Hexapod mini maestro servo controller

I am planning on building a hexapod robot. I am going to use an 18 or 24 channel servo controller. I want to know if the mini maestro servo controller is suitable for my project. I want to be able to control the hexapod wirelessy, either by my android phone or a controller. How would I go about interfacing these to the mini maestro?

  • Do I need any other components other then the servo controller and the 18 servos?
  • can the mini maestro be programmed or do i need a microcontroller to be able to control my servos?
  • How much would a microcontroller cost if I need one and how is it connected to the mini maestro?

Thanks in advance guys,

sorry if they are stupid questions but I am kinda new to robotics,
I do however study electronics

Hello.

The Maestro Servo Controllers do not have any built-in wireless capability. If you use a wireless module that supports a TTL serial interface (like a Wixel, XBee, or RN-41 Bluetooth module), you can connect it to the Maestro’s serial port. You might need level-shifters or separate voltage regulators; the Maestro is a 5V system and some wireless modules are 3.3V.

The Maestro has an internal scripting capability that can make it usable as a simple robot controller (like we do with this simple hexapod walker); whether it will be enough for you depends on how much you want to do. If you want your Maestro to be your robot controller, I would recommend getting more channels than you need for servos, so you can use the other channels for additional peripherals.

One potential robot controller you could use along with the Maestro would be the Baby Orangutan; you can see the pricing on our website.

I recommend that you read the Maestro user’s guide, which should give you a better idea about what it is capable of and how to connect it to other devices.

- Ryan

Thanks for the reponse

I checked out the organtuan there, but I would then need to get the usb programmer for it which adds another $20-$30.

Do you think I could get away with controlling it with the mini maestro? I will be getting the 24 channel mini maestro. Do you think it will be able to handle the 18 servos? I read the user guide for it there, so I have a fair idea what it can do.

I may get a bluetooth module for it, I would like to be able to control it with an android phone.
But if that became too expensive, I will control it from the pc.

Let me know what you think,
Thanks