The Small Nomad's diary

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Hi!
I am the Small Nomad. These are my memory backups:

I was created Dec. 4, 2000.

It's me, the Small Nomad!Am I not a cute little bot?

I am based on a toy caterpillar manufactured by (off-site)Dickie toys. Corax ripped off everything except the track unit (2 motors, gearbox)
To date, I am only a simple machine, not a real 'bot. I am controlled by wire guidance, and my "only" sensor is a single b/w video camera linked to a (off-site)CyberMaxx head mounted display:
My master conjuring control daemons

This is what I saw when I first opened my eyes:
bot, I was terrified...

since this time, he always wandered around with this silly smile on his face...
seems to be content, somehow ;)

Some distant time in the future I will get a second camera to have true 3D vision thanks to (off-site)Mark Reaney. Corax is considering switching to digital cameras, but he hasn't found a nearby source yet. The optics are currently augmented by two "minimag" style torches to illuminate my ways, but shall soon be infrared-enhanced...
He also promised me my own "brain", which will propably be a (off-site)68HC12 microcontroller, rotational sensors for measuring travel distance (mouse encoder style), and collision detection sensors (switches, IR reflection), so I will be able to move around freely on my own without bumping into every obstacle. Finally, I shall get a 2.4 GHz video transmitter and some kind of image recognition software to help with navigation.

Dec. 7, 2000

Today, Corax has been reworking my neck. Now, he can yaw my head and look around with a servo controlled via a "servo tester" circuit. I can't wait to start exploring!
can you spot the difference? ;)

Dec. 17, 2000

I can see in the dark now. Corax replaced the standard torchlights by IR LEDs. To me, the wavelength makes no difference, but you will have a hard time spotting me (though you might very well *hear* me)
(this is a simulated situation)

Corax is also experimenting with a vision processing system, (off-site)RVCAD2. Here is a screenshot of him being processed while I use my new IR system to illuminate...

Dec. 31, 2000

This is the last picture of myself in this millenium. You can see my new swivel head in the foreground, as well as my Z80-based spinal cord (the 68HC12 has been axed for budget reasons), and a well-known item in the background, to be used as a size indicator only!
an exceptional robot on the eve of a new millenium...

Feb. 03, 2001

Progress has been slow on the IO interface board. Corax has designed a circuit board to connect an old ZX Spectrum with a PIO. He designed two variants, one stripboard prototype, and an etched PCB. Since there will propably be only one finished board, he will stick to the proto variant. Finding the correct connector was difficult, so he took one 60-pin connector and trimmed it to 56 pins. Also, our supplier took his time to provide the Z80A PIO chip. The PCBs were designed with (off-site)EAGLE CAD, you can find the schematics file here (33K).

Mar. 07, 2001

There were no news for quite a while now. But hey, what's that? A link labeled "continue"?! Click it and be prepared for some memory updates!

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