Companion Guide for ROBOTIS Kinder

$11.99 USD
by STEAMCUP

The OLLO KINDER robotic kit was released by ROBOTIS® in 2024 and it comes with a thin user manual providing instructions for building and operating 16 robots, but it did not include any explanation of the mechanical design principles or software programming techniques used in the creation and operation of these robots. To complement this user manual, this book was written with two main goals:

1. To provide explanations of the mechanical principles used in the design and operation of each robot, and when appropriate to include variations or alternate applications of those principles.


2. To provide a Primer for Robots Programming using the ROBOTIS R-BLOCK tool which is a web-based IDE. This Primer starts from a beginner level and takes the reader to an intermediate skill level.

This book consists of 18 chapters:

• Chapter 1 presents an overview of the KINDER hardware and software capabilities and describes the Sense-Think-Act paradigm which is used in developing this book contents.


• For Chapters 2 through 17, each chapter is geared towards a specific robot model and contains several Sections:

“Assembly Notes” expands on robot construction techniques and their effects on motors and sensors usage in subsequent robot programming and runtime performances.


“Mechanism Usage” drills into the mechanical principles of the particular mechanism(s) implemented in this specific robot model. When appropriate, the robot’s features as a Motion Platform are also discussed.


“Ideas For Further Explorations” presents alternatives/modifications in construction techniques or mechanism design to further enhance the reader’s understanding of robot construction and design.


“Standards Alignment” provides a mapping of the Chapter’s instructional materials with popular educational standards used in the USA Education sector.


• Chapter 18 is a Primer for Robots Programming using the R-BLOCK IDE, taking the reader from a novice to an intermediary level regarding programming skills with a Graphical Block User Interface. Based on the Sense-Think-Act Paradigm, an Event-Programming Approach is developed to guide beginning roboteers from project goals to actual R- BLOCK programming. Topics included: Logic Control via Sequence, Condition and Repetition; Remote Control via Hand Claps & Bluetooth; Object Detection and Line Tracking; Position Control of Actuator.

About the Author:

Chi Ngoc Thai

I am an engineer by training (B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, and Ph. D. in Agricultural Engineering). I have retired from 31 years of teaching and research at the University of Georgia (College of Engineering) in Educational Robotics, Multi-Spectral Imaging Applications for Plant Health Monitoring and Horticultural Products Quality Characterization, and also in the area of Agricultural Systems Modeling and Simulation.

In 2015, I published with Springer the 1st Edition of "Exploring Robotics with ROBOTIS Systems" which was written for university level engineering students. In late 2016, I started to improve it based on readers feedback and using recent ROBOTIS hardware and software updates. The 2nd Edition was released in early August 2017 for both hard-cover and e-book versions, and it is listed among the "Best 25 Robotics Books for Beginners" by Book Authority (https://bookauthority.org/books/beginner-robotics-books).

Since 2017, I have published via Amazon KDP a series of books on selected ROBOTIS Educational Robotics systems such as PLAY, DREAM, MINI and ENGINEER. These books were written to help users of these robotics systems to start from beginners levels and to obtain intermediate skills in robotics engineering and programming for both hardware and software aspects.

My other services are detailed at https://www.cntrobotics.com/services.

Please visit my Author Page at https://www.amazon.com/author/c_n_thai for a complete list of my books.