©2000 Queenie-Dog Graphics
All rights reserved.
(Note: Energizer is the registered trademark of Eveready Battery Company. Bunzilla or it's creator are not associated with the Eveready company in any form whatsoever, nor is this robot officially endorsed by Eveready.)
These questions were asked by children, so the responses may not be suitable for all readers...
The name Bunzilla was given to it by the Grade IV class of xxxxxx School, in Calgary, Alberta
Bunzilla operates by remote control, similar to the type used by Radio Shack remote control toys like cars and trucks. He has 3 wheels underneath him, one is just a caster to give him balance and it "free-wheels". The two wheels on each side are driven by two motors removed from some old cars. The remote control signals enter the receiver and are amplified by large transistors that supply the current for the motors. Another circuit in series with the motors allows for biasing each motor so Bunzilla moves straight ahead. The antenna for the receiver is in Bunzilla's head.
6 months working every night and every week-end
I always wanted to make a robot, and when I saw the advertisements on TV showing the Energizer Bunny walking across the screen, I knew I could make a robot to do the same thing.
The arms are each connected to a rod that connects to an odd-shaped wheel called an eccentric which is attached to a small motor in the main body. As the motor turns, it pushes on the rod to make the arm swivel out and hit the drum. Making the arms move back and forth was the hardest thing to do in the construction of this robot.
Yes, he makes sounds and he DOES beat on the drum. However the drum does not make the sound. One of the problems I had was getting enough energy in the arms to hit the drum sufficiently to make a loud drum sound. Since the arms were made of Styrofoam insulation to keep the weight down and they were only being moved with a small motor, I had to devise another scheme. I bought an integrated circuit called a "sound chip", similar to what you might find in a fluff toy that talks and recorded a "drum sound" on it. (Click here for circuit) (I was beating on everything imaginable trying to get the right sound. I finally got it using a rectangular plastic container I used for chemicals.). I built the circuit board for the chip and also built a small single-transistor amplifier to amplify the sound, which comes out of Bunzilla's belly through an 20 cm. loud-speaker.
The feet move up and down and are connected to the wheels with a mechanism that converts the wheel rotation into up-and-down motion.
How much fur did Bunzilla need to cover his body?
Actual used is about 3/4 square meter. There was about 1/4 meter wasted in the cutting and pasting.
What other robots have you built
I built one called Duncan.
Most of the robot is recycled. It cost about $100 for the fur and the drive motors. Check out the parts source page to see where the parts came from.
Does it have much electronics?
It uses electronics (integrated circuits, transistors, etc) for walking, and making the drum sound. There is also a circuit to measure the life left in the batteries. Check out the schematic diagram (PDF format).
|
|
©2000 Queenie-Dog Graphics All rights reserved. |