Project Plan

My plan is to build a crude end-to-end Godfrey and iterate over time to make him better. Designing and building the crude version will supply valuable real-world insights on Godfrey's actual requirements. This will help me limit wasted time and money on unnecessary and expensive features (although Godfrey does deserve the best).

Phase I

Phase I will build a simple robot that meets Godfrey's basic requirements and has all the hardware and software functioning together in one system.

The overall hardware architecture will have a power train based on a two-wheel, Segway-like, balancing design controlled by an Arduino processor. The face will be constructed using standard RC-servos and controlled by another Arduino. Godfrey will have movable eyes, eyelids, eyebrows, and ears.

A PandaBoard will provide higher level intelligence and control. It will be connected to the Arduinos through serial ports. I am hoping that a single Pandaboard will have enough computational power to support speech recognition, natural language processing, and run the reactive planner. How Godfrey will sense the environment for navigation and collision avoidance has not been decided. This version will have no docking port.

The Phase I construction techniques will be wood, wood screws, hot glue, duct tape, etc. Simple and cheap rules the day.

Phase II

Phase II will take the learnings from Phase I and make Godfrey more realistic in all dimensions. This means making an artistically interesting the body and face. It will also require upgrades to the software components. The motor train will be a Ballbot design. This version will have a docking port and the necessary hardware and software to find, dock and charge itself.

This phase will explore building custom parts and frames using specifically designed PC boards, 3D printing, CNC, laser cutting, etc.