Exogenesis42:
Duane,
What was your power solution for your hexapod design?
I had read many horror stories from people trying to build a hexapod about voltage regulator burning out. In hopes of not having power supply issues myself, I decided to use a 2S 5Ah LiPo pack and two 15A regulators.
I've listed a bill of materials (BOM) on the project page at RobotRebels.org.
Exogenesis42:
And do you have any examples of simpler controllers via BT?
I think the main advantage of Bluetooth is the ability to use a smartphone or a tablet as a controller.
Whenever I've used Bluetooth with a microcontroller, I've always used Bluetooth in conjunction with an Android smartphone. (I made some painfully boring videos relating some of my thoughts concerning App Inventor 2 (AI2).) There's nice (free) app made by forum member, kas, which makes a nice robot controller.
There are plenty of non-Bluetooth controllers one can use with an Arduino.
You can either use a wireless version of these controllers or the wired version. I used a wireless Nunchuck to control my hexapod. I posted some demo code for the Wii Nunchuck here. Playstation 2 controllers is another controller which is relatively easy to use with an Arduino. There are lots of wireless PS2 options (though many clones are junk).
Another option is to use the wired version of these game controllers and (if a wireless connection is desired) and use a second Arduino to read from the controller and send the appropriate data to the other Arduino. This option lets you add additional features to the control unit.
I used nRF24L01+ transceivers in the above example. XBees are another common wireless option for these sorts of projects.
Besides the Wii Nunchuck and PlayStation 2 controllers there are other game controllers which can be used with an Arduino without the need of an USB shield. The GameCube controller is one I haven't mentioned yet which don't require any special hardware to use with an Arduino.
Of course you don't have to use a game controller at all. An Arduino can easily read inputs from joysticks, buttons and potentiometers so you could make a controller to match your specific needs.
Here's an example of a joystick you could use in a custom controller which wouldn't be available on a game controller.
The knob on this joystick can twist allowing an extra degree of control from a single stick (these sorts of joysticks used to be used with RC helicopters). Posted a bit more information about this joystick in this post. The post, to which I just linked, also contains links to videos showing some of my joystick/servo code in action (using the above joystick). While I'm mentioning joysticks, I'll also mention this one.
Besides being able to use the input devices you want, a custom controller also makes it easy to add a display.
Exogenesis42:
Regardless of this, wouldn't I still need to use a USB Host Shield to implement any controller?
As I mentioned, there are lots of options which don't require a USB host shield.
Exogenesis42:
My main concern at the moment is understanding if there are any conflicts with the various required hardware: Arduino > Servo Controller & USB Host. I've looked through the documentation for both and my inexperience with microcontrollers has me unsure.Does this imply that there is a conflict at pins 10 & 11?
The Mini Maestro 24 isn't a shield. The only conflicts I could see is possibly the serial pin #0 and #1 (if they're used). I doubt that would be an issue. From my very brief look the product page, I think the Mini Maestro 24 uses the Arduino's I2C lines. The I2C lines are intended to be shared so I doubt this would be a conflict. Nope, it uses a serial.
You might not need the Mini Maestro 24 at all. I think a Mega can control 24 servos without the need of a separate servo control board. Personally, I'm not a fan of servo control boards. I think you're better off using a microcontroller capable of controlling the servos directly.
Edit: Sorry, I forgot to go into more detail about the battery options. There's a big advantage to using battery packs which don't require a regulator. Using a 2S LiPo pack and step down regulators may not be your best power supply option.