Hardware
The TinMan robot is based on a kit I found from a Chinese company named Robo-Soul. It is called the TK-6A Robot base with a 6-DOF Robot arm. The kit arrived in a timely fashion via post, but arrived with no instructions whatsoever. Also, the pictures on the website did not match the kit, either, so I have basically no guide to putting this thing together, other than trial and error. I will provide an abbreviated version here in the book that will get you through the rough parts. A complete version will be on the website for the book at http://github.com/fgovers/ai_and_robots.
Beginning at the beginning – knolling
The best way to start with a kit this complex, particularly when you don't have instructions, is by knolling. What is knolling, you ask? Knolling is the process of laying out all of the parts in an orderly fashion, all at right angles, so that you can see what you are working with, as demonstrated in the following image:
Knolling was – discovered – by a janitor by the name...
