PiStorms

The PiStorms is a robotics platform. It enables you to create robots using LEGO Mindstorms parts, and control it on a Raspberry Pi with Python. Besides its 4 motor ports, 4 sensor ports, and all the benefits of the Raspberry Pi, the PiStorms lets you do even more. It has a touchscreen for easy visual feedback and touch input. It has a convenient web interface to program and control the device, even accessible on mobile devices.

We have many blog posts on our website about the PiStorms. These include tutorials and project ideas. There is also a handy getting started guide.

A prepared SD card image is available. It's based on Raspbian and has everything you need to use your PiStorms.

If you would might rather add the PiStorms code and libraries to your existing Raspberry Pi, please follow these steps:

1. Install latest Raspbian image on a microSD card (use an 8 GB or larger microSD card). Insert this microSD card in your Raspberry Pi 3.
2. Assembly the frame around your Raspberry Pi and then attach the PiStorms. For details, see this blog post.
3. Start your Raspberry Pi and log in with the username pi and the password raspberry (Raspbian defaults).
4. Run sudo raspi-config and expand the file system.
5. Configure your Raspberry Pi to connect to Internet via WiFi or Ethernet. For details, see this blog post.
6. Run the following commands to download and configure this repository

   $ git clone https://github.com/mindsensors/PiStorms.git
   $ PiStorms/setup/setup.sh

The setup.sh script will take several minutes to download files and configure your system. When it configures the VNC server, it might ask for a password. If so please enter a password you will remember, such as raspberry. You will need this later to login to your Raspberry Pi from a VNC client.

Now you can browse the examples in the PiStorms/programs folder.

To write your own Python programs, start with this tutorial, then refer to the API reference.