HERO (Heathkit Educational RObot) is a series of several educational robots sold by Heathkit during the 1980s. The Heath Company began the HERO 1 project in October 1979, with the first release in 1982.[1] Models include the HERO 1, HERO Jr., and HERO 2000. Heathkit supported the HERO robot line until 1995. All three were produced as kits, or for more money, prebuilt by Heathkit. The 1980s models are considered collectors items, due to their rarity.[2] For the most part, they cannot perform practical tasks, but are more geared toward entertainment and education above all.
Votrax SC-01 speech synthesizer[4][5] (Included with Assembled version and $149.95 option for kit)
Input
Hex keypad with 17 keys
Power
Batteries: four 6-volt gel cell Charger: 120/240 VAC, 50/60 Hz charger
Dimensions
20 inches high x 18 inches wide (50 cm x 45 cm)
Mass
39 pounds (18 kg)
HERO 1 is a self-contained mobile robot controlled by an onboard computer with a Motorola 6808 CPU and 4 kB of RAM. The robot features light, sound, and motion detectors as well as a sonar ranging sensor. An optional arm mechanism and speech synthesizer was produced for the kit form and included in the assembled form.[6][7]
HERO 1 is featured on a few episodes of the children's television program Mr. Wizard's World.[12][13]Byte magazine called HERO 1 "a product of extraordinary flexibility and function ... If you are interested in robotics, Heath will show you the way".[14]
A smaller version called HERO Jr. was released later. Heathkit intended it for the home market, and therefore made it less complex, and more self-contained. Like HERO 1, HERO Jr. has a 6808 processor, but only 2 kB of RAM. It has onboard speech synthesis, a Polaroid sonar range sensor, a light sensor, a sound sensor, and an optional infrared sensor. Other optional components include a pair of extra batteries to double the operational time between charges, from an estimated 4 hours to 8 hours. A remote control accessory allows users to drive the robot around. It includes a motion sensor that causes the robot to croak "SOM-THING-MOVE" when it detects a source of motion.
Heathkit released several add-ons to increase the robot's capabilities, including a transmitter to activate a home security system in the event it senses movement while on "guard duty". Also, additional cartridges with programs and games were produced, as well as a components to allow the user to directly program the robot.
The drive mechanism is backward compared to the HERO 1, with the drive and steering wheel in the back of the robot. The head section features an indentation to allow the robot to transport up to 10 pounds (4.5 kg). The robot can speak several phrases from various films that involve robots or computers. It is capable of remembering and repeating back its master's name, singing songs, reciting poems, acting as an alarm clock, and making its own combinations of phonemes to create a robotic gibberish.
The much more powerful HERO 2000 includes several onboard microprocessors, onboard speech synthesis, several sensors, and the ability to add expansion cards using a passive backplane.[20]
Batteries: 2 x 12V 9Ah Lead Acid Battery Charger: SONEIL 12V Intelligent Battery Charger (3A)
Dimensions
Height 21 inches (53 cm)
Mass
25 kg (55 lb)
Website
www.heathkit.com/herobot.html (Historical) at the Wayback Machine
The HE-RObot is the result of a strategic partnership between Heathkit and White Box Robotics, marketed to the educational market. When available, it cost up to US$8,000. Heathkit sold approximately 50 of these robots before bankruptcy in 2012.[22][23][24]
^Whatever Happened To Heathkit?, By Lou Frenzel, Electronic Design, Feb 18, 2009
^Classic Heathkit Electronic Test Equipment, By Jeff Tranter, 2013, Page 12. Some interesting Heathkit facts and trivia: * Heathkit offered one of the first consumer robot kits, the HERO 1. Introduced in 1982, it featured a 6808 microprocessor with four kilobytes of memory and sensors for light, sound and motion. Programs could be stored on cassette tape and a speech synthesizer and robotic arm were available as options. It is now a sought after collector's item.ISBN0992138205
^ abTech Watch, By Cynthia McClean, Page 78, Black Enterprise, Jun 1985, Hero 1 - Kit US$1150 / Assembled US$2149; Hero Jr - Kit US$599.95 / Assembled US$1000
^HERO walks, talks, educates and protects, By David Needle, Page 1 & 4, InfoWorld, 27 Dec 1982, With the aid of its Votrax speech chip...
^ abHero Robot Frequently Asked Questions, Donnie V. Savage Site
^Mark J. Robillard: HERO 1 - Advanced Programming and Interfacing, H.W. Sams 1983. ISBN0-672-22165-9
^ACM (1982). "ANDROTEXT for HERO 1 Editor and Compiler IBM PC". Online Historical Encyclopaedia of Programming Languages, ACM History of Programming Language Conference (HOPL).
