alternate ways of moving props
Humanoido
Posts: 5,770
Here's a thought experiment.
Oddly enough, I only want to move the chips.
It was one thing moving two stamps - just use two servos.
But now I have a kind of robot where I want to move 170 props,
and 170 servos are out of the question.
humanoido
Post Edited (humanoido) : 3/1/2010 2:49:20 PM GMT
Oddly enough, I only want to move the chips.
It was one thing moving two stamps - just use two servos.
But now I have a kind of robot where I want to move 170 props,
and 170 servos are out of the question.
humanoido
Post Edited (humanoido) : 3/1/2010 2:49:20 PM GMT
Comments
A "propchime" and a big fan?
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You only ever need two tools in life. If it moves and it shouldn't use Duct Tape. If it does not move and it should use WD40.
What kind if movment?
170 props is $1200, ouch.
www.jameco.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ParametricSearchResultsView?ssr=1&dp=category_root%24%2425%24%242550&dc=25%24%242550%24%24255015&rf=1&closedColumns=&isShowImages=0&app.products.maxperpage=25&refine=1&ShipAvailValue=Select&MinOrderQtyValue=Select&jameco_page=52&langId=-1&catalogId=10001&storeId=10001
Post Edited (Mike Green) : 3/1/2010 3:09:50 PM GMT
http://forums.parallax.com/forums/default.aspx?f=21&m=386212
There's a lot of space left in the cooler.
If your boards size is only a quater of the board used there, you can put maybe 10 x 10 x 3 of your propeller boards in the cooler .... maybe additional layers above the batteries.
Post Edited (MagIO2) : 3/1/2010 3:46:15 PM GMT
Another possibility.... Mirrors placed on each Prop (or coil) for a kinetic mosaic display? ... instead of coil to coil interaction, just coil to permanent magnet interaction.
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Beau Schwabe
IC Layout Engineer
Parallax, Inc.
Post Edited (Beau Schwabe (Parallax)) : 3/1/2010 3:24:45 PM GMT
They're cheap and easy to feed, you know.
www.newscientist.com/article/dn8718-robot-moved-by-a-slime-moulds-fears.html
Bill
Jim
You can have tiny fans mounted on orthogonal sides of the balloons (think cubes).
I wonder if fish-net stockings would provide a good balloon container and equipment harness.
You could use the Parallax wireless XBee modules for Propeller network communications.
Unfortunately it looks like helium balloon won't easily pull along prop chips inside the small sphere because they are contained in the sphere and the balloon would friction the sphere's interior and have a relatively large circle of confusion (although I like the overall concept), and wind chime power is a good idea by coordinating fans but I believe the accuracy is not enough due to the hover craft effect (floating around) and repeating pendulum effect if affixed on a pivot.
I have explored muscle wires in the past, having built some robots, and at that time, the wire consumed considerable power to achieve any respectable degree of expansion contraction. I am sure there will be limited power available, but this is a good idea for more consideration. Not sure on the autonomous mobility factor though...
In a confined area, power can be wirelessly beamed to the props for movement, but its likely the props may need to go into a stasis at that time of movement or have some kind of shielding.
Raising Physarum polycephalum is a great idea, however it requires an environment and care that is not conducive to my environment. I'm sure they won't survive the desert-like conditions, extreme temperatures and poisonous air pollution here.
Maybe I need to consider motors and take a look at some existing tiny robots. The H-Bridge is a good idea and should be in a chip for size considerations. Tiny solenoids and magnets can make tiny motors.
I like the idea of magnetic levitation and a ride on the bullet train in Japan was amazingly smooth. If the chip can be magnetically coupled to the sphere... though maybe it's not power or cost effective...
Need more input... more input... [noparse]:)[/noparse]
humanoido
Wonder if you could get some steel ball bearings to roll around on several rails of a spherical strut frame under control of a Propeller.
That would be interesting if not a start. Not a maglev exactly, more like a rail gun with low frequency for movement.
many tracks can give some level of autonomy. As long as they don't
crash into each other! May need track switching like a train.
I like the idea, but the track would need to follow the inside curved
sphere... how would you make a curved track that
would not bind the bearings? or switch the tracks? Or... maybe each
chip can own its own tracks. But... that would be a lot of tracks for a
lot of chips, maybe they can overlap, but maybe not as there is the
requirement to have a line of sight of visibility above the prop chip.
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-MH
to hold and move the balls. Would a magnetic field really disturb propeller operation? I doubt it.
What's interesting is that I did my post before his... none of those other posts were there when I did mine.
[noparse][[/noparse]EDIT: Now that I look at this, my times are all messed up and out of sequence from when I enter them... the time zone is incorrect, too... even though I have mine set for eastern, it's showing -8 GMT, which isn't right!]
Bill
If I did my math right...
Area = 4 * pi * r = 12.57 square feet = 1809.6 square inches
1809.6 / 170 = 10.64 square inches available per Propeller
Sqrt of 10.64 = 3.26 inches from one Propeller to the next
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Beau Schwabe
IC Layout Engineer
Parallax, Inc.
humanoido
Post Edited (humanoido) : 3/2/2010 2:44:56 AM GMT
humanoido