Sep 29, 2015 | By Alec

It’s rather ironic that 3D printing is often seen as a key educational tool for future generations, while the fast majority of 3D printed toys hardly interest the kids of today. That’s exactly why we are very intrigued by a particularly successful ongoing Kickstarter campaign for an educational toy. Called Cannybot, this is a British-made concept for smart racing cars for children that will help them understand the basics of programming and 3D modeling. It is also remarkably successful, having reached its crowdfunding goal of $40,000 almost immediately.

These interesting cars have grown out of the sad truth that many parents will have doubtlessly noticed: children are more interested in smartphones and tablets than in the toys we used to love ourselves. But instead of forbidding them, Cannybot has been developed to bring classic toys like racing cars together with smartphones, and make it all very educational and fun at the same time.

It was originally conceived by British roboticist Anish Mampetta, who quickly gathered a team of specialists and academics around the concept. As explained on the company’s website, Anish was particularly worried about the smartphone addiction of his child and of many others around. ‘The thought was quite upsetting to Anish as a new dad. 9 out of 10 kids in the developed world have access to a smart devices and they can spend up to four hours a day on it. Thinking about the root cause of the problem he realized that the toys we have today are not engaging enough compared to the digital media accessible through tablets,’ they write. ‘So he set out to reinvent toys with the help of his maker friend Wayne. Over the past 18 months, through countless prototypes, kindness of many talented individuals and an Innovation Grant from the UK government, they created Cannybots.’

So how exactly are Cannybots different from regular toys? Well, on the outside they are regular toys – they assemble like legos, their exteriors can be customized and they can be raced like slot cars with a smartphone or tablet acting as controller. ‘Cannybots are smart toy robots that encourage children to play and spend time together, rather than spending their days in front of screens playing virtual games online,’ the developers write.

But at the same time, Cannybots teaches kids about robotics, programming, design and 3D printing. The Cannybot comes in a kit that needs to be assembled and programmed by hand, though this has been simplified to such a great extent that any kid used to a smartphone can do it. ‘Going through the building process gives kids the hands-on experience of building a functional robot that they can also program,’ Anish Mampetta says. ‘Programming is an essential skill today but it is not easy to get kids started. We are allowing kids to do this in a fun, interactive and rewarding way.’

Key in that educational process is programming App CannyTalk, which has been developed in collaboration with Cambridge University’s Computer Science department. ‘The app uses a syntax-free programming environment that works like a friendly chat tool. Using the app anyone can program the Cannybot using plain English. The children use programming to solve puzzles, control Cannybots on race tracks, and create new game play styles,’ says Mampetta.

The result is a fun toy that can be used for a variety of games and scenarios. Among the options are racing on tracks, sumo wrestling, jousting, maze solving and other puzzles. ‘There is a dedicated phone app and track design for each game play. Customer can print the tracks at home or use the large format tracks that we supply. It is also possible to make a large track by printing segments of A4 sheets. The bots work by following black lines and colored mark printed on the track,’ the team writes.

The agile cars are also quick. The default motors included in the building kit can go 1.2 meters per second on a straight line. And as sensors enable the car to either accurately follow lines or be driven free-style, there are plenty of options to keep children entertained. 'It’s an interactive, social experience that brings friends and family together,’ Manpetta says.

What’s more, there are also plenty of options for customization through 3D printing. While the kit cars are injection molded, Cannybots are also designed to be open source and 3D printable, and easily customizable through free browser-based Autodesk CAD software – perfect for enabling children to get to grips with the basic concepts of 3D printing. ‘We think Kids should understand the fundamentals of this revolutionary digital manufacturing technique. That is why we made Cannybots 3D printable. You can download the Cannybot design for free and print it using any ordinary home 3D printer. The 3D printed shells are lighter in weight than the injection molded shell that comes with the kit, actually making it faster on the track,’ the developers say.

The initial version of the Cannybot has already been implemented in over 20 schools in Britain and Europe, where the response from science teachers and children have been fantastic. Cannybots is therefore eying an international release of these educational robots, and their Kickstarter campaign has already gathered more than enough funds to make that a reality. However, you can still jump on board for a few weeks. Early bird options were as low as $89, but you will have to pay a bit more after an overwhelming initial response. A kit will contain all the parts necessary to build a cool robot with your kids, including the motors and sensors. You can check out the Kickstarter campaign here.

 

 

 

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