MorpHex, a sphere formed morphing hexapod

Lynxmotion Legged Robots
121

Great work Zenta! :open_mouth: It looks fantastic with the shell on!! I’m very impressed.

I hope you post video soon showing the transition. This is a great project

122

Okay, Zenta, now you’re just messing with us! :imp: :imp: :laughing:

I go to my computer today with my morning cup of coffee to find your wonderful set of progress pictures! Each one more appealing than the last! MorpHex is now so pure, so real, I can almost taste it! And then…your TAUNT!!!

Finally I catch on: You are not building a robot at all. You are creating a technological Tantalus’ Cup. Always bringing us closer to that sweet sip at last, only to drain it away again at the final instant. Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown. Like an exotic dancer, always revealing an enticing glimpse, never fulfilling the dream. You are approaching the video as an asymptote. :stuck_out_tongue:

Please believe us, Master Showman, you have our rapt attention! [size=150]The audience is yours![/size] [size=200]**GRANT US PEACE! :smiley: **[/size]

123

Thanks Marcham for your nice comment. :smiley:

@RoboTed: :laughing:
I’m glad you liked it! I always appreciate your rather amusing comments. :wink:

Today I got some 3mm PC, cut out two ribs with a bandsaw and sandblasted them. Now gluing the first leg:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/07/MorpHex32.jpg

I think I’ve to buy more of those clamps tomorrow…

EDIT: Forgot the hypodermic needle, I’m using that when gluing PC. The glue is almost like water and I found this as a useful tool.

124

Great picture of your rib glue-up. I admire your technique. I am an avid railroad structures modeler. Edge on gluing such as you have done can be one of the most difficult processes because the clamps also create a rotational force that attempts to pull the parts out of perpendicular. I have to use support blocks to retain alignment. You seem to have succeeded without supports. My congratulations and envy. :slight_smile:

Questions please: I have not used PC yet; how rapidly does the watery glue you referred to begin to set up? How long to fully cure? Does it begin rapidly enough that you can tack weld with it?

Thanks,

125

Looks like it is coming along great! I also envy your creativity and your building skills!

Kurt

126

Thanks! I’ve not had problem with the rotational force yet, but I think it can be a problem with even thinner ribs.
Model railroad is a fun hobby too! My dad and I did a lot of railroad building stuff many years ago. These pics are about 11 years old:

OldRailRoad01.jpg
OldRailRoad01.jpg800×600 168 KB

OldRailRoad02.jpg
OldRailRoad02.jpg600×800 442 KB

Well, I must give my dad most of the credit when it comes to the landscape and detail stuff.

I can’t say I’ve very much experience with gluing PC. But what I’ve been told when I bought the glue and PC is that it should stay for about 24 hours to fully cure. The glue harden pretty quickly though and the watery part harden fast (1-2 min). To be sure I just leave the parts until next day.

127

[size=200]WOW!!![/size]
Your railroad pics are gorgeous! No matter who gets the credit, I’m sure it’s shared, that is a fine railroad.

I have two, both in G-scale. The big one in my backyard lay fallow for six years while I recovered from my fifth and sixth spine operations. I am in the second summer of reclaiming/rebuilding it. The small one is a train garden that I have installed in our local Senior Center during the three-month winter holiday season for the last nine years. It is G-scale folded into a 5 foot by 15 foot space. (Not unlike folding the legs into your MorpHex.) This has to be disassembled and stored nine months a year, though it shares buildings and rolling stock with my garden.

Neither one has anywhere near the beauty or detail of yours. I have named mine collectively the Abyss Western Railway. So next time you are in Maryland, please: Come to Bowie and [size=150]Go AWRY![/size]

NOTE TO SNAILKEEPER: We really need another smiley to properly show awe and envy (not evil jealousy, but healthy admiration and respectful envy). How else are we to communicate with the Zentas, Innerbreeds, Kurtes, and Xans of this world? Oh, yes, the RobotDudes, Snailkeepers, and Fishes of the world also. Mr. Green, who looks like a smiling lime or blueberry just does’nt fill the bill.

