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Title: Robot Building for Beginners by David Cook ISBN: 1-893115-44-5 Publisher: APress Pub. Date: 18 January, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (18 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Great Book for the Beginning to Intermediate robot builder
Comment: I wish I would have had this book when I started out! The author has made a large complex subject very easy to digest with a variety of chapters on each possible subject.
As the title implies, this is a book intended for "Beginners". You won't find advanced path-finding algorithms nor will you find advanced distance sensor building. It's about _beginning_ robotics. But that doesn't keep some serious electronics theory from getting put into the book. There is plenty of in depth explanations of transistors, comparators, LEDs and other useful components for the robot builder. I learned several useful "rules of thumb" about choosing resistors that I didn't know before opening this book.
I particularly like the concept of this book being an instruction manual for building a robot. If you are a beginner, you can have a reasonably "intelligent" line following robot built by the end of the book that uses many of the mechanical, electrical and logical concepts introduced in each chapter.
Unlike several other books out there, the author isn't selling you a kit at the end of the book, which I liked. Mr. Cook also gives you the source for each part he uses and its respective part number. This is immensely helpful if you would like to build the robot in the book since you can easily obtain each part needed.
In sum, this book is a great value and a great text for the robotics community! Thank you David Cook!
Rating: 5
Summary: Awesome Robot Book
Comment: I found David Cook's book to one of the best robot books out there for 3 reasons. First, David teaches you electronics as you go through the book; and you don't even realize that your learning electronics your just thinking, "I want to know this to build a cool robot." Second, unlike most other robot books, this one is for the beginner and takes the builder all the way through the completion of a single project--a line following robot. Finally, David Cook maintains a website that provides updates to his book and useful links for even more robot building resources. I strongly feel that this shows the author's dedication to encouraging novice robot builders to continue building robots.
Rating: 3
Summary: A better title...Basic Electronics with a Robot Example
Comment: I don't dislike this book, but I don't find it all that useful in terms of robotic design. It does have good coverage of very basic electronics for the beginner, with crystal clear photos to show you the ropes. Don't know how to use a multimeter or know what a resistor is? This book is for you. However, if you want to know how to control, say a servo, you only get a brief paragraph telling you what one is. The book seems to do a lot of that--telling you what something does, but not giving you enough information to do something with it.
For most of the book, you get a sense that the author simply looked through an electronics catalog, selected some key parts, and wrote a brief discription of what kinds there are, and what they do. Along the way, he shows how you can use those parts to make a simple robot.
This would be a good book to accompany another more applications-based book (or online site) on electronics (e.g. Radio Shack's Forrest Mimms Enginner's Notebooks, Practical Electronics for Inventors, etc.).
In terms of robotics, unforunately, you get one simple example and that's it. Very frustrating for those who want to make something more than a simple sandwhich box that follows a line. (It's a clever little design, nevertheless).
With all bad things said, I do think the book has positives. It has many helpful hints for selecting parts, tips for prototyping, and is writen in a friendly, easy-to-read style.
For those who know nothing at all about electronics and aren't too interested in robots, but more interested in basic electronics--5 stars. For those who have more than rudimentary knowledge of electronics and looking for a variety of robots projects--1 star.
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Title: Robot Builder's Bonanza by Gordon McComb ISBN: 0071362967 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics Pub. Date: 21 September, 2000 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: JunkBots, Bugbots, and Bots on Wheels: Building Simple Robots With BEAM Technology by Dave Hrynkiw, Mark W. Tilden ISBN: 0072226013 Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media Pub. Date: 27 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.99 |
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Title: Robot Builder's Sourcebook : Over 2,500 Sources for Robot Parts by Gordon McComb ISBN: 0071406859 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics Pub. Date: 15 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Programming Robot Controllers by Michael Predko, Myke Predko ISBN: 0071408517 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics Pub. Date: 16 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Building Robot Drive Trains (Robot DNA Series) by Dennis Clark, Michael Owings ISBN: 0071408509 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics Pub. Date: 11 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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