Jims To-Do-List for 2010

Lynxmotion Servo Erector Set
1

I’m pretty late in this post. I normally do it mid January. :stuck_out_tongue: I reviewed my 2009 To-Do-List and except for a few items I got mostly everything done I set out to do. Here are some of the things I plan to do in 2010.

Make a gripper similar to the old L6 (C gripper) but use the HS-225 instead of the HS-81 for the open and close part. It will be made from routed 1/4" foam PVC.

Finally make the SES based ground contact switch. Followers of the forum have already seen it here. viewtopic.php?f=11&t=5825

Make brackets for the new Hitec digital 805 servo. This will be the largest of all the brackets to date.

Finalize the yet unnamed T-Hex like robot and get it into kit form.

Complete the development of the MicroRax (miniature T-Slot system) accessories. I should have the first of many parts in about a week. This will be a big addition to the SES system.

Let me know if there is anything I’m forgetting or if you have some ideas for something new.

2

Zenta’s Apod robot kit?

3

I’d like to see a bigger general-purpose all-aluminum tracked chassis.

4

What would be cool is to see all aluminum track links! 8)

5

Update

Make a gripper similar to the old L6 (C gripper) but use the HS-225 instead of the HS-81 for the open and close part. It will be made from routed 1/4" foam PVC. *** Prototype in testing ***

Finally make the SES based ground contact switch. Followers of the forum have already seen it here. viewtopic.php?f=11&t=5825 *** Done ***

Make brackets for the new Hitec digital 805 servo. This will be the largest of all the brackets to date. *** Canceled. The new 5755 has more torque, using this instead ***

Finalize the yet unnamed T-Hex like robot and get it into kit form. *** In progress ***

Complete the development of the MicroRax (miniature T-Slot system) accessories. I should have the first of many parts in about a week. This will be a big addition to the SES system. *** One step forward, about a two city block step backwards… Long story, don’t ask! Major set back, but still working on it ***

Making 6" wide track available.

Making larger heavy duty sprockets available.

6

great to see the new 2010 list has arrived. i see you are already making some progress in some areas.
look forward to seeing the “LMT-hex”.

good choice. :wink:

6" wide track… wow. i may have to get some. i have had a few ideas for making a tracked vehicle.

even better. good idea. much more expensive i might add but very nice looking. 8)

you sound busy enough so i wont add to your list. :wink:

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Biped pete torso panels made aluminum, but the electronics carier could remain lexan because if the bot falls, you want the carrier to flex instead of bend.

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I was doing a lot of SES tinkering last night and ran into a situation where it would be really nice to have a bracket that isn’t currently a part of the SES. I’ve been tinkering with stuff using the ASB-11 offset servo bracket. I was comparing the ASB-11 with the ASB-09 short “C” bracket and noticed that it seems to be basically an ASB-09 with a 45 degree addition. The bracket I would like to see added is an ASB-10 long “C” with the 45 degree addition to make it a long offset bracket. I’m not quite getting enough offset using an ASB-09 with the ASB-11 and using two ASB-11 brackets doesn’t give me the clearance I need for this assembly. If I had the long offset bracket, I believe I could do everything I want and would find more uses for this also.

8-Dale

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Hi Mike, I agree we need to make a lot more biped parts. I was looking through some old images and found these. I want to make more parts like these old school robo-one parts…

http://www.is.sys.es.osaka-u.ac.jp/research/0005/images/SmallRobo_01.jpg

Actually these aren’t exactly what I was looking for. But something like this.

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Those are some fat looking bipeds :laughing:

I was thinking of taking the existing design you used to cut the lexan panels, but instead of using lexan, use aluminum the same thickness of the aluminum ses channels. I really love that design. I have cash in hand waiting to buy it!

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Gotcha. I was showing that I wanted to make the torso more like an enclosure rather than several plates with standoffs. I will consider the options.

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Sure, the enclosure sounds like a great idea, it reminds me of Tyberius Giger bot torso. A variety would be really nice in addition to the plate design. I don’t think any other bot shop offers torso kits, so this would be great to see more torsos kits available to the biped builder community.

