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WATCH ROBOHEART IN ACTION WITH AUGMENTED REALITY

For makers of all skill levels

Introducing RoboHeart: the best electronics kit for makers of all skill levels. Whether this is your first time tinkering, or you are an experienced Maker, RoboHeart’s ground-breaking technology is a gateway to your creativity. Our board is able to incorporate connectivity, control and augmented reality into your projects… all controlled with the convenience of your smartphone.

Our open-source Arduino library will be available on our Github repository. It will provide you with cool things to modify with RoboHeart, including motor edits, IMU support, a Self-Balancing Bot and more!

ROBOHEART HERCULES

RoboHeart HERCULES is a microcontroller board based on the ESP32 with exciting features! It gives you the opportunity to build innovative projects involving Wifi, BLE and even augmented reality(!) using only your smartphone for exceptional control.

FEATURING HERCULEAN STRENGTH:

ESP32-WROOM32

High performance, dual-core Espressif microcontroller with BLE and Wi-Fi connectivity. Arduino IDE compatible.

Motor Power

Reliable and precise control of up to three DC motors with the DRV8836 drivers from Texas Instruments.

Inertial Measurement Unit

Famous MPU6050 IMU from TDK Invensense with an integrated motion processor.

Battery dual-power

Battery jack for a single cell LiPo battery for portable applications and to get additional power while connected to the serial monitor of your PC.

HERCULES FAQ

How much computing power can I expect?

RoboHeart incorporates the ESP32 which is a very powerful microcontroller. It has 2 cores with a clock frequency of up to 240 MHz and a performance of up to 600 DMIPS.

How does RoboHeart connect to my smartphone or tablet?

You are free to choose between Bluetooth and WiFi. The versatility of the ESP32 allows you to pick Bluetooth Low Energy for example, a power saving wireless communication protocol with a relatively low data rate (around 1Mbit/s). Or you pick WiFi as your preferred means of communication, which is more power hungry but allows higher data rates up to 150 Mbit/s.

How many motors can RoboHeart control?

The setup is even easier than setting up your Bluetooth headphones! We provide access to a web-based platform. RoboHeart can drive up to three motors for all of your robotic needs.

Does RoboHeart have sensors?

Yes! The famous MPU6050 is integrated on board. You can include RoboHeart into anything that moves, and you will get motion data from it. You will feel like a pilot getting not only acceleration data but also orientation data in all three axes (roll, pitch, yaw). You don’t have to fiddle with MPU-extension boards. Power the RoboHeart on, and your motion sensor is already setup.

Is open source code available?

We are currently working on OpenSource code which you can use out of the box, or customize yourself, or work with others on our Github platform to fit your project. We will provide an Arduino library with examples for the RoboHeart and an Android app for the smartphone.

Is RoboHeart compatible with Arduino?

Of course! There are plenty of tutorials out there on how to use the ESP32 with Arduino.

We are working on the integration of our library into the Arduino Core.

Can RoboHeart be battery-powered?

Yes. Attach a Lipo/Li-Ion battery to the RoboHeart to provide your robot with power when you are away from a power source.

What if I need additional battery power?

When you program/debug your robot at the PC, your USB connection may still not have enough power, so you can never see the serial output on your PC when your robot is actually moving and performing tasks. Our RoboHeart provides a solution for that: with an additional battery you can have dual power: battery+USB, allowing you to still receive all serial messages on PC while your robot is at full performance.

You can use the dual power to connect a power bank as well, which will increase the lifetime of your robot until the next recharge significantly.

How do I connect RoboHeart to my computer?

You can use any of your old (or new) micro-USB-C cables to program and power the RoboHeart. It has an integrated USB-UART-converter , so you just plug in the USB and press ‘upload’ in the Arduino IDE.

Can I connect to additional boards or computers?

Yes. We provide all common serial interfaces and plenty of GPIOs with popular grove connectors and classic pin headers.

