Smart Motor Control for Your Smart Phone

The Moti Kickstarter brings smart motors with Arduino capability to the robotics community. Your smart phone can control the motors with intuitive multi-function programming capability.

The Moti Kickstarter has developed motors controlled by your smart phone. But the motors are smart servos with Arduino microcontroller compatibility.

The motors spin continuously and give precision position feedback with sensors for current, voltage and temperature. Expansion pins for additional sensors and shields are included, along with Bluetooth capability.

The application programming interface is featured in the video, the software is open source for developers to share their projects and innovations. Preliminary characteristics are for the motors to run between six and nine volts, with two amps peak current, and producing 12kg-cm torque at six volts.


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/438051715/moti-smart-motors-for-everyday-robotics

One of the project’s long term goals is to bring accessibility to robotics and programming. The video shows children programming and operating a two wheeled robot, and the building block programming language feels similar to the Lego Mindstorm software. Speed, direction, and duration can be controlled with the application interface. Motors can be linked to run together or opposite each other for tank tread movement.

The Kickstarter clip displays many different applications for the Moti system. Blinds are remotely opened and closed, a camera moves back and forth on a dolly, and a turntable is used to scratch a record – all remotely from a smart phone app. Children are shown interfacing with different Moti applications at the World Maker Faire. The Kickstarter site has a running list of new projects as they are developed.

A highlight is a 3d printed robotic arm run by three smart motors. Nick Stedman also tells us that different cases and body styles can be 3d printed for varied robot forms and functions.


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/438051715/moti-smart-motors-for-everyday-robotics

The Moti project looks amazing and plans exist to upgrade hardware, expand the current software and develop a strong maker community around the product. With all of these things going for the campaign, there is a disappointingly low level of funding with around a week left in the pledge round.