Thanks

128

LOL, I think this one does well… :unamused: lol

129

Hi,

I’ve done some more progress lately.
All six lower sphere sections are now permanently mounted on the legs (tibia).
Done much work on the code. I’m 95% satisfied in how MorpHex curl into a half-sphere. At this point I’m tempted to just leave it as it is and start working on the upper sphere part. But I’ve not found the perfect hinge to use. I’m planning to use six hinges for connecting all the six upper sphere parts at the top center. Then use one servo on each of the six upper sphere parts for moving them up and down. So far I’ve been looking at different hinges for RC plane.

If I get time for it I’ll post a new video. I don’t have a videocam at the moment so I might have to use the webcam.

130

Great work, The project looks very complex. Everything seems to come together very well and your workmanship is outstanding. I have a question, forgive me if it was mentioned already: Did you hand cut the parts or did you use CNC for all those curved legs?

131

Thanks Mike!

Just take a look at my first post in the thread.

132

I was refering to the metal legs that make up the spiral. Did you hand cut those as well?

133

Ok I see. Yes they are also hand cut using a band-saw too.

134

Hi,

I’ve been away for just three day off vacation and my mailbox was filled with a bunch off mail from youtube and my blog.
It looks like Morphex got some attention at Hack-a-day, Make and several other blogs.

Anyway, I’ve been busy with a garden project and vacation. Hopefully I’ll do more progress on MorpHex in a few weeks. I’ve also bought a new camera (Panasonic Lumix GH2) mainly for taking videos. Hopefully my next robot videos will be in HD quality.

135

YES! look forward to it.

136

Vacation? How can you be taking vacation when all of us are waiting for your next progress report? Can’t you feel how patiently we are waiting? :laughing:

Nice to see you back. Congratulations on the widening exposure on other web sites. Isn’t it ironic how the writer at Make speculatively wondered if you had thought of building a top half mirroring the bottom: Your original project intent exactly. :unamused:

Looking forward to videos from your new camera.

137

Hi,

Its been a while since I last got some time for working on this project. But luckily I’ve had some time now and then for working on the upper sphere sections. I mentioned earlier that I’m using only six servos for controlling the six upper sphere sections. This mean that each sphere section only have 1 DOF of movement. If each sphere section where coupled together with a simple joint/hinge at the top center of the upper sphere half they wouldn’t be able to move at all or at least not at the same time. That’s because of several mechanical obstructions between the sphere sections. So I had to figure out a mechanical hinge solution that made the sphere section translate a little away from the top center before it could swing out and upward (bad english… sight). I hope you get what I mean. :unamused:

Anyway, pictures tell much more that any words. All parts are handmade, the material is polycarbonate. Here are some pictures of the hinge system:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex31.jpg

The hinge-system are going to be placed above the ARC-32 board. Another picture of the hinges in the max/fan position:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex32.jpg

This picture illustrate how the sphere sections are going to be mounted to the hinge-system:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex33.jpg

Just for the fun of it I’ve placed the upper sections loosely on top of MorpHex just for giving you an image of how it will be at the end:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex34.jpg

As you can see, the sphere parts does deflect a little under load, but hopefully its not going to be a problem. I’ll probably need to make sure there is a little gap between the upper and lower sphere sections:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex35.jpg

I’ll come back with more info on how I’ll attach the servos. At the moment I’m also very curious to see how it will perform when the upper sections are mounted. It will add about 1,2 kg extra load. Earlier I did some testings and it seemed to perform ok with the extra load. The extra load was 3 beefy 3S LiPo’s :laughing: :

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex30.jpg

One thing is for sure, my workshop is a complete mess at the moment… :unamused:

http://zentasrobots.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/3/files/2011/09/MorpHex36.jpg

138

Looks great! I am glad you are having some fun again! :smiley:

As always you come up with great solutions to the issues, like with your hinges.

Kurt

139

Hi Kåre,

for some reason, I’m not seeing the images.

Alan KM6VV

140

Showing up for me. Nice work Kåre!