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jim… maybe you should run another competition for new bracket or part design. i think you will get lots of ideas this way and maybe then add the new part to the archive. :wink:

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Update

I found a way to make parts from foam PVC! A little background… When I started this company 16 years ago I used a hobby CNC table to make parts from 3mm and 6mm foam PVC. The process of making one part was painful. Back then there wasn’t much in the way of affordable software for creating G-code. You drew the part, then converted it to G-code, line by line. It would literally take 3 hours to make the first small part. Then you could test it for fit. If something needed to be fudged a little bit, you had to start over…

Then we bought the lasers. Tried making parts from acrylic, which was an improvement in so much as the G-code part was eliminated. I could draw the parts and print them. The problem with acrylic is it’s brittle. I soon figured out how to cut polycarbonate. This allowed me to “print” parts that wouldn’t break easily. But it’s slow cutting and the parts are a little heavier than they needed to be.

Well I now have the ability to make these PVC parts as easily as the polycarbonate. I will be adding an entire line of small custom parts made from 3mm to 6mm foam PVC. I finally have the freedom to make what I imagine fast and inexpensively. This changes everything!

Create a line of custom PVC parts! *** In progress ***

Make a gripper similar to the old L6 (C gripper) but use the HS-225 instead of the HS-81 for the open and close part. It will be made from routed 1/4" foam PVC. *** Production ***

Finally make the SES based ground contact switch. Followers of the forum have already seen it here. viewtopic.php?f=11&t=5825 *** Done ***

Make brackets for the new Hitec digital 805 servo. This will be the largest of all the brackets to date. Canceled. The new 5755 has more torque, using this instead *** Gathering information ***

Finalize the yet unnamed T-Hex like robot and get it into kit form. *** In progress ***

Complete the development of the MicroRax (miniature T-Slot system) accessories. I should have the first of many parts in about a week. This will be a big addition to the SES system. *** In progress ***

Making 6" wide track available. Making larger heavy duty sprockets available. *** Canceled for now. Will continue to focus on small robotics. ***

Expanding the range of hubs to include a variety of shaft sizes. *** In progress ***

Making Phoenix tibia, 3" femurs, and 4" femurs available separately. *** In progress ***

Making an all new AH2, 12 servo hexapod kit. *** Prototype testing ***

Expanding the sizes of pillow blocks. *** In progress ***

15

Hi,

Cool! Thats great news. PVC is a pretty strong material. Do you know if they are available in texture sheet too?

:open_mouth: Hey, are you keeping secrets from us too? :wink: Sounds very interesting, especially for those who want to use Hitec’s beefy servos and make Phoenix look even more insect-like with longer legs. Awesome! 8)

Thanks for the update Jim!

16

I think 1/4" PVC is pretty rigid compared to 1/8" polycarbonate. It’s not as strong, but it’s strong enough for small robots. I really love this material for robotics. It has a slight texture, but not as deep as your ABS.

I have a lot of things I’m working on. I’m not discussing all of them publicly though. hehe I’m sneaky… :wink:

17

great news…
you have been busy jim. well you will be. :wink:

look forward to seeing some new parts to play with.

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Here is a sneak peak at our all new 2DOF leg and the new HS-225 gripper. Not much to say. We’re fine tuning the fit and function. I’m really excited to have a full size 2DOF hexapod again. There are some engraved lines, but we opted not to do them on the production. The gripper is really nice. The opening is 2.6", and it’s actually shorter than the old HS-85 gripper.

2dofleg1.jpg
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2dofleg2.jpg
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gripper1.jpg
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those parts would be fun to make/play with! Old School!

I assume you’ll have a body to match…

Came across this site for control cable stuff, might be of use:

dubro.com/hobby/ecatalog/dubro/00025.htm

Alan KM6VV

20

I have toyed with the idea of making a reissue of the old EH2, but for now we will just use the awesome aluminum chassis we already have.

Here is the thread for the prototype. The PVC legs have the same dimensions as the all aluminum version in the video. But it will be much cheaper.
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=6524

Video.

And here is a picture.

ah201.jpg
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