Latest Humanoid Robot

Waseda University in Tokyo unveiled its updated humanoid robot, named Twendy-One, showcasing the robot's ability to pick up even the most difficult of objects.

Microbot swimming through human bloodstream

The Researchers from Monash University are working on microbot motors designed to swim through the human bloodstream. This tiny motor would be able to power a probe swimming through blood vessels.The Proteus is 2.5mm long and utilizes a dual-action action piezoelectric motor to drive a small fan that pushes the unit forward. This med-sub sailed through the blood stream to tackle the clot in the brain. The Proteus’s speed would be 6 centimeters per second.

The Smallest Robot

Not really the world smallest mini robot but it is tiny.

EXP-1 Beam Robotic

This is our first attempt to construct the herbie Robot(Originally invented by Randy Sargent, Herbie was built from spare parts as an entry for a robot competition), we (myself and my friend Rendy) called ours the EXP-1.



We used the same circuit as the original herbie Robot. We come up this simple approach; we used a vero board as the chassis, Motors, Resistors, Variable resistor, Two LDR and the heart of the robot, an audio amplifier. Below are the complete schematic diagram of the Herbie's Robot Seeking Light.



This robot used the following component:
a) Two unit 5V DC motors
b) One unit 47K Resistor
c) One variable 100K resistor
d) Two unit LDR (light Detector Resistor)
e) One unit LM 386 Audio power Amplifier
f) One unit Vero Board


The robot operates as expected but we have some difficulty in controlling the sensitivity of these LDR. We are thinking of fine-tuning the circuit again by adding variable resistor in replace of the fixed resistor to both LDR. We are so fascinated to see it became alive and kicking. The EXP-1 is attracted to light source. So, whenever you shone the left/right LDR with a torch light, it move to the left/right respectively. We are looking forward to the next experiment i.e. to modify the circuit and add in more features.

You can try experimenting and build your own herbie by clicking this link :http://www.scribd.com/doc/6666573/Mouse-Robot

MOBILE ROBOT BASE

A mobile robot base that I invented during my final year ( BEng in Electrical & Electronic ) at the University of East London, UK and sadly to say that it not fully complete yet till today, even though it was made in 1993. This Robot is as complicated as BEAM robot. It main components are Light to frequency shaft encoder and Pulse Width Modulator motor Drive control System. Despite the lack of information, ideas and others at that particular of time, I was lucky enough to secure a B + for this project.

Electronic Components for BEAM Robots

B.E.A.M stands for Biology Electronics Aesthetics Mechanics. The founder of B.E.A.M robotic is none other than Dr.Mark Tilden. He chose the word BEAM to summarize the concept he thought were the most important in building a self guiding robot. You can find a lot more detail of BEAM robot by reading the following book:

JunkBots, Bugbots & Bots on Wheels by Dave Hrynkiw and Mark W. Tilden.




Anyway, I won’t be discussing what each letter mean, However I will be going through the important components used in building the BEAM robotic instead.

Apart from using the usual resistors and capacitors, below are the most commonly used transistors to build BEAM robot:

a) 2N3904 (NPN) or 2N3906 (PNP),
b) PN2222 (NPN) or 2N2907 (PNP)

Both of these transistors can drive some small DC Motors (we will be discussing the DC Motors later on). To fully utilize their usages, it’s important to read and understand the functionality of these transistors (by referring the Data Sheet supplied by the manufacturer of the transistor).

The other most useful and frequently used component is the integrated Circuit or IC. The project we plan to do later in building BEAM robots will use the following ICs:

a) 74(AC/ACT/H/HC/HCT/LC) 240 – Octal Buffer Inverter Chips.
b) 74(AC/ACT/H/HC/HCT/LC) 14 – Hex Schmitt Inverter Chips.
c) 74(AC/ACT/H/HC/HCT/LC) 245 – Octal Driver Chips.
d) 555 – Multipurpose Timer.
e) LM386 – Audio Power Amplifier.
f) LM 324 – Quadruple Operation Amplifier.
g) 7805 – Positive 5V Voltage Regulator.

Caution: Be very careful not to subject the above ICs directly to 9V battery, otherwise it may cause damage to the IC.

Again, it is advisable to read and understand the functions of each of the above ICs by reading their respective Data Sheet. You can search for electronic data sheets at http://www.cytron.com.my/

For now, let us start familiarize these components.

Top 10 Malware

List for April Dominated by Malware Packers
Friday, May 09, 2008

BitDefender’s April 2008 Top 10 malware list includes:

1. Packer.Malware.NSAnti.AD 33.71%
2. Win32.Netsky.P@mm 7.48%
3. Win32.Worm.Sohanad.NAW 4.56%
4. Packer.Malware.NSAnti.AG 2.86%
5. Trojan.Loader.N 2.25%
6. Trojan.Dropper.Cutwail.F 2.04%
7. Win32.Netsky.AA@mm 1.98%
8. Win32.NetSky.D@mm 1.98%
9. Packer.Malware.NSAnti.Z 1.87%
10. Win32.Nyxem.E@mm 1.65%
11. OTHERS 39.62%

The World’s smallest Projector

Everything now a days going toward miniaturize. From watches to cars and now the projector. Even though projector technology has undergone rapid changes in the last few years which produce projector with better brightness, contrast and colour than before, the size still remains an issue for those looking for a truly portable device

The projector is almost the size of a mobile phone. It can easily be carried around into any pocket.

A projector of this size is surely benefits those always on the go for presentation. Going bulky is no longer tolerable.

So let us take a close look at the upcoming device in details at The World’s smallest Projector