Latest Robot

-Gary

New Member
Just finished building this bot yesterday. It looks a lot like one I made 2-yars ago but with some improvements.
New robot is more compact, has ultrasonic sensor instead of a Sharp IR.
Motor is from an old floppy drive and the gearbox is aluminum bar stock with gears and tires from slotcars.
Chassis is 1/8" polycarb. Steering is by a 9gm Servo. I used one side of a #HG7881 Motor controller board.
Distance sensor is a #HY-SRF05 and of course a Picaxe 08M2 Proto Board with some female connectors
added to plug in the wiring. I have to do some range testing to see what readings the srf puts out to use in my program.
Should have a program working soon and a video.
Thanks for looking!
Cheers
 

Attachments

-Gary

New Member
Thanks Ibenson!
Linkage is just a bent wire going from the outermost hole in the plastic servo arm to a similar brass arm on the steering post. I have it capable of turning 30 degrees each way from straight ahead.
 

-Gary

New Member
Hey Erco!
Good to hear from you! I accept the figure 8 challenge and will try to get you a video soon.
I did get my program working with this bot, not perfect, but a decent start.

-Gary
 

-Gary

New Member
Well, it is not the best Figure8. The path is never the same as the front tires can skid a bit when it hits a slick spot.
Path is timed.
Hey Erco... Hope this will qualify for the Figure 8 Challenge!

 

Hemi345

Senior Member
Gary, very clean build, nice work. What did you use to bend the polycarb or was it something that you salvaged and already had the 90deg bend? I'd like to make my own heated element to bend acrylic and poly on the cheap and looking for suggestions.
 

-Gary

New Member
Hey Mr Hemi,
Thanks for the good words! Glad you liked my bot.
As for the polycarb part, I bought this for a dollar a while back. Supposed to fit a SRF004 but never did. I had to Dremel the holes to get them 1.5mm closer. It finally found a home on this bot.
We bend pieces of polycarb at work using a small torch and watching the heat closely. I suppose a heated coil could be put in the corner of a piece of thin angle iron clamped in a vice and the polycarb formed around the sharp edge of the angle. Or maybe try heating the inside surface of the angle iron with the torch and forming the polycarb on the opposite surface. This would keep the direct heat off the part.
 

Hemi345

Senior Member
The torch and angle iron was how I tried bending some and couldnt get the temp regulated well. Scorched the poly. Many many years ago in shop class we used a device that had a heating element recessed in a channel. Could just lay the poly over the channel and it would get soft and pliable to make many different bends. I'd like to build something like that someday.
 

Technoman

Senior Member
Hi,

A very nice compact robot! and made using the smallest chip!

At school, we do use a professional machine for plastic bending.
You can build an home made version, wood not steel, for cheap :
Or an even more simple version :
 
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