Our latest Kickstarter success has finally arrived in our store! The MonsterBorg is a beast of a kit designed to be taken off road or driven autonomously, it's also our primary racing robot for Formula Pi.
The MonsterBorg can be programmed as a self-driving robot, used for education about self-driving systems, or raced around the garden as an RC off-roader. It also makes a great platform for hacking about with robots by adding extra sensors or servos.
The MonsterBorg kit comes with the wires, screws, motors, hubs and wheels that you need to get it running. You need just add a Raspberry Pi, a micro SD card, 10 AA batteries, and an optional Pi camera. Screwdrivers are needed for assembly.
Can you use a PI Zero W instead of PI 3 for the Monster Borg?
John Trott
Whilst this robot has been specifically designed to be used with the Pi 3, you can use a Pi Zero W. The chassis only has mounting holes for the Pi 3 form factor, so only 2 of the mounting holes will line up if a Pi Zero is used. If you intended on using a camera with the robot you will need to make sure you have the Pi Zero ribbon cable.
Hello, I have a question regarding an application with the monsterborg and the camera for the pi. Would it be possible to transmit the camera feed from the monsterborg back to a central control point maybe up to 1000 feet away?
chuber
Yes you can transmit the camera feed, but over a distance of 1000 feet you will struggle. Over WiFi, using standard antenna, you might be able to get a distance of ~100ft
are the pins on the RPi accessible or blocked by the thunderborg?
Peter G.
Whilst the ThunderBorg does sit on top of the Pi, plugged directly into the GPIO header, there is a small gap between the top of the GPIO pins and the board. So you could just about squeeze a jumper wire on.
I'd like to make some modifications to it including connecting a HD camera that can take screenshots, using encoders on the wheels so it can track its location, and connecting a wired controller so it doesn't lose signal around bends etc. Are these easy to do for a relative novice with the current system? If not could you please offer some advice on how to do them?
M Donnelly
I don't see why not. Most of the modifications are just down to the code and I'm sure you'll be able to have a Google and find plenty of examples you can use. The rotary encoders on the wheels might be a challenge to mount to the robot, depends how creative you are though!
I have built the monsterborg but can't see how the thunderborg is connected to it. Should I have cables from the GPIO pins because there is nothing about this in the online instructions. Am I missing something?
Peter Eachus
Have you followed the detailed build instructions here - https://www.piborg.org/blog/monsterborg-build-instructions - The ThunderBorg plugs directly onto the Raspberry Pi (see step 42)
Hi, I'm interested in buying a MonsterBorg, but I first need some more information;- Q1) Please tell me...approximately what weight can Monsterborg carry across a flat grass lawn, moving at a slow speed of approx 0.5 metre per second, with little acceleration of approx 0.5 metre / sec sq'ed ? I do not need a precise answer, just an approximate. Q2) what is the size of its platform (where items, including PRI, etc) can be placed ? Thanks
Robert Agribot
I cannot give you a precise answer about weight, however we do know that MonsterBorg will still drive at nearly full speed on a flat surface with a 4.3 Kg load: https://youtu.be/Xmw-6VWbMNo?t=1m2s As you do not need to go this fast and your lawn will not be too rough it should be able to carry a larger weight, at a guess about double.
The innermost area useful for mounting is 153 x 109 mm. We have some more dimensions (such as the wheel size) listed here.
MonsterBorg - OverviewOct 18, 2017 MonsterBorg is a chunky metal rover robot designed for use with a Raspberry Pi. It has a powerful 5 Amp motor controller and with 10xAA batteries, can run for..
ThunderBorg - TroubleshootingOct 19, 2017 Installation issues Permission denied, file not found, 404 or similar: There are a few possible causes of this: Out of disk space: We have occa..
MonsterBorg - Getting StartedOct 19, 2017 Before starting We recommend that you setup the software for running your MonsterBorg before you start assembly. These instructions assume you are running a ..
MonsterBorg - Build InstructionsOct 19, 2017 Step 0: Firstly, make sure you have installed the software so you can easily connect and modify code without needing to remove the Raspberry Pi. See the get..
MonsterBorg - ExamplesOct 19, 2017 As MonsterBorg is based around the Raspberry Pi 3 it can do some really exciting things. Below are some examples we have come up with to show off what MonsterBo..
MonsterBorg - Examples - Web UIOct 19, 2017 Drive your MonsterBorg from a smart phone or web browser One of the best things about building your own robot is being able to control it remotely. Using M..
MonsterBorg - Examples - Self DriveOct 19, 2017 Get your MonsterBorg to autonomously follow a coloured track Driving a MonsterBorg around yourself can be fun, but having it drive all by itself is much mo..
MonsterBorg - Examples - Joystick ControlOct 19, 2017 Use a game controller or joystick to drive MonsterBorg Most of us want to be able to control our robots manually one way or another. Bluetooth wireless con..
MonsterBorg - Examples - Canned SequenceOct 19, 2017 Set your MonsterBorg to move in a preset sequence Robots such as BigTrak and Turtles work by having a sequence of moves programmed into them. Most of them ..