^Solem, J. C. (1984). "ANDROTEXT-A high-level language for personal robots". Robotics Age Magazine. 6: 16.
^Fuller, James (1988). ROBOTICS: Introduction, Programming, and Projects. Prentice-Hall.
^Gupta, A. K.; Arora, S. K. (2009). "Industrial Automation and Robotics". (Laxmi Publications): 379. ISBN9788131805923.
^Building A Robot: The Crash Course, By William J. Broad, Published: May 3, 1983, The New York Times
^Robots: Best Educational Platform Ever, Apr 25, 2013 by Lou Frenzel, Communiqué
^Leininger, Steve. "Heath's HERO-1 Robot". BYTE. p. 86. Retrieved 19 October 2013. volume 8 number, 1 January 1983
^HERO Jr, DAMARK International Advert, Page 136, Popular Mechanics, Oct 1987 - Public notice: Heath no longer make factory assembled model. They decided to produce the kit version. So we brought the remaining inventory..., Manufactures recommended price US$1078.85 DAMARK PRICE: US$298
^ abRobot helps at home, Page 25, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Oct 9, 1984
^Electronics Newsfront, By William J. Hawkins, Page 28, Popular Science, Feb 1986
^I believe you are referring to the SSI 263 from Silicon Systems. Steve Ciarcia had a Circuit Cellar article based on it and the Hero 2000 used it for speech. .., Subject:speech chips, Post by Alan Matthew, 23 Nov 1996 04:00:00
^ abProfessor Robot, Page 13, The Rotarian, Jun 1986
^John D. Hubbard, Lawrence P. Larsen: Hero 2000 - Programming and Interfacing, Heathkit/Zenith 1986. ISBN0-87119-153-9
^, BENTON HARBOR, MI, and OTTAWA, CANADA December 12, 2007 White Box Robotics Inc., the leader in PC based general service robots, and Heathkit Company Inc., the leader in Educational Systems, today announced a multi-year strategic agreement under which Heathkit will deploy the White Box Robotics PC-BOT to its clients. As part of the agreement, Heathkit will produce, manufacture and distribute an educational version of the robot to be known as the HE-RObot. More to come shortly..., December 12, 2007, News & Events, White Box Robotics
^HE-RObot: The Next Generation of Heathkit HERO Robots Posted by james on December 26, 2007 at 03:16 PM in Do-It-Yourself, Robots - Retro Thing
^. Archived from the original on January 26, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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HERO Heathkit Educational RObot is a series of several educational robots sold by Heathkit during the 1980s The Heath Company began the HERO 1 project in October 1979 with the first release in 1982 1 Models include the HERO 1 HERO Jr and HERO 2000 Heathkit supported the HERO robot line until 1995 All three were produced as kits or for more money prebuilt by Heathkit The 1980s models are considered collectors items due to their rarity 2 For the most part they cannot perform practical tasks but are more geared toward entertainment and education above all Contents 1 HERO 1 ET 18 2 HERO Jr RT 1 3 HERO 2000 ET 19 4 HE RObot 5 See also 6 References 6 1 Bibliography 7 External links 7 1 General 7 2 HERO 1 ET 18 7 3 HERO Jr RT 1 7 4 HERO 2000 ET 19 HERO 1 ET 18 editHERO 1 ET 18 nbsp HERO 1ManufacturerHeathkitTyperobotRelease date1982 1982 Introductory priceKit 1500 US equivalent to 4 735 86 in 2023 Assembled US 2 500 equivalent to 7 893 1 in 2023 3 Discontinued1995 1995 Units sold14 000 across 8 years MediaAssembly manual user s manual technical manual and speech dictionaryCPUMotorola 6808MemoryRAM 4 kBMonitor ROM 2 kBStorageCompact CassetteDisplaysix 7 segment LEDsSoundVotrax SC 01 speech synthesizer 4 5 Included with Assembled version and 149 95 option for kit InputHex keypad with 17 keysPowerBatteries four 6 volt gel cellCharger 120 240 VAC 50 60 Hz chargerDimensions20 inches high x 18 inches wide 50 cm x 45 cm Mass39 pounds 18 kg HERO 1 is a self contained mobile robot controlled by an onboard computer with a Motorola 6808 CPU and 4 kB of RAM The robot features light sound and motion detectors as well as a sonar ranging sensor An optional arm mechanism and speech synthesizer was produced for the kit form and included in the assembled form 6 7 To make this power available in a simple way high level programming languages were created For example the ANDROTEXT language is a HERO 1 editor and compiler developed in 1982 for the IBM PC 8 9 10 11 HERO 1 is featured on a few episodes of the children s television program Mr Wizard s World 12 13 Byte magazine called HERO 1 a