Outsourced electrical and firmware engineering for a robotics startup
Anvol's engineers do this: control boards, motor drives, sensors and firmware for 19 robots on our case pages, legged, wheeled, tracked, ROS 2 and underwater. Development on these builds ran from $2,000 to $30,000 over 10 days to 2 months (reference figures), and you receive the schematics, PCB files, firmware source and test reports.
Updated
Robots we did the electronics and firmware for
| Build | Units and unit cost | Development | Development time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lidar line-following car | Delivered: 10 at $150 each | $5,000 | 1 month |
| Six-legged robot | Parts $180 per set at 10 sets | $5,000 | 20 days |
| Voice-controlled quadruped | Parts $200 per unit at 15 sets | $5,000 | 20 days |
| Wheel-legged balancing robot | Parts about $150 per set at 20 sets | $5,000 | 20 days |
| ROS 2 omnidirectional robot | Parts about $800 per unit at 50 sets | $4,500 | 18 days |
| Indoor delivery robot | Unit cost $2,500 | $20,000 | 1 month |
| ROS inspection robot | Unit cost $3,000 | $10,000 | 1 month |
| Offline voice-controlled robot dog | Parts about $25 per unit | $2,000 | 10 days |
| 8-DOF robot dog with its own programming tool | Parts $200 per unit | $8,000 | 30 days |
| Underwater ROV, Linux on RK3566 | Unit cost $3,000 | $30,000 | 2 months |
Reference figures are our engineers' numbers for a similar build, not invoices or quotes. Only the lidar car is a delivered price.
What we work in
- Controllers
- ESP32 and STM32; Linux boards such as Raspberry Pi with Ubuntu and ROS 2, and RK3566.
- Firmware
- C/C++ and MicroPython; motor control and PID loops, sensor drivers, data protocols and SDKs, OTA updates, factory test programs.
- Links
- BLE, Wi-Fi, 4G and UDP video links; phone, browser and desktop control apps when the robot needs one.
- Hardware
- Schematic, PCB layout and power; parts sourced by us; hand soldering, rework and bring-up on our bench.
Working with your team
- Your existing code
- We read it first and say what we would keep; reuse is one of the cost drivers.
- What you own
- Schematics, PCB files and Gerbers, BOM, firmware source with protocol and API notes. Anvol's general libraries stay ours; open-source parts keep their licenses.
- Scope
- A written scope with milestones you confirm; one engineering lead as your contact.
Not included
- Certification testing (FCC/CE)
- Done by a test lab and quoted separately when a product needs it.
- Shipping and import duties
- Usually arranged by you once units leave the factory.
- Changes outside the written scope
- Re-quoted, with a new timeline, before work continues.
Related: firmware and embedded systems → · hardware engineering and prototype → · custom robot prototypes → · what you own →
Send what you have, even if it is only a sketch.
Review my projectOr WhatsApp Zisheng, our engineering lead: +86 185 3620 3904 · Book a 30-minute call