KIDBOTS.COM
Home Page
USING FREE COMPUTERS,
and FREE INFORMATION,
TO MAKE FREE ROBOTS
for kids, while teaching kids computers, and robotics.
( THIS MAY BE THE ONLY
WEBSITE ON THE ENTIRE
INTERNET, THAT HAS A "USE"
FOR "ANY" OLD COMPUTER! )
PURPOSE
By using the FLOPPY drive on almost ANY old, discarded
computer of the typical " CLONE " " PC " variety, you can
start programming DOS and BASIC , allowing you to
make a ROBOT controller, very, very quickly and cheaply
using inexpensive, common, available parts.
Using " Dollar Store " cars and toys, you can get motors and
parts to quickly demonstrate ROBOT programming and
control. I use motors, gears, switches, LED lights, cables,
and common electronic parts such as 7805 (5 volt ) power
regulators, diodes, resistors, and capacitors from discarded
cassette tape VCRs, tape Decks, Microwaves, CD players
and other electronic devices that are now being thrown out by
the tens of millions. I will list a source retailler for these parts
as well, and they can be shipped world wide.
This website is deliberately designed so that a typical grade
5 student ( in North America ) has enough mathematics and
skills to build a simple circuit, on a small square of cardboard
( available everywhere in the world, free ) that allows them to
connect to a common "printer port " or " Parallel Port "
located on the back of most common computers.
The typical computer being thrown out often has the Hard
Drives, or the CD readers, and other options REMOVED, so
that I deliberately use only the basic components - NO
colour MONITOR needed, NO CD needed, NO DVD needed,
NO Hard Drive needed, NO sound card needed,
NO mouse needed, NO speakers needed, NO 56K dial up card
needed, NO USB needed, NO Internet Card Needed,
No COMM Ports A or B needed, NO extensive Memory,
needed, so that the smallest amount of " RAM " memory
used to boot the computer is all that is required, :
ALL THAT IS NEEDED
Is the COMPUTER with enough "RAM " memory to start
one FLOPPY drive of ANY kind,
one KEYBOARD, and
one MONITOR , of almost ANY type.
The ENTIRE ROBOT program can run from one floppy.
As well, I will be concentrating on OLD LAPTOPS
which have ALL the parts needed in one small package.
This is IDEAL for a portable Science Project.
This website explains in very simple words, step by step
how a typical computer works, how the mathematics work,
and how the electronics work. Some tools are needed to put
the parts together, and these should be available locally -- if
not, then I will list the parts, and the cost, from a local supplier
who is willing to ship world wide at a reasonable price.
The simple design that I use can be expanded and modified to
control just about anything you want, and is an excellent place
to start, for a ROBOTICS project, typically for a SCIENCE
FAIR, or School Project. With almost no effort you can
upgrade some parts to control serious projects such as Solar
Panels, or experimental "Energy " efficient switching controls.
The key is to APPLY the principles shown here, to whatever
project you have in mind.
THIS WEBSITE is deliberately designed to be small, easy, simple, fast to download, and fit on a 640 by 480 old VGA monitor ( typical of a 386 or 486 ), in older browsers like Netscape 3 or 4, on old 56K dial-up modems used on old computers... After all, this is the type of computer I am trying to save in the first place!
( KISS - Keep It Simple Strategy )
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If you CANNOT see the toolbar with the MENU on the LEFT
side of this page, using a home computer or laptop, or, if you
are on a CELL phone and cannot see or click on the menu at
the top of the screen, then you can, as an option, CLICK HERE
go to the correct HOME PAGE, www.kidbots.com
MATH CLICK HERE
HOW TO CLICK HERE
TYPES CLICK HERE
ROBOT BASIC CLICK HERE
IMAGES CLICK HERE
Robot Cartoons CLICK HERE
Robots CLICK HERE
About kidbots CLICK HERE
______________________________
Kidbots.com is a Free website, with Free
information, on how to USE Free computers
to make Free ROBOT controllers and
Free ROBOTS for kids.