NEW GUIDE: Controlling a Classic Nintendo R.O.B. Robot #CircuitPlaygroundExpress #CircuitPython @NintendoAmerica #Robots
The classic Nintendo Entertainment System debuted in 1985 and became mega-popular. The first round of NES shipments included an interactive robot called the Robotic Operating Buddy, or R.O.B.
R.O.B. could interact in two games – Gyromite and Stacker. It was fun, but without additional game support R.O.B. wasn’t very useful. Nintendo stopped shipping R.O.B. with the NES and R.O.B. units were relegated to the closet or attic.
Today, Adafruit has cracked R.O.B.s control codes via reverse engineering done on atariage.com and some NTSC video know-how. Now ANYONE can control their R.O.B. with some simple LED light codes.
This Tutorial shows you how to build a controller for R.O.B. without taking it apart, needing an NES console, or rewiring. The tutorial uses an Adafruit Circuit Playground Express to flash LED codes to instruct R.O.B. to move his motors.
The CircuitPython code can be used on any Adafruit CircuitPython board with small changes for the LED and is easily ported to other languages. If you want to really hardware hack a R.O.B., the info is in the tutorial as well. The new Adafruit Cricket robotics controller has all the functions you might want in building robotics projects.
The Youtube video above shows using a felt fabric controller with copper tape as capacitive touch pads to control R.O.B. You can rig up your own switching system to build custom controls. Now that R.O.B.’s secrets are out, there is a whole world of possibilities for this classic Nintendo robot!
Do you have some R.O.B. remembrances or are hacking on your own R.O.B.? Let us know in the comments!
Adafruit publishes a wide range of writing and video content, including interviews and reporting on the maker market and the wider technology world. Our standards page is intended as a guide to best practices that Adafruit uses, as well as an outline of the ethical standards Adafruit aspires to. While Adafruit is not an independent journalistic institution, Adafruit strives to be a fair, informative, and positive voice within the community – check it out here: adafruit.com/editorialstandards
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
Python for Microcontrollers — Python on Microcontrollers Newsletter: CircuitPython 8.1.0 and 8.2.0-beta0 out and so much more! #CircuitPython #Python #micropython @ThePSF @Raspberry_Pi
