July 9, 2015Vortex robot plays with kids, teaches them to program

Vortex is an interactive robot toy which aims to be fun for children to play with, while teaching them to program

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There's no shortage of robot-based toys out there which are claimed to be both fun, and teach your budding young roboticist the basics of programming. Following in the digital footsteps of Play-i, Kibo and Hackaball, is Vortex, a friendly Arduino-based bot that can connect to iOS and Android devices, play games, and be programmed by children as young as six-years-old.

Currently looking for funding on Kickstarter, Vortex is the latest product from DFRobot. It's aimed at children aged from 6 years and upwards, and has been designed to be fun out of the box. The bot comes ready to play a number of games including Bumping Fight (a sumo-like game for multiple Vortex robots), Golf, Driving, and Soccer. Fugitive, an augmented reality game which sees kids chasing after the bot with their smart device, will be available later in the year.

However, the hope is that children will not simply use Vortex as a passive play-thing, but will also want to learn how to make it do more cool stuff via an intuitive app which allows graphical programming in a simple drag and drop manner. The idea is that by doing this kids will learn the basics of programming without having to sit in front of a screen of code. Vortex will also come with pre-set courses to teach users how to make use of its built-in capabilities.

In terms of what tech will be at the disposal of young (or older) Vortex programmers, the wheeled robot features ground/line following sensors, proximity sensors and encoders for speed control. Feedback can be given via the various LEDs, an "eye" display with 32 eye expressions, and a speaker. The Vortex robot runs on four AA-sized batteries, which should be good for 40-90 minutes of use, and features Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. An I2c socket also offers the chance to expand sensor and interface options.

Its makers say this setup allows users to program the Arduino and Scratch compatible Vortex to perform a number of tasks which could include: following lines, recognizing hand gestures, navigating around obstacles or avoiding drop-offs. Because Vortex is open source, the creators hope to see people use it in all sorts of novel and interesting ways.

Kickstarter backers will currently need to pledge ￡45 (US$69) for a single Vortex, or ￡79 ($119) for a pair and kits will come with printed mats for a better gaming experience, and a sticker set including vinyl stickers with a variety of patterns for customization. Bigger bundles are also available, and should the funding target be reached and everything else go to plan, Vortex robots should start shipping in October.

You can check out the Vortex Kickstarter video below.

Sources: DFRobot, Kickstarter

Vortex机器人能与孩子玩耍，教他们编程知识

7月9日2015Vortex机器人扮演与孩子们，教他们program

涡是一个互动的机器人玩具，目的是很有趣的孩子一起玩，一边教他们编

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还有机器人为主的玩具在那里它们声称是既有趣不乏其人，并教你崭露头角的年轻的机器人专家编程的基础知识。继在玩，我，基博和Hackaball数字化的脚步，是漩涡，一个友好的基于Arduino的机器人，可以连接到iOS和Android设备，玩游戏，并通过孩子年仅六岁编程

目前正在寻找Kickstarter上筹资，旋涡是DFRobot的最新产品。它的目的是在年龄从6岁以上的儿童，并已设计成有趣的开箱。僵尸来准备玩一些游戏，包括碰碰扑灭（相扑般的游戏多涡流机器人），高尔夫，驾驶，和足球。逃犯，增强现实游戏，看到他们的智能设备的机器人后孩子们追逐，以后会提供的一年。

然而，希望的是，孩子不会简单地使用涡作为一个被动播放的事情，但也会想学习如何使它通过一个直观的应用程序，它允许图形化编程的一个简单的拖放的方式做更多很酷的东西。我们的想法是，通过这样做，孩子们将学习编程的基础知识，而不必坐在代码屏幕前。涡街也将与预先设定的课程，教用户如何使用其内置的功能。

在什么高科技方面将在处置年轻的（或以上）涡程序员，轮式机器人特点地面

线以下的传感器，接近传感器和编码器的速度控制。反馈可以通过各种指示灯，一个“眼”显示器，32的眼睛表情，和扬声器发出。涡机器人可以运行在四节AA尺寸的电池，这应该是很好的40-90分钟内使用，并具有蓝牙4.0连接。一个I2C接口还提供了扩展传感器和接口选项的机会

其制造商表示，这种设置可以让用户编程的Arduino和擦除兼容涡执行多项任务，其中可能包括：以下行，识别手势，浏览各地障碍或避免陡坡。由于涡是开源的，创作者希望看到人们用它在各种新奇有趣的方式。

Kickstarter的支持者将目前需要保证?45（US $ 69），为单一涡，或?79条（$ 119），用于一对和试剂盒将带着印垫一个更好的游戏体验，和贴纸设置包括乙烯基贴纸有各种图案定制。更大的包也可以，而且应该筹资目标达成和其他一切按计划进行，涡机器人应该在十月开始出货

您可以检查出的涡Kickstarter的视频下方