OTTO With Wheels is a hybrid robot that combines the friendly, expressive head of the Otto DIY robot with the fast and efficient mobility of a wheeled rover.

Instead of walking with servos, this version uses DC motors (or continuous rotation servos) to move, making it faster, simpler, cheaper, and more beginner-friendly while still keeping Otto’s personality.

This makes it perfect for STEM learning, robotics projects, workshops, and kids’ robotics competitions.

Key Features

1. Wheeled Locomotion

1. 2-wheel drive (left + right) with one caster wheel
2. OR 4-wheel drive using geared motors
3. Powered by:
4. DC gear motors + motor driver (L298N / TB6612FNG)
5. or Continuous rotation servos
6. Quick, smooth, and efficient movement
7. Able to drive forward, backward, turn, rotate in place

2. Otto Head – Interactive Module

Same Otto head as original robot:

1. Ultrasonic sensor for “eyes”
2. Buzzer for sounds
3. LED eyes or LED mouth (optional)
4. Animations & personality built-in

This gives the robot:

1. Cute face
2. Emotional expressions
3. Interaction with users
4. 3. Electronics & Control

Supported controllers:

1. Arduino Nano / Uno
2. ESP32 (for Wi-Fi + Bluetooth)
3. Bluetooth HC-05
4. PCA9685 (optional for servos)

Supported sensors:

1. Ultrasonic HC-SR04
2. IR sensors for line following
3. Light sensor
4. IMU for stabilization
5. Camera module (ESP32-CAM, optional)

4. 3D-Printable Chassis

1. Fully 3D-printed base
2. Mounting points for DC motors or servo wheels
3. Battery compartment
4. Otto head slots directly onto the rover body
5. Customizable design (colors, accessories, panels)

5. Modes of Operation

1. Manual remote control (Bluetooth app)
2. Autonomous obstacle avoidance
3. Line following
4. Dance + drive mode
5. Facial animation + movement
6. Voice-controlled (optional)
7. Web-based Wi-Fi control (ESP32)

6. Extra Add-ons

1. RGB lights under chassis
2. Pan-tilt camera
3. Small robotic arm
4. Speaker for voice output
5. AI vision (ESP32-CAM + MLKit)

Applications

1. School / college robotics project
2. STEM robotics workshops
3. Kids’ coding classes
4. IoT + robotics combination project
5. Fun DIY home robot
6. Autonomous navigation experiments