Aimed at students and those who are new to the world of robotics and programming, the mBot Ranger 3-in-1 robotics kit is a great way to get started. It contains an ATmega2560-based board with Bluetooth Low-Energy connectivity, an IMU, temperature sensor, and a plethora of ports for attaching motors and sensors. Beyond the hardware, users are able to program and control their robot in a myriad of ways, including graphical blocks and the Arduino IDE.
Looking at the box, the first layer contains the main controller board, a couple of tires, a pair of geared DC motors with encoders, and some structural components. Beneath these sat the remaining parts which consisted of a line-following sensor, an HC-SR04 ultrasonic distance sensor, a set of tracks for building the tank project, and many different screws, gears, and plates for assembling the robot.
Taking a closer look at the main Me Auriga board, one can see that it not only has a ring of individually address able LEDs on top, but also a light sensor, the aforementioned IMU and temperature sensor, and a buzzer.
I decided to construct the line following wheeled robot since it was a great showcase of the kit's capabilities. To begin, I attached each motor to a set of plates that would go on to form the chassis. Once joined, I then moved onto the back half of the robot which involved attaching the omnidirectional glide wheel and then screwing the entire assembly onto the chassis. Next, the battery pack was added along with the line following sensor, distance sensor, and wheels.
In order to run firmware on the mBot Ranger, the student must first download the mBlock application along with mLink to facilitate the connection.
Once connected via USB or Bluetooth, the programming mode can be switched between either Live (real-time debugging) or Upload (store the compiled firmware on-device). Blocks, Python, and Arduino-flavored C++ can all be used, and the mBlock even gives the option to generate C++ code from the on-screen blocks for further learning. The kit even came with a paper mat for testing line following:
The mBot Ranger is a great kit for learning about robots, hardware, and programming, and with a focus on students, it has a wealth of resources available. To learn more about the Ranger or get one of your own, you can visit its product page here on Makeblock's website.
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