https://robotechjournal.com Practical guides on robotics, AI, and autonomous systems for builders and engineers. en-us Wed, 20 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://robotechjournal.com/favicon-source.png https://robotechjournal.com https://robotechjournal.com/posts/train-custom-object-detection/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/train-custom-object-detection/ A practical guide to collecting training data, labeling images, fine-tuning a detection model, and deploying it to a robot's edge hardware. Wed, 20 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-jetson-boards-2026/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-jetson-boards-2026/ A guide to NVIDIA's current Jetson lineup — Orin Nano, Orin NX, and AGX Orin — and which board fits which kind of edge AI robotics project. Wed, 13 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ultrasonic-obstacle-avoidance-beginner/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ultrasonic-obstacle-avoidance-beginner/ A beginner obstacle-avoidance robot using a single HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor and an Arduino — the stepping stone between a line follower and a full LiDAR build. Wed, 06 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Build Guides https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ros2-for-beginners/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ros2-for-beginners/ A gentle introduction to ROS 2 concepts, installation, and getting a first publisher/subscriber project running before diving into Nav2 and SLAM. Wed, 29 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics https://robotechjournal.com/posts/lidar-vs-depth-cameras/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/lidar-vs-depth-cameras/ A comparison of 2D LiDAR and depth cameras (like the OAK-D) for robot spatial awareness, covering accuracy, cost, SLAM support, and use-case fit. Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/voice-controlled-robot-esp32/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/voice-controlled-robot-esp32/ A step-by-step guide to building a wheeled robot that responds to spoken commands using an ESP32, an I2S microphone, and a cloud speech-to-text API. Wed, 15 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Build Guides https://robotechjournal.com/posts/top-robot-arm-kits-2026/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/top-robot-arm-kits-2026/ A skill-level breakdown of the best robot arm kits in 2026, from beginner acrylic kits to ROS 2-ready 6-DOF arms. Wed, 08 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics https://robotechjournal.com/posts/esp32-vs-arduino-vs-raspberry-pi/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/esp32-vs-arduino-vs-raspberry-pi/ A practical comparison of Arduino, ESP32, and Raspberry Pi — and how to pick the right brain for your robot build. Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics https://robotechjournal.com/posts/obstacle-avoidance-robot/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/obstacle-avoidance-robot/ An intermediate guide to building an autonomous navigating robot using ROS 2, a 2D LiDAR, and the Nav2 stack. Sun, 15 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Build Guides https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-ai-cameras-2026/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-ai-cameras-2026/ Comparing the OAK-D, OpenMV, and Jetson-compatible cameras for embedded computer vision tasks. Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/line-following-robot-build/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/line-following-robot-build/ A practical, step-by-step engineering guide to building a PID-controlled line following robot. Fri, 20 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Build Guides https://robotechjournal.com/posts/slam-explained/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/slam-explained/ A technical breakdown of Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithms and hardware requirements. Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-robotics-kits-2026/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-robotics-kits-2026/ A roundup of the top 5 robotics starter kits for beginners, focusing on educational value and hardware quality. Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ai-for-robotics/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/ai-for-robotics/ An overview of how AI and machine learning are applied in modern robotics, from perception to path planning. Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000 AI & Vision https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-microcontrollers-robotics/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/best-microcontrollers-robotics/ Comparing Arduino Uno, Raspberry Pi, ESP32, and STM32 for different robotics applications. Sun, 18 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics https://robotechjournal.com/posts/robotics-101/ https://robotechjournal.com/posts/robotics-101/ A comprehensive introduction to robotics, covering sensing, actuation, computation, power, and getting started. Sat, 10 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Robotics