Simple Robotic Face Rig Supplies

Community General Discussions
1

Hi, i’m fairly new to robotics though I did take a class back in late high school putting together some 4 wheeled rc cars using a couple motors but I’d like to ask advice on what hardware I would need to complete my project.

I’m looking at making a simple face rig using some servo motors/arduino software to pull on my artificial face to create facial expressions. Since i’m new, I don’t quite know for sure what everything i’ll need.

  1. Looking at a handful of servo motors (enough torque to pull strings to move lightweight facial pieces.
  2. The arduino mega with usb I think would be a good choice to allow for more room to play with later.
  3. Some kind of servo arms attached to the motors to pull strings? (Hm I think they usually come with them it seems like)
  4. I’de like to power it through usb so I shouldn’t need anything here?
  5. M/F jumper wires and anything else?
  6. Maybe a breadboard to play around with?

I think this is about all I need for this little setup.

I appreciate any feedback and thanks for your time!

2

You could use a normal RC servo controller:
robotshop.com/en/servo-controllers.html
Ex: robotshop.com/en/lynxmotion- … oller.html
Plus: robotshop.com/en/wh-02-wirin … ector.html
Power: robotshop.com/en/6v-3a-wall-adapter.html
You should not power servos from a USB alone.

The choice of servos is really up to you:
robotshop.com/en/servo-motors.html

You should not need to use a breadboard or jumpers.

3

Thanks for the reply! I was thinking I wouldn’t need a breadboard if I had the controller and I guess I wouldn’t need the jumper wires then to.

I’ll add the wall adapter and look at the choices for servo motor controllers.

Thanks!

4

I was getting ready to buy some components later today and I was wondering. At first i’m looking at making an elastic cloth face before I switch to silicone and I was thinking how much torque my servo’s would need to move the face. I realize that there’s likely going to be at least a couple pulling in any area so that’s going to lessen the amount of torque needed per servo. I see the cheapest ones have about 1kg of torque so I figure they might be good enough to pull a lightweight stretchy fabric but when it comes to a silicone face I might need at least 2kg+?

I’ll be working on my clay sculpt to use as a mold later while I figure this out.

5

The smaller servos (micro / mini) can often consume higher current than standard sized servos since their torque rating is similar., so good to keep in mind when choosing servos.
A lightweight material is a good place to start.