Hi,
I am looking for instructions on how to fix my Pleo’s broken neck. I would be very grateful for help. If someone could provide me with photos and instructions that work, I would be willing to send a little cash your way for the help.
Thanks,
Howard
Thank you so much for your reply and for the great photos.
Following you advice, I think it is circular ridge that is bent out of shape in the neck of Pleo A (Shanti the Pleo). I am going to try to attach some photos. Sorry, I have a really old low res camera.
I am looking forward to your reply. 
By the way, how did you get your photos in with you text? I sent attachments because I did not see how to put them in my reply.
Regarding Pleo A, the part is not broken, it is a circle like shape made of hard plastic which divides the wires. The hard plastic is stretched out of shape to be near it’s breaking point. It needs to be pushed back to the original shape without breaking it. Do you have any experience with how to make hard plastic pliable? Where would you recommend I get the fiberglass or epoxy?
I will look for a high res camera since you think it is worthy of documentation.
Onward, I have a Pleo B and a Pleo C with broken necks with different causes. I will post their issues when I get a hold of a camera. Please continue reading and responding as I update this thread.
Benson, Thank you so much!
Howard
The soldering option sounds like it would be helpful. Last time I looked at soldering irons, I noticed prices varied widely, and there is something called cold soldering. What kind of specs or price range would you suggest for a soldering iron for this project?
Having you help me with this is so appreciated! When I go to the hardware store to get my repair supplies for Pleo A, I would like to get supplies for Pleo B as well.
Pleo B (Decartes the Pleo “I think therefore I am”) has a wire broken in his neck. I am attaching a photo. If you could tell me how to replace the wire with a stronger wire, including photos of what to do, I would be grateful.
Thank you.
Cable reinforcement vs replacement is something to think about. Thanks, cbenson, for adding the reinforcement option. Anyone with Pleo experience what to way in on which way to go?
Is epoxy the best way to join various pieces of wire together?
I am also considering what would be the strongest yet flexible enough material to use? jbrunet’s suggestion of multi-strand wire with a silicon coating sounds good. Where would I order that online? Any other suggestions?
Thanks.
Thank you for making that clear.
I am wondering what is best to use to replace or bond to the untra thin neck pully wires. I need something thin to enough to fit and flexible but stronger and more durable than the originals which have broken. It also should be able to withstand any heat generated by the Pleo’s mechanisms.
is there a grade of thin wire I should be looking for?
Is the wire made of a certain material that would be better to use than wires made from say copper?
Thanks.
You’re right about the size of the cables. They are thread size. Dental floss is bigger, but would fit because it’s flexible. I didn’t know dental floss was used in fishing.
Upon further examination, it looks like Pleo A not only has a bent out of shape neck bone, but a broken neck cable. I did not notice it as first because it is broken deep within the Pleo’s body out of site. I turned Pleo A on with the neck skin removed to see how the deformed neck bone which supports the cables was causing problems in order to get a better handle on what is need to fix it. At this time I noticed there was no tension in the top neck cable. After I turned Pleo A off, I gentiley tugged at this cable and sure enough I could of pulled it all out of the body-- not connected down in there. Of course, I do not want to pull it out because I need to follow it’s path to repair it.
Does your friend PleoDreams with the great photos have any photos following the path of the cable down into the body and eventually showing pulley mechanism the cables are connected to?
Does anyone know of any Pleo diagrams that would show the complete pulley system?
Thanks.
Pleoworld is the place I went first for help. They told me if the Pleo was purchased with in the last 90 days they will replace it. If not there is nothing to be done. I ask for diagrams or photos or construction instructions anything what would help me fix my Pleo. They refused to provide any material. I ask if I could buy another skin from them for after I fixed my Pleo. They again refused.
Pleoworld is now selling new Innvo Labs Pleos (as opposed to the old Ugobe Pleo) which have stronger neck connects and should be less prone to breaking and skin with paint that lasts longer. Their priority is to sell new ones.
Based on my experience, they are unwilling to support anyone trying to fix an existing Pleo.
So, I guess I will just have to take it apart, use the best materials I can find, and see how it go’s. I very much appreciate all the help you guys are giving me!!!
