Pandemic time hit and I pulled out my NXT kit and original BrickPi from 2013 along with a 256MB pi, camera, wifi dongle and all those goodies out of a box in my basement.
I’ve never used any of it, sadly.
I’ve got a cousin that is about 15 now and he is in a robotics club and I asked if he would be interested in this kit to keep working honing some of his skills in this time of isolation from his team and their projects. Also, I’d love to see it work.
Which brings me to my point - using an original Pi because I already have it in the box seems like a great way to spend a lot of time waiting and not a lot of time experimenting and learning. What is the fastest Pi that will work with this original Brickpi? Having not paid attention for the last 7 or so years, it appears there was at least a BrickPi+ before the current iteration.
Research shows that at least the Pi2 would work and still be a huge upgrade (I found a blog post referencing this support), but having it work with the Pi3 - even an earlier rev - would be a game changer due to performance, onboard everything and software support outside of DexterIndustries. I’d like to equip him with this knowledge before shipping this out.
I still have mine from the kickstarter too, from before I got hired
I believe all Pis will work but not all Pi/OS combinations. For example, if you have a Pi4 you cannot use the SD card that you had in 2013. You will have to upgrade.
Running a Pi4 is going to (hopefully) allow for much more time spent on the programming side of things and less time on the waiting for things to happen side.
I noticed that there might be some optional installs to do to enable the old drivers (?) for the older OG and Plus models but that seemed straightforward and like people were able to make that happen.
We’ll try it out and see what happens. Thank you - if anyone else has any tips or tricks for using the older BrickPi models with modern software/hardware I’d still love to hear it.
And I thought I was a back-number because of my “original” GoPiGo3 board!
I am thrilled to see all of these 'bots come out of hiding, get dusted off, and get put to work doing useful things. As both I and @cyclicalobsessive said in an earlier post, the GoPiGo, (along with all the other Dexter goodies), are a lot of fun to play with.
Educational? Absolutely!
Will it pin the angst-meter occasionally? Count on it! (but these forums are a Godsend)
Is it a total hoot that will have you slamming your head on the floor because you let it sit for so long? A lead-pipe cinch!
The only problem I see is that you have only ONE of those beasties. Otherwise, both your and your cousin could swap-lies, show off your latest adventures, and have a howling good time. Then again, you could order another one - and a few extra sensors, and some more cabling, and an updated camera, and another. . . you get the idea, 'eh?
Welcome in and don’t forget to have fun!
P.S.
Pictures or it didn’t happen! Don’t be afraid to show off your 'bot.
P.P.S.
Don’t forget to heat-sink that beast and get the latest firmware update!
What kind of Pi are you using and what software/version is loaded onto it?
Did you plug a monitor, keyboard, and mouse into the device and run the initial configuration, (assuming you are NOT using the Dexter software). If you’re using a plain vanilla Raspbian image, it won’t ping until set up using sudo raspi-configfrom within a terminal window.
If you are using the Dexter O/S, (not Raspbian for Robots), it comes pre-configured as it’s own hot-spot.
If you are using Raspbian for Robots, WiFi must be configured using a mouse, keyboard, and monitor as I mentioned above.
Let us know what happens.
Oh, and I forgot. . . Does your Pi have WiFi? Many earlier ones needed a WiFi dongle and they were troublesome beasties at best. At least to start, plug it into an Ethernet port on your network.
A pi3 and up are the best boards, the Pi4 is overkill for most users.
regardless of Pi version, Raspberry Pi OS is the best out there. Better than Raspbian for Robots at this point, but you have to handle a lot of the setup yourself. If you can connect a monitor, keyboard and mouse, it’s easy. But it can be done without them too, there are tricks.
