[comp.ai] Educational robotic units

ray@cs.odu.edu (Dennis Ray) (01/16/90)

I have an urgent need of potential sources of small educational/hobby
mobile robot kits.  I have a dozen or so groups of local high school
students that I want to challenge with Saturday afternoon robotic projects.
In general I want the students to assemble a small unit during the
next couple of weeks and use it as an entry in a local competition. 
The exact competition will be a function of the capabilities of the 
robotic units. I would hope to find small, mobile, programmable 
units with one or two sensors of their surroundings.

None of my known resources can supply suitable units in the time
frame when needed. The proposed project schedule has suddenly been 
advanced a month or so.  I need to place orders within days with a
delivery in less than a week.

If you can help, please send info (company and phone number) to
Dennis Ray      ray@cs.odu.edu

nagle@well.UUCP (John Nagle) (01/18/90)

In article <11003@xanth.cs.odu.edu> ray@cs.odu.edu (Dennis Ray) writes:
>I have an urgent need of potential sources of small educational/hobby
>mobile robot kits.  I have a dozen or so groups of local high school
>students that I want to challenge with Saturday afternoon robotic projects.

     Mitchel Resnick reports, in his paper "LEGO, Logo, and Life", on
exactly such kits.  He writes "LEGO Systems, Inc, markets a version of
LEGO/Logo under the product name LEGO TC logo.  Logo Computer Systems
implemented the software for the commercial version."  The paper can
be found in "Artificial Life", ed. by Christopher G. Langton,
1989, Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-201-09356-1.  I do not have a source
for Lego TC logo, but would suggest looking up Lego Systems in the
usual references and contacting them.

					John Nagle