Overall, I really like Innvo Labs. I love that they are improving the Pleo with better parts, skin and improved battery chargers. I love that they are continuing to develop a new OS for Pleos and are open to third party programmers creating new applications for the Pleo. Plus, the are honoring the warranty on the Ugobe Pleos. I think the guys at Innvo are great!
While I wish they would provide information and parts for individuals seeking to repair their Pleos, I understand that most companies don’t do that.
I did think of guitar string. I had a funny image in my head of being able to tune my Pleo in the key of C after repairing her. Piano is new idea. Thank you.
I wish there was more information comparing guitar string, piano wire and tennis racket string for flexibility, strength and durability. They all seem to have different rating systems that don’t compare across activities.
Is piano wire what the pulley system is using now? As the grade number increases does this mean it is stronger and less flexible?
Thank you. I did a web search too and saw the descriptions, but there is no substitute for hands on experience with a material. I will see what I can find locally. Wish I could find out what they are using as pulley wire in the new pleos that just came out. Also, I wonder what they use for the pulleys in Aibo and I-cybie? I did a web search, but couldn’t find that. If anyone out there has experience with tiny weight bearing pulleys, please write. Thanks again.
Another thing to consider if flexibility of the replacement wire. Solid core copper wire will bend but at some point will break. For this reason, multi-strand wire with a silicon coating would be the best wire to use. Otherwise any multi-strand wire will suffice.
My suggestion was for repairing of damaged electrical wiring which is not what appears to be damaged here.
We are quite happy Innvo Labs decided to revive Pleo from the ashes. Not all toy manufacturers support repairs you know. We will now have access to batteries and the like though and they do seem to offer support for all Pleos.
You may want to look into piano wire, it is commonly used in RC models as actuation wire. There are different guages and they can be sheathed inside some tubing. In RC circles they are called push rods. Not sure if it will provide the flexibility required but it’s worth evaluating. On that “note”, what about guitar strings?
Smaller diameter wire is generally more flexible. Maybe these charts will help?
I Googled Piano Wire Gauge Chart
jean.louchet.free.fr/perso/cord.html
pianosupplies.com/Merchant2/PianoWireChart.html
Hi Howard,
It will be important to diagnose the problem - is it mechanical or electrical? Use an exacto to carefully cut along the seam as shown in the image below. Note that you can use crazy glue to re-attach it. You don’t need to remove it completely to gain access to the neck.
http://pleobot.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/pleo_breakdown.jpg
The neck is made just like a spinal cord:
http://pleobot.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/pleo-back-teaser.jpg
It might be a cable that snapped, at which point you can splice it together (or add a small section of additional cable - or see if it can be replaced entirely. Feel free to take an image of the problem area to post here. Thanks to Pleodreams for the images.
Attachments are fine - especially for custom photos. You can also use the “insert image” button if your image has a URL (website.com/image.jpg)
Based on your surgery, is the plastic part broken or simply out of place? This seems like a mechanical problem that can be fixed eithe rwith superglue or using a small reinforcement peice (like a single layer of fiberglass and epoxy). Just make sure it does not impede the motion. It would be great if you can take some high resolution images of “before” and “after” - there are very few recorded PLEO surgeries out there. Looking forward to hearing your results.
Depending on the shape of the part, it may be better to reproduce it out of plexiglass. Heat is the only way to make plastic pliable, though it usually has the effect of weakening the part itself. If you try heat, consider a soldering iron (it will both melt and deform the plastic, but is safer and more accurate than an open flame). Also, if the parts around the neck are symmetric, you can make a mold, or draw an outline of the way the part should look, then cut it out and sculpt it from a peice of plastic or metal.
You are essentially doing reconstructive surgery, but out of plastic instead of bone. There are other options such as moldable plastic and epoxies, though you would need to create the female mold. Another option (not easy to judge) is to break the part off entirely (delicately), re-shape it, and re-attach it. You can get fiberglass (especially in any place that sells boating supplies) at most hardware centers. Before you re-seal the wound though, make sure you don’t leave any tools inside… we have all heard horror stories of patients with tools left inside them!