First Step into Robotics

[JoeScience2193]

I have been very interested in learning about robotics for the past 2 years. However, I have no idea where to start. I'm not too sure if I should start by searching for basic robotics lectures or if maybe I should look up some electrical engineering first or something else entirely. If someone could help me take my first step in the right direction because I would more than love to get started this summer. Also, I do have a decent background in physics and mathematic along with a bit of a coding background if that helps.

Edited June 5, 2013 by JoeScience2193

[md65536]

I would recommend getting a microcontroller prototyping board like an Arduino, and some parts to play around with.

 

http://www.arduino.cc/

 

Most of these boards have USB interfaces and can be powered by USB. You download the arduino dev environment, and can run and tinker with example programs right away. There may be other good systems, but I only know about arduino. You can get a complete board off ebay for cheap.

 

Then you could get some robot parts/project kits to go with it, or it should be cheaper to buy some parts to play with. Eg. you can get a bunch of small servos (for RC airplanes) off ebay for cheap (eg. sets of 9-gram servos can go for a few bucks each).

 

There are books on building robots, or web pages... you can find code and designs of other people's arduino projects on the web. https://www.google.ca/search?q=arduino+robots&tbm=isch

A good thing to learn about is electronics... resistance and voltage and what individual components do. To control motors, you'll soon need a power supply because USB can't drive much more than a small servo. I guess you'll really need to know about electronics in order to implement your own hardware designs if they're not trivial. A good book will explain the electronics you need to know in the context of the different components (sensors, power, motors, etc), so that you can learn about the electronics as you build more sophisticated devices.

 

That's a quick and cheap way to get started with tinkering, should be possible to do for around $30 with lots of help available on the web.

Edited June 5, 2013 by md65536

[Mozart]

Try to join any IEEE (I Triple E) organisation in your area. It helped me get started. join the robotics setion.