Review on SunFounder Raspberry Pi Smart Video Robot Car Kit for Raspberry Pi - Supports Ezblock/Python Code 🤖 Control, Web Control, and Multifunctional Electronic DIY Raspberry Pi Robot Kits for Teens, Adults - Boosted SEO by Phillip Rodriguez

This unit drew me in with its metal chassis and steerable motor/wheel combo. In general, wheels have lower rolling resistance than tank tracks, which increases battery life. Chassis fundamentals are good too – holes are aligned and frame stiffness is good. However. 1. My kit came without the M1.4*6 screws needed to mount the ultrasonic transducer. I used a heat gun.2 - Two batteries must be purchased before starting construction. These are 18650 batteries that are common in various tools and cordless flashlights. I chose Samsung 35E INR 18650 3500mAh and they work fine. At the time of review, they were not available through Revain. Stick with Japanese or Korean batteries as they work well. There were a few other notable issues: the 3-8mm stand used to lift the Raspberry Pi off the case isn't tall enough, and several ports on the Pi are blocked as a result. rear, right hand drive. This is a problem that could easily be avoided by installing taller racks. 4. Similarly, the robot's hat is too close to the top of the Pi, meaning the cable to the camera is uncomfortably crimped. Here, too, a bus extension and higher racks could have easily mitigated this problem. It seems strange to list the use of 18650 batteries and not provide onboard charging. However, SunFounder makes a rechargeable battery power module that looks like a candidate for future integration with my picar-x.6. The camera module is shown flush with the camera frame. However, I've noticed a few surface mount components on my camera module that interfere with flush mounting. I decided to make small posts to make room for these components. I recommend checking the camera module for possible interference - I may have been unlucky with the particular version of the camera module that I received with this kit.7 - There is no mention of a battery strap in the written assembly instructions that I received. This tape must be installed before attaching the Raspberry Pi to the case! I recommend that you do not attempt to build this unit without a link to the picar-x assembly video on YouTube - it is easier to follow than the written instructions accessible from the back of the car. When programming, I expect to connect my Pi to a screen/keyboard/mouse and unhindered access to these ports would be preferable. This isn't a critical factor, but it does seem like an odd design choice. Overall, I definitely find the device "sensitive" and cannot withstand rough use. Combined with the above design decisions and issues, this is hardly suitable for a STEM project. It's a shame, because there's a lot of potential here! I'll probably fix the design issues and upgrade with a Google Coral USB accelerator (connected via USB) so I can do more advanced machine learning activities. The Picar-x is good value for money, but I'd really like to see a kit designed for easy expansion, built-in charging, and the addition of additional hardware/sensors/hats. . I wanted to change the orientation of the Raspberry Pi and add standoffs so I can mount a fan for the CPU and make more room for the camera cable. This was achieved with new standoffs, a GPIO extender and an intermediate plate made from a plastic CD case (see photo). Overall this is a much more satisfactory solution and there is no need to lengthen or otherwise modify the wiring. Ultimately, writing in Python is much more satisfying than using the ez-block approach. Unfortunately, ez-block on my iPad takes up too much screen space and lacks key features like undo and multithreading. But for checking hardware, ez-block works great. One anomaly I found was an ultrasonic range finder running on 3.3V instead of 5V, which is the nominal voltage for almost every HC-SR04 sensor you can buy at retail. I was getting erratic readings from this sensor (more than usual for the HC-SR04) so I wanted to replace this unit. I was only successful after reconfiguring the wiring to use Vcc from the 5V rail and a resistive divider (1.2K and 2.2K) to split the echo from 5V to 3.3V to lower. Now I have ordered a stereo camera unit with edge processor. (Coral, USB) so I can use cameras for more complex distance and object detection. I also found it helpful to correlate engine horsepower to steering angle when riding Picars. So if you're turning left, for example, you'll need more power for the right motor and less for the left motor - effectively creating a beefed up differential. This prevents "hanging up" when the actual wheel drive rolls over the steering wheels on low-friction surfaces. Overall it's a nice experience, but this knot could have been better thought out by the designers!