What this book covers 

Chapter 1, Getting Started with the Raspberry Pi, covers the details of setting up a useful development environment on the Raspberry Pi. The chapter begins with a discussion on how to connect power and continues through setting up a full system that is configured and ready to begin connecting any of the amazing devices and software capabilities to develop advanced robotics applications.

Chapter 2, Building Your Own Futuristic Robot, talks about the amazing things you can do with the Raspberry Pi, such as control a wheeled robot. This chapter will show you how to add a motor control so you can build your very own autonomous mobile robot. Additionally, one of the amazing features of today’s computer system is the ability to input commands and provide output without a screen or keyboard. A few years ago, the concept of a computer that can talk and listen was science fiction, but today it is becoming a standard part of new cell phones. You’ll take a standard toy R2D2 and turn it into a responsive robot.

Chapter 3, Building a Wall-E Robot, talks about another impressive robotic project, which is a robot modeled after Wall-E—a robot with a tracked base and articulating arms. Servos can be controlled using the Raspberry Pi and some additional USB-controlled hardware. Our robot will also use a Microsoft Kinect to not only have vision but depth perception as well.

Chapter 4, Building a Robotic Fish, shows you how to build your very own robot that can swim and show you the world under the water—wouldn’t a swimming robot be cool? 

Chapter 5, Creating a Robotic Hand with the Raspberry Pi, talks about how you have a full toolkit of possibilities now, and how you can use them to build and control a robotic hand that can see and respond to the world around it. In this case, you’ll program your hand to follow the movements of your hand using a webcam.

Chapter 6, A Self-Balancing Robot, discusses the many recent robotic toys that were built on the concept of self-balancing two-wheeled platform. This chapter shows you how to build a robot that can balance and move using only two wheels.

Chapter 7, Adding the Raspberry Pi to a Quadcopter, introduces you to the concept of building a robot that can fly. A robot that can walk, talk, or move is cool, but one that can fly is the ultimate.