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DFRobot Announces Vortex – A First of its Kind, Intelligent and Responsive Robot Toy

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New York—July 9, 2015—Robotics and open source hardware provider DFRobot today announces their new interactive toy, the Vortex robot. Designed to teach, empower and entertain children in an interactive robotics environment, DFRobot today also launched its Kickstarter campaign to raise $50,000 for continued product development. 

Combatting the trend of over-reliance on virtual games and screen time while transforming the robotic toy, DFRobot’s Vortex allows children to combine physical and virtual play. Children can interact with their toy robot while also programming and inventing their own commands and games, all via their smartphone or tablet.

Vortex has the following standout features:

  • Ready for Action—The Vortex robot and apps are fully functional right out of the box. Simply pair the robot with each child’s personal phone or tablet (compatible with both iOS and Android) via Bluetooth, and it’s ready to run. Children maneuver the Vortex by simply tapping their device’s screen to initiate commands
  • Infinite Programming Possibilities—Vortex presents infinite possibilities to create and play new games. It’s compatible with highly customizable open source hardware platform, Arduino, as well as with programming language Scratch. The Vortex robot can navigate obstacles, detect lines and report back by using infrared, grey scale and sound speakers. Easy to use, Vortex makes a child’s introduction to programming fully accessible and understandable and will be a great teaching resource for classrooms, making complex programming and coding easier for children to understand and practice
  • Customizable Games—Children have endless opportunities to create their own games and can also play the pre-programmed, free games including: Bumping Fight, Virtual Golf, Driving and Robot Soccer. Each game allows children to compete against their friends, parents or the robot AI. All games are designed to be both intuitive and customizable, as the child creates their own play experience

“We’re transforming the household into part robotics lab, part playground,” said Ricky Ye, CEO, DFRobot. “We fully believe in the philosophy of learning through play. With our robot, which offers an immersive programming experience, children can learn to code while having genuine fun. Our mission is to bridge the gap between toys and education–particularly STEM education–as technology-driven skills are more important than ever.”

Vortex’s pre-programmed games are designed to be fun and intuitive. Bumping Fight serves as a pushing match between two players to force others from the arena, while Virtual Golf allows children to direct the robot towards a target, while controlling the power of their shots. In addition, Driving allows children to use their device as a remote control to drive their Vortex forward, backwards, right or left around a track, and with Robot Soccer, children can play a match with anywhere from 2-22 players.

DFRobot’s Vortex is suggested for children ages six and up. By supporting the Kickstarter campaign, backers can pre-order the Vortex robot two-pack for $119 with their contributions. Robots will ship to consumers in fall, 2015.

About DFRobot

 DFRobot is a robotics and open source hardware provider that is dedicated to creating innovative, user-friendly products that foster a strong community of learning. DFRobot collaborates with multiple tech giants including Intel and Microsoft and has a product catalog boasting over 1,000 components and widgets including sensors, robotic platforms, communication modules and 3D printers. DFRobot is one of the early evangelists of the Maker Movement and strongly supports greater access to the maker culture.

DFRobot’s new product, Vortex is an intelligent and responsive robot that will enable children to learn, play and program. Vortex will bring together robotics with digital games through fun and interactive apps that allow children to explore, program their own games and solve problems.

DFRobot is headquartered in Shanghai, China. For more information visit www.dfrobot.com.

ePawn Launches Its Connected Board for Gamers on Kickstarter

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NEW YORK, July 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ —

The French startup ePawn launches ePawn Arena, a revolutionary board that interfaces with smartphones, tablets or PCs, to allow gamers to use real world game pieces with their online and mobile devices.

To view the Multimedia News Release, please click:

http://www.multivu.com/players/uk/7571451-epawn-launches-gamers-kickstarter/

Leveraging ePawn’s patented object-tracking technology, ePawn Arena bridges real and virtual gaming by bringing back the simple thrill of real touch feeling and breathing life into mobile game pieces and smart robot-toys.

