Wiki: Microbit

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BBC micro:bit board#

The micro:bit board

From the micro:bit page on Wikipedia:

The Micro Bit (also referred to as BBC Micro Bit, stylized as micro:bit) is an open source hardware ARM-based embedded system designed by the BBC

for use in computer education in the UK.

The device is described as half the size of a credit card and has an ARM Cortex-M0 processor, accelerometer and magnetometer sensors, Bluetooth and USB connectivity, a display consisting of 25 LEDs, two programmable buttons, and can be powered by either USB or an external battery pack. The device inputs and outputs are through five ring connectors that form part of a larger 25-pin edge connector.

The micro:bit can be programmed in Microsoft MakeCode (a graphical language), Python, and Scratch.

The micro:bit is available from many vendors, and it clearly makes sense to shop for the best value (and the best value based on currency). Some options:

micro:bit £13.50 from Pimoroni
BBC micro:bit US$14.95 from Adafruit
BBC micro:bit Go Bundle US$17.50 (with USB cable, battery pack and 2x batteries) also from Adafruit
BBC Micro:Bit in Gift Box (Microbit) £11.75 from 4Tronix

Available micro:bit Robots#

Generally, unless stated otherwise the micro:bit board is not included with the robot kits.

M.A.R.S. Rover Robot for Microbit or Pi Zero#

The M.A.R.S. Rover (click to enlarge)

M.A.R.S. Rover Robot for Microbit or Pi Zero £100.00

The 4tronix M.A.R.S. Rover is loosely based on the Curiosity and Mars 2020 rovers from NASA/JPL. It uses the same rocker arm, bogey and differential arm mechanism.

This is by far the most complicated micro:bit based robot available, and is certainly not an entry-level robot. This uses six micro metal gear motors and four servos.

It's included in the list here so you can see that a micro:bit robot need not be limited by any notion of the simplicity of its controller. You can purchase the rover for use with a Raspberry Pi Zero or a micro:bit (not included).

Waveshare Alphabot#

The Waveshare AlphaBot2 (click to enlarge)

Waveshare AlphaBot2 2WD Platform Kit for BBC micro:bit US$63.99

The Waveshare AlphaBot2 2WD Platform Kit for BBC micro:bit (no micro:bit) is designed to use with the BBC micro:bit. It features rich common robot functions including line tracking, infrared obstacle avoiding, ultrasonic ranging, Bluetooth/2.4G remote control, etc.

This robot is not as pretty as some of the others (no rainbow flashing LEDs) but is probably one of the more advanced, durable and better-designed of the micro:bit robots.

Bit:Bot#

Bit:Bot

4Tronix Bit:Bot £39.90

This (almost) ready-assembled robot requires no soldering, no wires and nothing more than a screwdriver to complete it. The Bit:Bot fully engages children and adults alike, allowing you to explore and code the micro:bit using any of the languages available (not all features are supported in all languages).

It appears the Bit:Bot may be replaced by the Bit:Bot XL, as the former no longer appears on the 4Tronix website (though it is still available from some vendors).

Bit:Bot XL#

Bit:Bot XL

4tronix Bit:Bot XL Robot for BBC Micro:Bit £35.00

Introducing BitBot XL, taking the much-loved BitBot to the next level. We have made several changes, some subtle, some not so subtle, to give a much-improved experience of using and working with the BitBot. The Microsoft Makecode Extension for Bit:Bot also works for BitBot XL. It can automatically detect while running which version you have, or you can force it to be the Classic BitBot or the new XL.

MiniBit#

minibit

Minibit Robot for BBC Micro:Bit £20.80

The Minibit is the younger sibling of the popular and well-loved Bit:Bot. It comes ready-built (wheels need pushing on).

A Makecode extension is available. Blocks available for driving the motors, LEDs and optional ultrasonic sensor and line follower module as well as the other plugin breakouts.

:MOVE Mini#

:MOVE Mini MK2

:MOVE mini MK2 buggy kit £27.60

The Kitronik :MOVE mini MK 2 buggy robot kit for the BBC micro:bit is the latest version of the ever popular :MOVE mini that provides a fun introduction to robotics.

Robot:bit MK3#

Robot:bit MK3

Robo:Bit Mk3 Buggy for the BBC Micro:Bit (v 1.3) £32.00

Version 1.3 of this popular kit now uses a removable ultrasonic sensor, that uses the same connector as used on the Minibit and BitBot XL. This allows the use of alternative addons, sich as the new BitFace, 5x5 FireLed Matrix and OLED.

Maqueen Lite#

Macqueen Lite

micro: Maqueen Lite-micro:bit Educational Programming Robot Platform $24.90, with micro:bit based Gamepad (and 2x micro:bit): US$82.50

Maqueen is a graphical programming robot for STEM education, which inherits playability and simple operation of micro:bit.

Maqueen is accessible to the Mind+ Programming platform now. Mind+ is a Scratch3.0-based graphical programming platform from DFRobot, supporting python, Arduino and other programming platforms. At present, Mind+ has been applied to all kinds of sensors, modules and related educational products.

Adafruit CRICKET for micro:bit#

Adafruit CRICKET for micro:bit (click to enlarge)

Adafruit CRICKIT for micro:bit US$29.95

This isn't a robot in itself, but provides a powerful platform for building your own robot. You would choose your own chassis, motors (e.g., micro metal gear motors) and wheels.

Plug your micro:bit into the 40 pin edge connector and start controlling motors, servos, solenoids. You also get signal pins, capacitive touch sensors, a NeoPixel driver and amplified speaker output. It complements & extends micro:bit so you can still use all the goodies on the micro:bit, but now you have a robotics playground as well.

This is similar to the Adafruit Crickit used on the KC01 robot (which uses a Raspberry Pi rather than a micro:bit).

Related Products#

Kitronik ZIP Halo HD for micro:bit#

Kiktronic Halo

Kitronik ZIP Halo HD for micro:bit £25.80

Not a robot at all, the Kitronik Halo HD board for the micro:bit incorporates 60 individually addressable full colour ZIP LEDs, a MEMS mic, piezo buzzer, RTC and onboard battery holder!

Ultrasonic Sensor Module#

Ultrasonic Sensor Module

Ultrasonic Distance Sensor Breakout £3.95

This breakout is a simple and robust way to add ultrasonic distance sensing to your robot. Supported on BitBot XL, Pi2Go Mk2, Pi-Bug (v1.1 and later), Minibit and other 4tronix robots released from July 2019 onwards (including the Robobit Mk3, v1.3 onwards).

Available in standard and tall versions. The Tall version is intended for the BitBot XL with a Talon attachment. We recommend using the standard version for all other use cases.

BitFace Robot Face Breakout#

Bit:Face

BitFace Robot Face Breakout £6.25

This breakout is designed to fit on BitBot XL, MiniBit and the latest (v1.3) version of Robobit Mk3. Brighten up your robot, animate its personality and provide status indications!

(Note that you can't use a BitFace and an Ultrasonic sensor at the same time, as they both plugin into the same socket.)

References#

Tags: microbit