product of extraordinary flexibility and function If you are interested in robotics Heath will show you the way 14 nbsp HERO 1 s control panelHERO Jr RT 1 editHERO Jr RT 1 nbsp Hero Jr with optional remote control ManufacturerHeathkitTyperobotRelease date1984 1984 Introductory priceKit US 599 95 Assembled US 1000 3 DiscontinuedBefore October 1987 1987 10 Assembled 15 1995 Kit Units sold4000 across 8 years CPUMotorola 6808 1 MHzMemoryRAM 2 kB expandable to 24 kBMonitor ROM 32 kBDisplay9 LEDsSoundVotrax SC 01 speech synthesizer 5 InputHex keypad with 17 keysPowerBatteries 6 V 3 8 A h x2 x4 optionalDimensions19 inches 48 cm high 16 Mass21 5 pounds 9 8 kg 16 A smaller version called HERO Jr was released later Heathkit intended it for the home market and therefore made it less complex and more self contained Like HERO 1 HERO Jr has a 6808 processor but only 2 kB of RAM It has onboard speech synthesis a Polaroid sonar range sensor a light sensor a sound sensor and an optional infrared sensor Other optional components include a pair of extra batteries to double the operational time between charges from an estimated 4 hours to 8 hours A remote control accessory allows users to drive the robot around It includes a motion sensor that causes the robot to croak SOM THING MOVE when it detects a source of motion Heathkit released several add ons to increase the robot s capabilities including a transmitter to activate a home security system in the event it senses movement while on guard duty Also additional cartridges with programs and games were produced as well as a components to allow the user to directly program the robot The drive mechanism is backward compared to the HERO 1 with the drive and steering wheel in the back of the robot The head section features an indentation to allow the robot to transport up to 10 pounds 4 5 kg The robot can speak several phrases from various films that involve robots or computers It is capable of remembering and repeating back its master s name singing songs reciting poems acting as an alarm clock and making its own combinations of phonemes to create a robotic gibberish nbsp HERO Jr frontal viewHERO 2000 ET 19 editHERO 2000 ET 19 nbsp HERO 2000ManufacturerHeathkitTyperobotRelease date1986 1986 Introductory priceKit US 3 000 Assembled US 4 500 17 Discontinued1995 1995 Units sold3000 across 8 years CPUIntel 8088 Main 6 slave Z 80 processors 11 with optional arm MemoryRAM 24 kB expandable to 576 kB Monitor ROM 64 kB with integrated BASICDisplay16 head mounted LED status indicators eight are user definable RS 232 serial portSoundSilicon Systems SSI 263 analog formant speech synthesizer 18 Inputhexadecimal keypadRS 232 serial portPowerBattery single 24 amp hour battery Charger 120 VAC charger includedDimensionsHeight 32 inches 81 cm 19 Mass78 pounds 35 kg 19 The much more powerful HERO 2000 includes several onboard microprocessors onboard speech synthesis several sensors and the ability to add expansion cards using a passive backplane 20 HE RObot editHE RObot nbsp HE RObot is a badge engineered version of the 914 PC Bot pictured by White Box Robotics DeveloperWhite Box Robotics 21 ManufacturerHeathkitTyperobotRelease date2007 2007 Introductory priceup to US 8 000Discontinued2012 2012 Units soldapproximately 50Operating systemWindows XP ProCPUIntel Core DuoMemory1 GB DDR2 RAMStorage80 GB 2 in SATA Hard drivePowerBatteries 2 x 12V 9Ah Lead Acid BatteryCharger SONEIL 12V Intelligent Battery Charger 3A DimensionsHeight 21 inches 53 cm Mass25 kg 55 lb Websitewww wbr heathkit wbr com wbr herobot wbr html Historical Archive index at the Wayback Machine The HE RObot is the result of a strategic partnership between Heathkit and White Box Robotics marketed to the educational market When available it cost up to US 8 000 Heathkit sold approximately 50 of these robots before bankruptcy in 2012 22 23 24 See also edit nbsp 1980s portal Topo a programmable robot series for home computers in 1983 1984 R O B a 1985 video game playing toy robot accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System Short Circuit the 1986 sci fi film starring the robot Johnny Five Transformers 1980s in science and technologyReferences edit Whatever Happened To Heathkit By Lou Frenzel Electronic Design Feb 18 2009 Classic Heathkit Electronic Test Equipment By Jeff Tranter 2013 Page 12 Some interesting Heathkit facts and trivia Heathkit offered