Though Stavros calls it a back scratching robot, it’s the same thing. And really, they’re both just delta robots that use strings instead of rigid arms. Different evolutions, same result. Enough gum flapping, let’s get to the video!
Check out more on his site!
The Faire was fantastic! I was really impressed by the creativity and the artistry on display. From sand sculpting and papercraft to steampunk yoyos and 3d printing, it was all there. I sold all but one EL wire kit and one Drawbot kit. I was even selling prints right off the floor, shoe prints and all.
I learned that having more than one kit on a table is confusing. Next year I might need to have two tables so that I can put one robot on each. I learned that people don’t watch where they walk. Next year I’m going to have to invest in a partition system so I can keep people from walking all over the art. I learned that you’ve got to have a demo model people can see and play with or the product won’t sell. Next year I’ll have a way to show off just how bright EL wire really is. I learned that the CanDo explanations are still too hard, and that Solarbotics’ idea of using oomlout printouts is the way to go. I learned that I should be selling prints through my Etsy store, so I will get on that ASAP.
Sunday morning I came in to find that my Drawbot had fallen over in the night when the easel collapsed. One of the bobbins broke, causing a near disaster. Fortunately Eugene in the 3D printer village was able to print me a pair of purple replacements in about 30 minutes. Thanks, Eugene! I’m going to store extras in my emergency kit from now on and get a better easel.
So what’s next? Order more EL and Drawbot parts, publish a Stewart Platform tutorial that people have been asking for, finish the Gimbal, simplify the CanDo lessons, and get Drawbot pen up/down working.
Oh, and if you’re reading this, would the girl who asked for a drawing of a logo from the Highlander TV series please email me? You left 5 minutes before it was finished. Come and get it!
Seattle Mini Maker Faire was fantastic! I talked to over 2000 people, most of whom asked the same question: “How does it work? Magnets?”
Maybe at the next fair I should use colored string so people grok it. I stayed overnight at the famous Green Tortoise across from Pike’s Place Market and met all kids of interesting people.
For instance, I’ve been admiring this Delta robot (called ‘Rostock’) for a while now. Turns out I’ve known the creator for years, and he’s even couchsurfed with me! What a tiny, tiny world.
Have you ever seen the gear heart? Emmett redid it with the Colbert head, just for fun. He had a good time teasing me about how gently I treated his ABS creations.
finally, here is a gallery of other things that were drawn at the Seattle Maker Faire, mostly on Sunday.
Optimization is the name of the game when attempting to solve the Travelling Salesman Problem (TSP). I’ve figured out most of what Lin/Kernighan is saying and then implemented it to run as fast as I can get it to go. Here’s the progress since the last picture I posted.
Here’s one of the Seattle skyline for the Seattle Maker Fair
It helps if you back up and squint. No really, it’s like pointilism paintings. Ever heard of the Group of Seven? Like that.
Here’s the results of the Drawbot working on the above image done by the TSP solver last night.
It ran for three hours and then failed when the laptop went into sleep mode while I was at the VHS. The mess in the top left is because I tried to draw the picture twice – once it failed when the stepper motor got warm and caused the bobbin to slip off the shaft. In a future version of the drawbot I’d like to try bicycle chain and sprockets instead of bobbins and thread.
Got any suggestions for pictures I should draw? Post ’em below!
