Home of the Penguin Robot

The Penguin Robot is a product of Parallax, Inc., the pre-eminent vendor of robotics for the professional and the hobbyist. Penguin is a bipedal robot with two directions of freedom, using two servos for a cool waddling walk. This site is dedicated to the little 5" tall fellow. You will find source code to explore the Parallax Basic Stamp processor that is used in the Penguin, as well as a plethora of advanced programming techniques. All of the programs are yours to use and modify. Penguin may be the ideal learning robot due to the simple Parallax BASIC programming language, the simplicity of only two servos to control, and the extreme speed of the Basic Stamp processor.

From the Parallax Web Site:

The Penguin robot is a precision-machined 4" tall biped with an embedded BASIC Stamp 2px24 microcontroller. The Penguin walks forward with a tilt-stride action and turns by sweeping both feet on the ground in opposite directions. This basic biped design works best in the Penguin's small scale. The Penguin's parts have a close-tolerance fit and are designed to make use of precise electronic control. Set aside three hours to assemble a Penguin.

Writing code for the Penguin is quite easy. First, the servo center and tilt/stride limits are set and written to EEPROM using the Penguin-ServoCalibration.bpx program. Subsequent programs use the values stored in EEPROM, making it easy to share Penguin code without having to adjust servo PULSOUT constants in each program.

Sensors are added into the subroutines, and a direction of travel is executed by assigning a value to the WALK variable (forward, back, left or right). Sensors are monitored between walking movements, without the headache of linking walking movements being handled by the rest of the PBASIC program.

The Penguin robot performs best on your desk or other hard surfaces. It is not designed for long-distance adventuring across thick carpet, but a tight, low-pile carpet is an acceptable walking surface. The Penguin's electronics are fully assembled and wired to an assortment of sensors and output devices. Too bad Michael Bay did not include any cute Penguin Transformers in his movies!

Download the Penguin's documentation to learn more about this robot kit.

Penguin Features:

• BS2px24 module chipset
• CNC-machined 6061 aluminum parts available in black, red, blue or nickel
• Hitachi HM55B Digital Compass sensor
• (2) photoresistors for light following/avoidance
• (2) infrared emitters and an infrared receiver for object detection or remote control using the Parallax infrared remote control
• Blue seven-segment LED for feedback
• (2) micro servos for tilt and stride
• Piezospeaker in body underneath battery pack
• Expansion port for the Ping))) Ultrasonic Sensor, Parallax RF Modules or other input/output components
• Power switch located adjacent to battery pack
• FTDI 232RL mini USB programming port
• (2) CR123 batteries for 6V power supply (included)
• Blue power indicator LED

What's new: Humanoid Toddler Robot

Morph your Toddler robot into a Humanoid with this Humanoid Toddler (HT) kit.

It gives a full human-like body to the original two walking legs.

This is a modified version of the original Toddler Robot kit from a Parallax. Humanoid Toddler started out as just a pair of legs - a biped walking robot. It has one of the most simple walking mechanisms with only 2 servos, and is ideal for this conversion. This version is powered by extra AA batteries placed in the legs and added Parallax USB servo controller. Other versions, not shown here, used various incarnations of the Basic Stamp microcontroller and software code written in PBASIC to drive a Parallax Serial Servo Controller board.

Penguin Robot Society

(PRS) is a society of robot enthusiasts who share ideas, projects and information about the Parallax Penguin Robot. To become a member, make friends with similar interests, or for more information, contact humanoido at penguin(dot)robot(at)yahoo(dot)com.