Designed to support numerous games, like a game console, ePawn Arena comes with action games where smartphones drive the toys,  a chess game where gamers play online with real game pieces magically moving on their own and strategy games with beautiful and interactive miniatures.

ePawn Arena is ready to get new content and the free Software Development Kit (SDK) makes it easy for game developers and hackers to integrate ePawn Arena into both new and existing games.

„ePawn Arena’s unique capabilities take the gaming experience to a whole new level of fun and creativity,“ said Christophe Duteil, co-founder and CEO of ePawn. „Additionally, we have created an open platform such that anyone can create new content in various domains, such as gaming, robotics, new user interfaces, and so on.“

ePawn Arena, the connected board for gamers, is live on Kickstarter at :

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1360711106/epawn-arena-the-first-connected-gaming-board

BumbleBeeBot is now BombiniBot

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I just received this message from the OpenElectrons Team:

We had to change the name of the BumbleBeeBot … the new name is BombiniBot.

We are changing the texts on the project page to that effect, but in some places it just can not be changed.

This change could be confusing for a while, but be aware, the new name is „BombiniBot“.

 

 

BumbleBeeBot – for Teaching Robotics and Programming to Kids

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OpenElectrons have started a Kickstarter Campaign for an Arduino based robot called BumbleBeeBot to teach programming and robotics to young kids.
OpenElectrons is the affiliate of mindsensors.com, which makes sensors and controllers for LEGO Mindstorms.

BumbleBeeBot is a low cost kit with progressively complex programming environments.
For the younger audience, the bot uses Scratch like graphical programming environment.
Scratch is already widely adopted in schools and makes programming easy for children.
Growing students can then transition to miniBloq which is graphical programming interfacing to Arduino.
At advance level, students can directly program in Arduino IDE using C/C++.

The BumbleBeeBot has gone through pilot programs in schools and afterschool robotics classes in
Richmond, Virginia, and now they’re seeking funding for production.

#BumblebeeBot for Teaching #Robotics and #Programming to Kids:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1842571016/bumblebeebot-for-teaching-robotics-and-programming

Game-Changer: First 3D Printed, Educational Robot Launches on Kickstarter

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Seattle, WA – SociallyShaped, an educational robotics company, is pleased to announce the first, advanced, 3D printed, customizable robot that teaches electronics, programming, and 3D design. Named Roby, this amazingly versatile robot has a full on-board computer and programming software designed to teach children the basics of programming. The first robot of it’s kind, Roby provides the platform needed to excel in many areas of technology.

The mission of SociallyShaped is to improve access to technical skills, and empower anyone to become innovators in the technology industry. You can become part of SociallyShaped’s community and mission by visiting https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/758562141/3d-printed-educational-robotic-platform

SociallyShaped is an educational robotics company, which encourages learning and entrepreneurialism for children and adults alike. SociallyShaped was founded by John Villwock, MBA (Cornell), Mikhail Stolpner, MBA (Cornell), and Aubra Taylor, MA in Seattle, WA. Combined, they have extensive experience in child development, technical innovation, programming, business management, 3D printing, and electrical engineering.

MyoWare™ | Harness the power of your muscle signals!

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Raleigh, NC, May 13, 2015 – The bionics wizards at Advancer Technologies just released their fourth generation muscle sensor, the MyoWare. This new Arduino-compatible and wearable sensor harnesses the power of your muscles to control robots, video games, prosthesis, and much more. To show off the power of the MyoWare, these mad scientists have built two amazing projects, the Bionic Iron Man Glove and the 3D Printed Wolverine Claws, and are publishing the steps to build them for free online. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/312488939/myowaretm-harness-the-power-of-your-muscle-signals

Rokit Smart: Build and Program Robots the Easy Way

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On May 14, 2015, Robolink, Inc is launching a campaign on Kickstarter for Rokit
Smart, an innovative and affordable robot kit that teaches kids how to program and
build robots in as little as one hour. With Rokit Smart, kids as young as 8 years old
can program these robots to autonomously follow a track, be controlled by remote
and many other exciting tasks. Rokit Smart includes instructions to build twelve
different robots, but the only limit to what kids can build with this kit is their
imagination. Until now, there has never been a robotics kit with so many potential
options for such a low price point. Rokit Smart will bring the excitement of robotics
to kids who never before considered the idea that they could build and program
their own robot.

