Additinal Features
The drivetrain needs a full wheel drive upgrade. The complexity of the system directly effects the feasibility of the whole project success. I am building it alone and mostly on weekends. The restrictions do not end there. The very choices made right from the start are there to dictate the future possibilities. I have chosen an Arduino Nano. I do not want to make another RC car that is already outthere in hundreds of variations. Neither I want another typical smart toy that is also available already in several forms. I want to make something simple, but with wider range of use. It should be neither RC, nor too smart. Rather it should respond to direct interaction and be smart enough to do what it is told to do without causing much trouble. What kind of trouble, you ask? Well, it is a toy and as such it is expected to be played by kids of any ages. That means, it should have an animated face that conveys its message appropriately to avoid smaller kids getting scared of "unexpected" motions it performs. Also, any motion must start and end with easing effect. Any rapid motion is unacceptable. Slow to fast, fast to slow within the preset values. I keep thinking of using stepper motors. I may finally end up using steppers, I think
The Face
TFT display is on its way to arrive on the front panel, above the keypad. The display is both to show facial expressions, user input and course replay progress. It will also assist the user according to the current mode and mode.