Meet TJ* and his creator, Jeff, in their KickStarter video!
|
|
What the internet's been saying about TJ*:
"A TIRED VENTRILOQUIST ACT GETS A WATERSHED OVERHAUL THROUGH MAKER TECHNOLOGY.
...Kessler has created what may be the first open-source robotic expression platform. "
- Mark Wilson, FastCoDesign.com
"Engineering student Jeff Kessler learned his robotic chops in Stanford classes, and found financial support for his robotic puppet from strangers online."
- Steve Fyffe, Stanford News (with exclusive video)!
"At one time or another, probably just about every little boy has dreamed of having his own version of C-3PO or Robby the Robot. Well, while affordable close-to-human-sized toy robots are still not a reality, TJ* at least offers up the most expressive part of one - the head."
- Ben Coxley, Gizmag.com
"The Robots are Coming and TJ* is Leading the Way"
- Tevami.com
"I am re-writing my Christmas list and including this little guy"
- How's Your Robot
"A tinkering platform for budding programmers and digital artists"
- Designboom.com
...Kessler has created what may be the first open-source robotic expression platform. "
- Mark Wilson, FastCoDesign.com
"Engineering student Jeff Kessler learned his robotic chops in Stanford classes, and found financial support for his robotic puppet from strangers online."
- Steve Fyffe, Stanford News (with exclusive video)!
"At one time or another, probably just about every little boy has dreamed of having his own version of C-3PO or Robby the Robot. Well, while affordable close-to-human-sized toy robots are still not a reality, TJ* at least offers up the most expressive part of one - the head."
- Ben Coxley, Gizmag.com
"The Robots are Coming and TJ* is Leading the Way"
- Tevami.com
"I am re-writing my Christmas list and including this little guy"
- How's Your Robot
"A tinkering platform for budding programmers and digital artists"
- Designboom.com
What is TJ*?
TJ* is an affordable, customizable (I daresay hackable) robot puppet!
- He's a remote-control toy for creative kids,
- He's a tinkering platform for electronics hackers,
- He's an education tool for tech-savvy parents and educators.
TJ* is about 3/5 the size of a human head, and he’s made of fiberboard (also available in colored plastic). His eyes move up/down and left/right, and his mouth moves open/closed. His moving parts are driven by 3 micro servos (tiny motors with position control circuits built in).
So... is he a fully functioning robot?
_At his core, TJ* is a mechanical platfom with servos ready for
electronic integration. He needs a servo controller to run! I’ve developed
a controller using Arduino, the open-source microcontroller platform, but you can make your own, too.
A Complete TJ* Kit will ship with a brand-new Arduino Uno pre-loaded with code to run TJ* with the included puppeteer’s controller for his eyes and mouth.
If you’re interested in servo robotics, or if you already have an Arduino or other servo controller of your own, I’m happy to ship you an Electronics Maker’s TJ* Kit so you can start controlling him yourself!
A Complete TJ* Kit will ship with a brand-new Arduino Uno pre-loaded with code to run TJ* with the included puppeteer’s controller for his eyes and mouth.
If you’re interested in servo robotics, or if you already have an Arduino or other servo controller of your own, I’m happy to ship you an Electronics Maker’s TJ* Kit so you can start controlling him yourself!
What can TJ* do?
_TJ* is a very talented performer - or at least he will be, in your
hands! You can dress him up as much as you'd like, and record TJ*
mouthing out monologues from your favorite movies, have him sit on top
of your cookie jar and keep an eye out... or he can keep you company at
work.
If you don't want at TJ* of your own, you can watch him on TV... and by TV I mean YouTube, where he's hoping to have a channel someday soon.
If you don't want at TJ* of your own, you can watch him on TV... and by TV I mean YouTube, where he's hoping to have a channel someday soon.
Sounds like my kids would like TJ*!
_
I bet you're right! If you like toys and technology, TJ* is for you.
Not only can you and your child decorate TJ* together, but you can show
your child how cool technology can be. Use TJ* as a tech puppet and
your child is all set to create a story with TJ*. As your child grows
older, you can introduce your child to the world of software tech by
developing TJ*s programming together and have fun getting TJ* to do new
and different things.
Cool. How about some sweet upgrades?
Absolutely! See the Pricing Guide page for options.