Thousands of elementary school students across Southern California have tested
prototypes for Rokit Smart and they have all been amazed at how easy it is to build
and program their own robot. “When I see how much fun kids are having as the
robot they just built dribbles a ball or navigates a maze, it always brings a huge
smile to my face,” says Hansol Hong, Robolink’s CEO. Discovering how the
motors, sensors, linkages and software of a robot interact with each other has
proven to be a fantastic way of introducing young students to science, technology,
engineering and mathematics, also known as STEM education.

After building and programming the out-of-the-box robots, kids will be able to apply
what they learned and make their own robot. Rokit Smart is compatible with
Arduino, a programming language designed for robots that they can download for
free. “Learning to program our robots is a perfect stepping stone into languages like
C and C++. That’s going to be an incredibly valuable skill as these kids get older,”
says Hong.

The Kickstarter campaign for Rokit Smart has a goal of $50,000 by June 16th. The
money will pay for the manufacturing of the first run of Rokit Smarts. The first 100
backers will have the opportunity to secure a Rokit Smart for $99, a savings of 32%
off of the retail price.

For more information, visit the Kickstarter page here.

The Robolink community has already posted some very helpful resources for robot
builders at robolink.com/community.

Meet Tinker: Friendly Robot Teaches Kids to Code

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Los Angeles, CA – May 4, 2015:​Introducing “Tinker” the
programmable toy robot that teaches kids how the basics
of computer code through its insertable command playing
cards. Ex-Mattel engineer, Kay Yang, developed the
adorably-designed robot as an alternative for kids to
code devices without having to learn a specific software
language.

 

Build. ​Kids start by assembling Tinker from head to toe
with the basic pack of arms and LEDs. Beginners plug the
arms into the toy’s sides and the LEDs into the ear
sockets. Programmers will also be able to attach
motorized tracks to the bottom of Tinker to allow the
device to move freely. Future accessories include a
microphone, tilt sensor, and bluetooth capability.

Program. ​To program Tinker, kids simply insert a one of
the brightly colored cards that corresponds with the
action they want Tinker to take. Then insert the “if” card
to activate the sensor. Finally, they insert the key card to
activate play mode. Tinker is also Arduino-based and
open source, allowing beginners to graduate and move
into more complex coding using Scratch.

Graduate. ​While programming typically requires a computer application, Tinker is the first toy to teach coding without software. This rudimentary system breaks down the steps so that children can understand the basics of coding by illustrating how a sequence of actions activated affects the play experience. Once users graduate from the cards, they program the toy through the USB plug hidden behind Tinker’s tummy.

 

Tinker the Robot will be available exclusively on Kickstarter from May 4 – June 4,
2015, with the first shipment delivered to customers by Late 2015/Early 2016.

 

 

MakerBloks Launches Four New Games, Including iOS App

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MONTREAL, May 12, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Today, MakerBloks introduces four new games, including a new iOS tablet app, to empower the next generation of makers and inspire STEM education. With MakerBloks, more than 40 million children across North America can now create, build and design real electronic circuits, without any prior technical knowledge.

