EZ-AI development is on hold right now, well kind of...
We are in the process of working with some services that will allow the capabilities of EZ-AI to be far better than what they currently are. These include Wolfram|Alpha and IBM BlueMix/Watson. Speech Recognition will be performed through Nuance Cloud services. Advanced vision features will be available through OpenCV. A quick search of these services will allow you to see the end goal of what we are doing. These will be in the Rafiki project which is the primary focus at this time for CochranRobotics. We will release a limited use version for free which will replace EZ-AI. All of the current features of the EZ-AI database will be available through the new version. All of the services provided by EZ-AI will be available through REST queries and exposed services. This will allow plugins to ARC to be able to use these services.
There has been a huge amount of changes to what is possible since I first started working on EZ-AI. This huge shift of improved technologies has made it necessary to rework EZ-AI so that it can continue to grow and mature.
We are also toying with the idea of allowing programmers to write their own business logic layer within Rafiki. This would allow a programmer to be able to use the core services of Rafiki/EZ-AI and write their own applications with the data that is returned. It will probably be a while before this is implemented, but it is something that we are trying to make happen.
I have probably said too much, but wanted to give you all a picture of what is happening and why EZ-AI isn't being worked on directly. We hope to have our new AI available around the end of the year. There are multiple developers working on this while I find come up with solutions to other problems that arise.
As far as Rafiki goes, the pods are functioning great and additional code/abilities are being added almost daily. The models for the pods are being tweaked to expose the HDMI and usb ports and network port to the outside of the case. This will allow someone to connect a mouse, keyboard and monitor to the pod and use it as a computer if they would like. The Rafiki Bot is about 1/3 of the way printed. I am making modifications to the models as needed and reprinting some of the parts as needed. There will be 6 subsystems on this robot. 3 of these subsystems have been written and are ready to use. The other 3 subsystems cant be worked on until more of the Rafiki Bot has been printed. The 3 that are not complete are all very similar for motor control. I hope to have these ready in a couple of weeks. I should be able to show a demo of the Rafiki Bot in about a month, and then all of the robot programming starts. I will work on the charger base shortly after the robot has been completed and the pods are all working with all of their functionality.
One more thing on EZ-AI... As a part of this rewrite, you will just need to have Java installed on your computer to install and use EZ-AI. The days of the huge install will be behind us so it should make it far better in the long run. The other thing that this allows is robot platform independence. I will be working on modules in ARC to allow the features of EZ-AI to be accessible far more easily. This will probably not be worked on until December at the earliest.
Okay, going back to my robot cave. Have a great day all.
Thanks Dave. Please do not take my enthusiasm as pushing. I was going to hold off on 17 and 20 anyway because you mentioned there could be modifications.
My only other concern is, are the base hardware (motors, wheels, hubs etc.) finalized. I would like to begin ordering them. I want to budget the cost over time, so I assume the motors would be the most critical part for the base build (fit and finish). I would order them first.
Ron
The electronics (non cochranrobotics pieces) are finalized for sure. The latest published STL files will be the final ones for the base. You will be fine ordering the parts in the instructions for sure and if there are any additional ones (I seriously doubt that there will be) I will post an update.
I wasn't planning on any of the shell until you announced a release. I want to take my time on the base to be sure I get a good fit.
My last request is, upon the finalization of the base assembly instructions, can you give critical dimensions of the base? I just want to be sure the completed section is correct for the shell fit / next assembly. No great detail is needed, just what is important. (you can even use the drawing on page 1 of the instructions)
Ron
One other thing...
I am glad that you are working on the build. It helps to keep me focused on something. There is so much to doing this that it is very easy to get distracted by many different things. By you doing this, it helps to put a priority on some parts that I may have let slide until later.
Thank you Ron!
The cool thing about ABS and the way that the Rafiki DIY is built is that you will have a gap at the back of the bottom of the shell. This is by design because it allows you to fit your printed pieces correctly based on the mm of difference between your 3D printed parts and mine. This allows you to fit your pieces of the shell to your base correctly. Excluding an adjustment by you to your printer settings after the printing process has started, I can see no reason why your parts wouldn't fit well.
ABS allows you to fill any gaps. I use a thick slurry (about the thickness of a milk shake) to fill parts if there are any gaps. I would wear old clothes as this is a messy process for sure, but it sure works well.
I will come up with something that has the dimensions though. I should have it out to you this week.
When building the shell, I use the wing pockets to align one layer to the next. This will help you to be able to align things as you build upward.
Please remember this is a stress free environment ! .... LOL ..... Health first, fun next.
Ron
Hey Ron,
I just finished up the side access panel modifications. Give me a couple of days to get it printed and checked out to make sure things work as designed. I am not sure if I should use a top or bottom magnet at this point though. I dont want to use both as this basically blocks the access panel with supports to hold the access panel. I will let you know how I make out with this. Once this part is complete, I think the shell will be ready to print.
Also, I owe you the layout with measurements. I will work on that soon and publish it with the instruction manual (replacing the top image and all).
Thanks David
Hi Dave, Thanks for the update. Can you glue in a small plate of steel ? , like a small washer, and have the magnets grab that ? then have a tab and pocket for the other side. these tab things can get glued in where needed. I have been looking for alternatives for this type of latching for an unrelated project. Velcro never seems to work real well. Magnets need locator tabs for alignment. I was thinking about using rubber rivets. My last resort will be pins and a dab of automotive clear silicone (Loctite brand) in 3 places. I won't be going inside the case that often (only for problems). The silicone can be removed and re-sealed easily. The brain keeps looking. Regards, Ron