TECH SPECS

Microcontroller

ESP32-WROOM32

Microprocessor

Tensilica Xtensa 32-bit LX6

Cores

2

Clock frequency

240 MHz

Wireless connectivity

WiFi: 802.11 b/g/n

Bluetooth: v4.2 and Bluetooth Low Energy

Memory

Flash: 4 Mb

ROM: 448 KiB

SRAM: 520 KiB

RTC fast SRAM: 8 KiB

RTC slow SRAM: 8 KiB

Operating system

freeRTOS with LwIP

Security

Cryptographic hardware acceleration

Flash encryption

Motor driver

2 x DRV8836

External motors

Up to 4 DC brushed motors


Max current per motor

1.5 A

6 axis Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)

MPU6050

Digital Motion Processor with MotionFusionᵀᴹ

Provides roll, pitch, yaw angles and quaternions in real time

Accelerometer

3 axes; ±2g – ±16g

Gyroscope

3 axes; ±250 – ±2000 °/sec

Communication

I2C

Groove connector

SPI

Pinheader 2.54 mm

UART

Groove connector

JTAG

Samtec 1.27 mm

G

22 Pinheader 2.54 mm

Sensor input pins

4 Pinheader 2.54 mm

USB connector

Micro USB-C

Serial communication with ESP32
Battery charging

Power

USB input

5 V

1.5 A max

I/O JST-XH plug for single-cell LiPo batteries

3.0-4.2 V
3 A max

Dynamic power path management

Charge mode

Battery can be charged via micro USB while RoboHeart is operating

Supplement mode

Battery supplies additional power if the USB input is insufficient

Portable mode

RoboHeart can run on battery only

Battery mode

Charging

5 V / 0.2 A (max)

Discharging

4.2-3.0 V / 3 A (max)

Dimensions

Width

60.0 mm

Length

60.0 mm

ROBOHEART VELA

RoboHeart VELA unlocks an unlimited communication range for your RoboHeart, using mobile connectivity in addition to the standard BLE, WiFi and 5G! It offers maximum data security through a dedicated mobile VPN network, and fits seamlessly onto RoboHeart HERCULES. An integrated eSIM means that you don’t have to worry about phone numbers, registration or PINs…

Sail away with Vela’s Features:

Integrated eSIM

Integrated SIM chip pre-programmed to offer you enterprise-grade mobile connectivity without worrying about setup.

Tingg.io

Compatible with the fast and easy tingg.io data platform for visualizing IoT data.

Data Security

Custom mobile VPN for maximum data protection.

Seamless Compatibility

Easy 8-pin connection to the RoboHeart Hercules host board provides Vela with power and communication.

VELA FAQ

Why do I need mobile connectivity when I already have WiFi and BLE?

With three types of mobile connectivity – including 5G, WiFi and BLE, you can take your robot inside, outside… pretty much anywhere!

Do I need an extra SIM card for this?

Not at all! You also don’t need to take out the SIM card from your smartphone (you’ll need that to tell your friends about your amazing experiences with your RoboHeart!). The Vela board comes with an integrated eSIM. This is a SIM-chip which is directly soldered on the board… so no going to a mobile phone store and filling out tedious forms with personal info.

How do I set up my mobile network to control my robot?

The setup is even easier than setting up your Bluetooth headphones! We provide access to a web based platform called tingg.io. This is a very easy-to-use graphical interface, which you can use to visualise your data. Once you connect your RoboHeart to the computer and start the program, you can already use the mobile data. The connectivity provider will have everything already set up for you.

You can check out tingg.io right now to see more! You can try it out not only with mobile data, but also with MQTT based applications.

Is there a monthly subscription?

The service of tingg.io is absolutely free, with absolutely no hidden costs. You will get a prepaid data plan with every RoboHeart Vela extension board you buy. If you need additional data, you can buy a data package at your convenience as needed.

Is My connection secure?

Yes, you will get enterprise-grade security. We will provide a dedicated APN (Access Point Name) for all the RoboHearts globally (this is a service which is usually reserved for big companies). RoboHeart Vela comes with a secure VPN (virtual private network) connection just for you. Your robot’s communication will be more secure than your internet at home!

Can I use my own nano-SIM?

Sometimes users will want to use a SIM card from a previous project, or want to put an old SIM to good use. However, with a custom SIM you will not have all the awesome features mentioned above… but we don’t want to hold back your creativity! We provide a nano-SIM holder that you can easily integrate into your project.

Tech Specs

Mobile communication

SIM800C

Frequency

850/900 MHz

Data rate

GPRS class 12: 85.6 kbps (downlink/uplink)

Power

Input

4.4 – 3.0 V / 2A

Pins

UART

5 pins

Power

3 pins

SIM

eSIM

On-board

Nano-SIM-holder

User specific

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THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS…

Replace the PCB to control your RC car with your smartphone.
Anything with a circuit board can benefit from RoboHeart!
Customise your RoboHeart to suit your needs.