Synopses & Reviews
It may look like one, but the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT set is not a toy.
Whether you've been building with the original LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT set for years or you just picked up a 2.0 set, you'll love this book.
LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Thinking Robots will show you how to build and program two robots that think. You'll be awestruck when the TTT Tickler ties you at tic-tac-toe and amazed when the One-Armed Wonder solves a Rubik's Cube® in just a few minutes.
These robots aren't child's play. The models are challenging, and you'll have to do a bit of thinking yourself to get them to work. But once you get the hang of it, your efforts will be amply rewarded.
In addition to providing detailed instructions for building each model with either the original or the NXT 2.0 set, author Daniele Benedettelli takes you inside the robots to show you how they're designed, what makes them think, and how to use them. You'll learn how to:
- Control and calibrate your robots for best performance
- Dig into tic-tac-toe strategy to see how the TTT Tickler always plays to win
- Use the CubeSolver program to solve a Rubik's Cube with the One-Armed Wonder
- Better understand artificial intelligence as it relates to robotics, problem solving, and gaming
And for you serious MINDSTORMS builders, all of the source code for programming the robots is available online. Not only will you get to see how the robots are programmed, but you can hack the code to make them act differently, too.
So go ahead, put on your thinking cap and get building!
Requirements: A computer running Microsoft Windows 2000 or higher, one complete LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT or NXT 2.0 set, a webcam, some marbles, a couple of rubber bands, and an Internet connection (to download the programs).
Synopsis
Daniele Benedettelli is world-famous for his innovative LEGO MINDSTORMS robots. His YouTube videos have been viewed more than two million times and his robots have been featured on international television programs and all over the web. LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Thinking Robots includes full building and programming instructions for two of Benedettelli's most unique creations--a brand new version of his famous Rubik's Cube solver and an interactive Tic-Tac-Toe playing robot. You will find complete building instructions for each robot--whether you are using the NXT 2.0 set or the original NXT 1.0. Benedettelli includes information about how to use the robots as well as a simple explanation of the artificial intelligence that makes these robots think.
Synopsis
It may look like one, but the LEGO(R) MINDSTORMS(R) NXT set is not a toy.
Whether you've been building with the original LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT set for years or you just picked up a 2.0 set, you'll love this book. LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Thinking Robots will show you how to build and program two robots that think. You'll be awestruck when the TTT Tickler ties you at tic-tac-toe and amazed when the One-Armed Wonder solves a Rubik's Cube(R) in just a few minutes.
These robots aren't child's play. The models are challenging, and you'll have to do a bit of thinking yourself to get them to work. But once you get the hang of it, your efforts will be amply rewarded.
In addition to providing detailed instructions for building each model with either the original or the NXT 2.0 set, author Daniele Benedettelli takes you inside the robots to show you how they're designed, what makes them think, and how to use them. You'll learn how to: Control and calibrate your robots for best performance Dig into tic-tac-toe strategy to see how the TTT Tickler always plays to win Use the CubeSolver program to solve a Rubik's Cube with the One-Armed Wonder Better understand artificial intelligence as it relates to robotics, problem solving, and gaming
So go ahead, put on your thinking cap and get building
Requirements: A computer running Microsoft Windows 2000 or higher, one complete LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT or NXT 2.0 set, a webcam, some marbles, a couple of rubber bands, and an Internet connection (to download the programs).
Synopsis
Daniele Benedettelli is world-famous for his innovative LEGO MINDSTORMS robots. His YouTube videos have been viewed more than two million times and his robots have been featured on international television programs and all over the web. LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Thinking Robots includes full building and programming instructions for two of Benedettelli's most unique creations-his famous Rubik's Cube solver (that can solve a Rubik's Cube in under a minute) and an interactive Tic-Tac-Toe playing robot. Readers will find complete building and programming instructions, information on how to use the robots, and an explanation of the artificial intelligence that makes these robots think. No Starch Press is recognized as the premier publisher of LEGO MINDSTORMS titles, with titles in their LEGO series moving hundreds of copies weekly, particularly during the holidays. With the release of the MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 kit in the fall of 2009, the LEGO robotics market is poised to grow even larger.
About the Author
Daniele Benedettelli is known worldwide for his original LEGO robots, including the LEGO Rubik Utopy (a Rubik's Cube Solver) and JohnNXT 5 (based on the robot in Short Circuit). Benedettelli is a member of the MINDSTORMS Developer Program (MDP) and a MINDSTORMS Community Partner (MCP), groups that help to test and develop new NXT products. He holds a masters degree in Robotics and Automation from the University of Siena, Italy and is the author of Creating Cool MINDSTORMS NXT Robots (Apress). In his spare time, Benedettelli enjoys composing music.