the v0.9x Minibloq series, we think that this may be of interest for some advanced users and developers. So here is the link to his sources and library changes:<br />
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<a href="http://www.benschop-plaza.nl/MinibloqChanges.zip">http://www.benschop-plaza.nl/MinibloqChanges.zip</a><br />
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Thanks Jeroen!<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-84412337588391003382013-05-17T17:09:00.001-03:002013-05-17T17:09:27.981-03:00Minibloq translated to Greek!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Another translation has been sent by an enthusiast Minibloq user. This time the contributor is Alexis Vlassis, and here we want to say thanks. This time, translation is partial (the complete GUI plus the tooltips belonging to Action blocks). It's available from the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/p/download.html">Downloads page</a> as a separate package (this is the <a href="http://minibloq.td-er.nl/Minibloq.el.20130517.zip">direct link</a>). The steps to add this kind of package to Minibloq are pretty simple, and can be found in <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2012/09/minibloq-translated-to-croatian.html">this post</a>. Here is a screenshot of his work (so thanks again Alexis!):<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-65657643904106240342013-05-12T14:06:00.000-03:002013-05-12T14:06:53.298-03:00Collaboration with the Sparki project!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hi! We were talking with Joe, to add support to his Sparki open source robot in Minibloq. Sparki is an interesting eduational robot, with a lot of sensors and other really nice features (such as steppers-based traction and a small gripper). You can found it at <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/arcbotics/sparki-the-easy-robot-for-everyone?ref=live">Kickstarter in this link</a>.<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-18132067373922648412013-04-11T22:16:00.000-03:002013-04-11T22:16:33.240-03:00Minibloq translated to Bahasa Indonesia!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I want to say thanks to Wawan Hartanto for his work translating Minibloq to Indonesian Language. The complete translation (including tooltips) is available from the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/p/download.html">Downloads page</a> as a separate package (this is the <a href="http://minibloq.td-er.nl/Minibloq.id.20130411.zip">direct link</a>). The steps to add this kind of package to Minibloq are pretty simple, and can be found in <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2012/09/minibloq-translated-to-croatian.html">this post</a>. Here is a screenshot of his work:<br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-9670859036778855732013-02-25T11:08:00.001-03:002013-02-25T11:09:14.789-03:00Nuevo tutorial de robótica con Arduino y Minibloq<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Los amigos de <a href="http://robotarduedu.blogspot.com.es/">http://robotarduedu.blogspot.com.es</a> han publicado un tutorial más que interesante sobre cómo construir y programar un sencillo robot utilizando Arduino + Minibloq. Por lo que se vé en su blog, parece que pronto tendrán material adicional para otros modelos de robots. El siguiente link muestra el tutorial completo, que incluye listas de partes, instrucciones 3D de montaje y finalmente cómo programar todo con Minibloq:<br />
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<a href="http://robotarduedu.blogspot.com.es/p/robot-arduino-minibloq_21.html" target="_blank">http://robotarduedu.blogspot.com.es/p/robot-arduino-minibloq_21.html</a><br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7152625203829681317.post-69746641221313069372012-12-03T17:57:00.000-03:002014-04-24T01:27:53.734-03:00Minibloq translated to Malay Language!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Minibloq has been translated to Malay Language! <span>We want to say thanks to </span><span>Hazizul Krilp for his great contribution to the project</span><span>. The complete translation (including tooltips) is available from the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/p/download.html" target="_blank">Downloads page</a> as a separate package (this is the <a href="http://minibloq.td-er.nl/Minibloq.ms.20121203.zip" target="_blank">direct link</a>). The steps to add this kind of package to Minibloq are pretty simple, and can be found in <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/2012/09/minibloq-translated-to-croatian.html" target="_blank">this post</a></span><span>. As always, all the names of the people who is helping with the project are mentioned in the <a href="http://blog.minibloq.org/p/credits.html" target="_blank">Credits webpage</a>. </span><span>Here we want to share a screenshot showing the work of Hazizul:</span><br />
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Juliánhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07302588726136048108noreply@blogger.com10