LILYGO T-Bao tiny AI robot combines ESP32 and Kendryte K210 RISC-V chip, features camera and display

The T-Bao AI robot is a compact embedded device/robot that combines an ESP32 and a K210 RISC-V microcontroller and can perform face recognition and robotics applications.

This compact device features a 1.54-inch 240×240 capacitive touch screen, a 2MP OV2640 camera, a MAX98357A I2S audio amplifier, a DRV8833 motor driver, an MPU6050 6-axis motion sensor, and an AXP202 PMU for power management.  Additionally, it supports USB charging, offers LEGO blocks compatibility, and can move around with integrated caster wheels. These features make it usable for educational projects, robotics, IoT applications, and embedded systems prototyping.

LILYGO T-Bao specifications

• SoCs
  • Kendryte K210 dual-core 64-bit RISC-V processor @ 400 MHz with 8MB on-chip RAM, various low-power AI accelerators delivering up to 0.5 TOPS
  • ESP32-D0WDQ6-V3 dual-core Xtensa LX6 processor, 240 MHz, 16MB Flash, 8MB PSRAM
• Display – 1.54-inch capacitive touch LCD (240×240)
• Camera – 2MP OV2640 with rolling shutter, UXGA (1600 x 1200) resolution, 180-degree rotation
• Audio – MAX98357A I2S audio amplifier (3.2W @ 4Ω)
• Sensors – MPU6050 6-axis accelerometer and gyroscope
• Motor control – DRV8833 motor driver
• Misc
  • Two caster wheels and two smaller red wheels for mobility
  • LEGO-compatible for modular setups
• Power
  • Replaceable 9V battery
  • Onboard USB Type-C port for charging @ 500 mA
  • AXP202 Power Management IC
• Dimensions – 64 x 53 mm

While writing the specifications, I noticed that a lot of information was missing as the company does not show what the internal components of this product look like. They also mention that there is a DRV8833 motor driver, raising the question: is it solely driving the caster wheels, or can it be used to drive other motors as well?

The company also mentions that additional documentation, sample code, and other information can be found in their GitHub repo but after thoroughly checking the repository I cannot find anything specific about the T-Bao. The device has a USB-C port built into it but that port cannot be used for programming as the company mentions it as a charging port. To program the device, the little robot ships with a CH9102-based USB to high-speed serial chip which is used to program the ESP32 chip.

Previously, we have written about various ESP32-based robots like the CYOBot v2, the MechDog AI robot, the XGO-Rider self-balancing robot, and many others. We have also covered many unique products by LILYGO like the LILYGO T-Deck Plus the T-TWR ESP32 walkie-talkie, the LILYGO T-ETH-Elite ESP32-S3-powered IoT board, and many more feel free to check those out if you are looking for something similar.

The T-Bao AI robot is priced at around $80.69 and can be purchased from the LILYGO store or their AliExpress store for $81.58.

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