Animatronic robot soldier
I like making robots and animatronic stuff, so whenever something like that comes to my plate, I get really enthusiastic about it. Few months ago, I was commissioned to make an animatronic skeleton of the soldier robot for the museum purposes. And yes, it supposed to be big
I didn’t had much time, so I didn’t take preparation photos as usual. This will be the first time we’ll move fast forward onto the roughly finished thing. The whole construction was cut and welded, and the base was supplied from another workshop.
I didn’t get the exact specification for the space between the arm and body, so I designed it to be adjustable for dressing it up in the future.
The initial wiring test.
The angle of the forearm was also made to be adjustable.
Those enclosed massive bearings came in handy because they are actually rose joint-ed, so even more alteration of the figure was possible.
For the motors, I used WV wiper ones, and here you can also see the templates for the marking during the fabrication of the motor mounts.
Thread cutting process. Multiple holes allow further adjustability.
Figuring out where to mount the sensor switch that tells when the arm is extended or retracted.
All the parts were zinc plated, to protect them against the rust.
The wiring detail – this is a two-speed motor, but I was using only one. Speed, not the motor 😀
The next step was the electronics. I mounted the mounting plate to the laser cut and fabricated the frame with rubber shock absorbers, so it can reduce a vibration from machine operating.
PWM speed controler for the arm.
The final assembly at 0 °C.
Using Loctite on all the bolts, so they don’t come loose from the vibrations.
Explaining the robot his purpose, the meaning of life, and similar stuff.
Detail of the arm, there are also two small bearings inside the wrist.
Working on the secondary motor that is located in the base.
Goga showing off with some cool angles.
A PVC pipe was cut to make a protective shield for the mechanism.
A finished top part. All except the spear holder that will be done by another workshop.
Zinc plated detail of the arm.
Ball bearing detail. Also, I used the lubricating nipple thread so I can lock the rose joint in final position.
A view from the back, the shoulders are now locked in place.
A few more details and close-ups.
Shoulder bearing is also locked in place by a bolt.
The bottom mechanism was connected to a spear the same way I would make a knife handle.
The whole base was powder coated of course.
A connector detail.
The base from the back, where you can see the control switches.
The part of the build that I’m really proud of is this custom fabricated back panel, and all the wiring for the electronics.
There’s a fan for moisture / heat expelling.
I left some more wiring and mounting space that will be eventually used to connect it to the Arduino system which will control the whole machine.
A detail of the controller.
From the front.
From the back.
And here it is in all his glory! The project is still not completely done, it went to another studio for further refinement. Here’s also a video:
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