Why Plen?

[lampcov]

Hey everyone,

So I've essentially convinced the wife that a Manoi is something that our household needs as our daughter and my nephew's high school Japanese club would like to build a robot, and the "Japanese Aspect" of the Manoi appeals to them....which is a good thing.

Then the wife saw video of the Plen rollerskating, carrying things, etc. and much to my shock said "THAT is was you should get". I was sure I'd kill it when I added $800 to the project cost, but she's smitten...what a girl.

Now I do admit it's pretty cool, and cute which will appeal to the younger kids involved in the project, but I assume that there is little or NO english support. I know people in Japan, so if it's available I should be able to get one. But my gut tells me Manoi is still the way to go.

Do any of you fine knowledgeable people have any info on the Plen to help me decide that Manio IS right and to convince the wife "cuter isn't better"!

Thanks a ton, and I can't wait to be a big contributor on the Manoi (or Plen...) very soon!

Marc

[Robo1]

With the little I know about Plan there very cool having an Arm chip would be good. You could even run a copy of linux on there and go down the real time system route.

it all depends on your level of knowledge if you a know alot about embedded processors then it would be a better robot.

hope this helps and please put a link to a good spec sheet and some vids.

bren

[bauermech]

Plen Specs (from Systec Akazawa Co. pamphlet):
CPU: ARM7 32bit
D.O.F.: 18 (6/leg, 3/arm)
Communication: Serial w/ USB; Bluetooth
Max. Operating time/charge: 25min.
Height: 230mm
Weight: 700g. w/ batts
Software: Motion Editor (Req. WinXP, USB port)
Accessories: Batt Pack (6v, 750mAh), charger, USB cable

Plen already has the independent leg rotation making it more agile right off the bat, but it's much smaller and the servos are weaker. Wonderful demo bot... Wouldn't want to wrestle w/ it, but the kids'll love it. They'd love to see a MANOI too.

So, truthfully now... who's the robot REALLY for?

Personally, I'd snag a MANOI. I think you'll be happier in the end.

[lampcov]

Matt,

The bot is for me, but I'm really keen to get the kids "into" it. And I agree about the Manoi. But like any good dork I want to explore all avenues. I think the Ira said there is a 3-dof kit for the Manoi, I dont' know if that adds hips or not.

Still the biggest outstanding question is...is there any English software for the Plen. Manoi at least has H2H in english, and the Kondo english manuals are helpful.

But if Plen's motion editor is only in Japanese, and there's no english "help" at all, it might prove frustrating and not worth the effort.

Maybe Lem has some info.....

Marc

[bauermech]

Yeah, I can see your concern. I really don't know if there's any help in English included w/ Plen. They do a little promoting here in the states, so you'd think they'd offer some support... but I can't be certain. Lem, ideed, would be a good source to find out. Let me know what the word is when you hear

[tempusmaster]

Matt,

The bot is for me, but I'm really keen to get the kids "into" it. And I agree about the Manoi. But like any good dork I want to explore all avenues. I think the Ira said there is a 3-dof kit for the Manoi, I dont' know if that adds hips or not.

Ira's right. The AT01 is designed so that you can add 3 DOF without any modifications. The hip/waist rotation DOF requires a KRS-2350, a few screws, and a couple other bits & pieces (I don't have the docs in front of me at the moment.) The arms get an additional DOF by adding KRS-4024's to each arm. Again, that only requires the servos, some screws, and a few other standard parts. It's all documented with assembly instructions in the AT01 hardware manual.

Still the biggest outstanding question is...is there any English software for the Plen. Manoi at least has H2H in english, and the Kondo english manuals are helpful.

But if Plen's motion editor is only in Japanese, and there's no english "help" at all, it might prove frustrating and not worth the effort.

Maybe Lem has some info.....

Just opinions, no hands-on owner experience with Plen - at least not yet.

I like it a lot, and have really enjoyed playing with it at the events and last month at the Robot Museum in Nagoya. I haven't seen or heard of any English language docs yet. That's not to say that they don't exist. I'm reasonably comfortable working with Japanese applications and manuals, so I haven't pursued it.

So, you're probably going to ask why I haven't bought one yet. I've certainly given it a lot of thought.

As much as I like the design, especially the 'cute' personality, the hardware architecture seems pretty challenging for a hacker. It's easy to imagine hacking a Robonova-1 or KHR-2HV or AT01 to add addtional DOF and functionality like grippers, cameras, and the like. It's more challenging to figure out how to do it successfully with Plen, especially given it's smaller size.

How much design margin is available to support the additional power and weight necessary for any mod's I might want to add-on? Is the basic structure robust enough to still maintain its balance and perform well if I add grippers or other stuff?

The small size presents some other challenges, at least to me, in that it wouldn't be very effective playing in the events I really like here, like the robot soccer matches. Of course if you had a bunch of Plens it would be great, but almost all of the robots in the matches here are KHR-1 size or larger and would just run right over a Plen.

Then there's the price/budget issue. I have no idea what it might sell for overseas, but at the price they charge here I could buy a couple of KHR-2HVs or Robonova's. Like everyone, I have a limited budget to play with - though if a Plen unexpectedly showed up on my doorstep it would be welcomed with open arms. 8O

Do I like it? Yes - quite a bit. It's a great design, and its performance delights me everytime I see it. It's definitely a crowd pleaser. If I had unlimited budget there would already be one or two in my lab - no question.

Am I going to buy one? No, at least not at this point. As much as I would like to play with Plen, I really prefer something that I can add value to, hack, and even compete with - something that will engage and keep my interest and motivation for a long, long time.