MakerBloks Logo / MakerBloks Launches Four New Games, Including iOS App (PRNewsFoto/MakerBloks)

MakerBloks are reactive color-coded, magnetic blocks that guide children through the basics of electronic circuits in a simple, fun and immersive way. To keep kids engaged, MakerBloks is introducing four games to pre-order on Kickstarter, including:

  • Light and Sound Intro Kit – featuring the basics to building circuits
  • Music Kit – featuring keyboard, microphone and flute games
  • Spy Kit – featuring voice changing and burglar alarm games
  • MakerBloks World – an interactive tablet game that combines the virtual and physical worlds

MakerBloks World is a state-of-the-art tablet game that combines the virtual and physical worlds. The tablet’s front camera uses unique MakerBloks visual recognition software to read and react when a child assembles the blocks correctly, all in real-time. With MakerBloks World, the child advances through an educational game that uses puzzles, rocket launchers, and imaginative settings such as candy land, water world and outer space, creating a truly immersive way to teach kids how to build and use electronic circuits.

„With over 15 years specializing in designing children’s games and toys, I understand how games should look, function and feel,“ saidFrancois Poirier, CEO and founder of MakerBloks. „I also know how important longevity is. Parents want their kids to use games and toys for as long as possible. The best part about MakerBloks is its ‚hack-ability‘ – the instructions are just the beginning. Teaching kids about science and technology is a great start, but helping them to be more resourceful, more creative and to feel empowered is what MakerBloks is really about.“

Founded in 2014, MakerBloks was inspired while Francois was shopping for a game or toy for a six year old that was fun, easy-to-use and educational. Since everything was either too complex or had no educational component, MakerBloks is designed for children starting at six years old. Each kit features:

  • Colorful blocks that magnetically connect together on all four sides
  • A guide that explains what each block’s electronic symbol means
  • A set of instructions that is optional! Follow the instructions or troubleshoot your way to success!
  • A hacking hint: every game can be assembled multiple ways – the possibilities are only limited by your imagination

MakerBloks is available for pre-order today on Kickstarter, with intro kits starting at $45 and advanced kits, including intro kit and additional blocks, begin at $85. The MakerBloks iOS tablet app will be available for download once the kits begin to ship in Fall 2015.

For more information about MakerBloks, please visit http://makerbloks.com/en

About MakerBloks

Francois Poirier founded MakerBloks in 2014 after he realized that there are no simple ways to teach young children about electronics. Pairing beautiful design with functionality and fun, MakerBloks gives parents the tools to set their child up for successful learning in science, technology, engineering and math. Easily identified and connecting flawlessly every time, MakerBloks start with a battery, but are powered by imagination.

Create, Share, & Teach with SnapCAD

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Information about SnapCAD just appeared on the VEX Robotics website. You can now sign up with your email to get informed as soon as SnapCAD is available for download.

So, sign up and while you wait for the download to become available, read the information that is on their official website:

Create, Share, & Teach with One Easy-to-Use Program

SnapCAD is a community-built solution for designing virtual VEX IQ models and creating printable, shareable instructions for them. Use SnapCAD to test out a novel idea in the virtual world before building it physically, or to share your creations with the world in the form of step-by-step build instructions!

Transform your VEX IQ Classroom

SnapCAD is a FREE download and available to anyone with a PC running Windows 95 or newer (see below for full system requirements). Students can even install it on their home computers and bring their models (saved in the lightweight .ldr or .mpd file formats) into class the next day.

A Community Effort

The SnapCAD vision began when some members of the VEX IQ community began converting VEX IQ CAD files into the popular open-source LDraw format. This made them available for use in a number of publicly available LDraw editors.

Built for VEX IQ

Drawing from community expertise, SnapCAD is a new LDraw editor designed specifically for VEX IQ. Students can use SnapCAD to learn the fundamentals of computer aided design (CAD) and create new VEX IQ robots!

  • Comes pre-loaded with the entire VEX IQ part library
  • Supports colored VEX IQ parts
  • Includes pre-built models of the Autopilot, the Clawbot IQ, and V-Rex
  • Adapts to new products ported into SnapCAD soon after public release
  • Creates step-by-step instructions for your custom builds

And feel free to join our VEX IQ discussions in our VEX IQ Robotics Fangroup on Facebook

VEX IQ SnapCAD Screenshot