one of the first consumer robot kits the HERO 1 Introduced in 1982 it featured a 6808 microprocessor with four kilobytes of memory and sensors for light sound and motion Programs could be stored on cassette tape and a speech synthesizer and robotic arm were available as options It is now a sought after collector s item ISBN 0992138205 a b Tech Watch By Cynthia McClean Page 78 Black Enterprise Jun 1985 Hero 1 Kit US 1150 Assembled US 2149 Hero Jr Kit US 599 95 Assembled US 1000 HERO walks talks educates and protects By David Needle Page 1 amp 4 InfoWorld 27 Dec 1982 With the aid of its Votrax speech chip a b Hero Robot Frequently Asked Questions Donnie V Savage Site Mark J Robillard HERO 1 Advanced Programming and Interfacing H W Sams 1983 ISBN 0 672 22165 9 Howard Boyet Hero 1 Advanced Programming Experiments Heathkit Zenith 1984 ISBN 0 87119 036 2 ACM 1982 ANDROTEXT for HERO 1 Editor and Compiler IBM PC Online Historical Encyclopaedia of Programming Languages ACM History of Programming Language Conference HOPL Solem J C 1984 ANDROTEXT A high level language for personal robots Robotics Age Magazine 6 16 Fuller James 1988 ROBOTICS Introduction Programming and Projects Prentice Hall Gupta A K Arora S K 2009 Industrial Automation and Robotics Laxmi Publications 379 ISBN 9788131805923 Building A Robot The Crash Course By William J Broad Published May 3 1983 The New York Times Robots Best Educational Platform Ever Apr 25 2013 by Lou Frenzel Communique Leininger Steve Heath s HERO 1 Robot BYTE p 86 Retrieved 19 October 2013 volume 8 number 1 January 1983 HERO Jr DAMARK International Advert Page 136 Popular Mechanics Oct 1987 Public notice Heath no longer make factory assembled model They decided to produce the kit version So we brought the remaining inventory Manufactures recommended price US 1078 85 DAMARK PRICE US 298 a b Robot helps at home Page 25 Pittsburgh Post Gazette Oct 9 1984 Electronics Newsfront By William J Hawkins Page 28 Popular Science Feb 1986 I believe you are referring to the SSI 263 from Silicon Systems Steve Ciarcia had a Circuit Cellar article based on it and the Hero 2000 used it for speech Subject speech chips Post by Alan Matthew 23 Nov 1996 04 00 00 a b Professor Robot Page 13 The Rotarian Jun 1986 John D Hubbard Lawrence P Larsen Hero 2000 Programming and Interfacing Heathkit Zenith 1986 ISBN 0 87119 153 9 Leading educational systems company and the Grandfather of the Hero Robot to standardize on White Box Robotics PC BOT technology BENTON HARBOR MI and OTTAWA CANADA December 12 2007 White Box Robotics Inc the leader in PC based general service robots and Heathkit Company Inc the leader in Educational Systems today announced a multi year strategic agreement under which Heathkit will deploy the White Box Robotics PC BOT to its clients As part of the agreement Heathkit will produce manufacture and distribute an educational version of the robot to be known as the HE RObot More to come shortly December 12 2007 News amp Events White Box Robotics HE RObot The Next Generation of Heathkit HERO Robots Posted by james on December 26 2007 at 03 16 PM in Do It Yourself Robots Retro Thing Archived copy Archived from the original on January 26 2013 Retrieved March 6 2015 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link 914 PC Bots Community Archived 2015 04 02 at the Wayback Machine Forum Bibliography edit Howard Boyet Heath s robot HERO 68 experiments fundamentals and applications Microprocessor Training 1983 ISBN 9994699709 Mark J Robillard HERO 1 Advanced Programming and Interfacing H W Sams 1983 ISBN 0 672 22165 9 Howard Boyet Hero 1 Advanced Programming Experiments Heathkit Zenith 1984 ISBN 0 87119 036 2 John D Hubbard Lawrence P Larsen Hero 2000 Programming and Interfacing Heathkit Zenith 1986 ISBN 0 87119 153 9External links editGeneral edit Heathkit Robots at Robot Gallery The Hero Robot Web Source Vintage Hero Robots Family Heathkit HERO robot owners user group HERO 1 ET 18 edit Video demonstration of HERO 1 Beginning at 12 30 Heathkit HERO 1 Robots Vintage Heathkit Educational Trainer Robots HERO 1 ET 18 ETW 18 Scan of the original brochure for the Hero 1 HERO Jr RT 1 edit Heathkit Zenith HERO JR Robot on YouTube HERO 2000 ET 19 edit Heathkit Hero 2000 Robots Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title HERO robot amp oldid 1192152961, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
