The problem regarding the practical approach to the fields of machine learning / computer vision

Question

I am very passionate about machine learning, data mining and computer vision fields, and I thought about taking things a little further.

I was thinking about buying a LEGO Mindstorms NXT 2.0 robot in order to try experimenting with machine learning / computer vision and robotics algorithms to try to better understand a few existing concepts.

could you help me? Do you recommend any other alternative for a practical approach to understanding these fields, which are reasonably expensive (around 200-250 pounds)? Are there any mini robots that I can buy and experiment with?

Answer 1

If your interests are machine learning, data mining and computer vision, then I would say that Lego minds are not the best option for you. If you are also not interested in robotics / electronics.

• Do interesting machine learning, you only need a computer and a problem to solve. Think ai-contest or mlcomp or similar.
• Do interesting data mining, you need a computer, a lot of data and a question to answer. If you have an internet connection, the amount of data you can get is limited only by your bandwidth. Think of a netflix prize , try your hand at collecting and interpreting data from anywhere. If you are studying, this is a nice place to start .
• As for computer vision: all you need is a computer and images. Depending on the type of problem that you find interesting, you can do some processing of random photos in webcams , take the whole photo for relaxation and try to find where all your travel companions are in them. If you have a webcam, your options are endless.

Lego mindstorms allows you to combine machine learning and computer vision. I do not know where the data collection process will take place, and you will spend time on robotics or electronics, which you do not list as one of your passions.

Answer 2

Well, I would take a look at creating irobot ... within your budget and very reliable. Depending on your age, you may not be noticed with the "lego robot" if you are not in college :-)

Anyway, I buy files in batches for my laboratory. You can connect them with a hard cable (cheap) or install an interface with a blue tooth on it.

But the webcam on this puppy, plug it into a multi-core machine, and you have an awesome working robot for the things you want to explore.

In addition, the old rooms had a ttl level serial port (if that didn't make sense to you, then skip it). I do not know about new ones. Thus, it was possible to control any room vacuum from a laptop.

Rule number one, and I can’t stress this enough: to have a reliable platform for experiments. If you create something just for basic functionality, you will spend all your time on minor issues, not fun things.

Anyway. good luck.