Make: Magazine, Volume 99

Make: Volume 99 - Get on Board / AI Playground

In Make: Volume 99, we look at what’s hot in the world of microcontrollers and single board computers! We dive into diverse new offerings of ESP32 boards from Espressif with more specs to suit your project needs. Arduino’s new Ventuno Q is a powerhouse that combines a linux board with a microcontroller — see how early adopters are using it, learn to program its dual brains with the new App Lab IDE, and more. Plus, the 60+ boards featured in this year’s Make: Guide to Boards have more power, capabilities, and quirks than ever.

Then, take a deep dive into AI robotics with Star Wars’ adorable walking duck droids! Makers have reverse engineered how these BDX droids work — you can build your own and train it with reinforcement learning simulations. And we get the inside scoop from original BDX designers Pollen Robotics.

Plus, 23+ projects:

• Waddle to a galaxy far, far away with your own Star Wars BDX duck droid using an Arduino Uno Q
• Eliminate distractions and focus on writing with a simple ESP32-powered writer deck
• Build a light-inverting solar circuit that’s fired by shadows for art, music, and more
• Direct from ILM, 3D print a real prop control panel from Star Wars Andor to control whatever you want!
• Use a clever hack to get HDMI video out of your DJI consumer drone
• Paint (almost) every color of the rainbow with a real-time spray paint mixer
• And much more!