tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32469041980414506492024-03-16T11:52:51.395-07:00uiproductionsMarchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-72285008191544185632018-09-30T06:54:00.000-07:002019-04-09T00:49:50.832-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 6 - Rotator<span style="background-color: #cc0000;">Warning: This post contains spoilers! If you have not watched our match with Rotator, you should come back later and read this after watching! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>A Day to Prepare</b></span><br />
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Coming off a victory against HUGE, we felt confident that a 3-1 record would place us solidly in the tournament of 16. At this point we did not know the exact match-ups though. We get to work on the teardown and inspection of Icewave. It's starting to become familiar, but very tiring, now.<br />
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After inspecting the bot, it looks like nothing failed. Our 3D printed parts had survived and kept the red engine in one piece! This is great news, but now we have a tough decision to make.<br />
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Our new engine crankcase has finally arrived, but it'll be a massive effort to dismantle the old yellow engine and transfer all of the parts over to the new crankcase. The crankcase also has to be heavily modified (with a precision angle grinder) to remove all the excess material. With not much else to work on, we begin that process. However, we tentatively decide to leave the red engine as-is on the robot, since it seemed to be working. Installing a brand new engine could introduce a lot of new, unanticipated problems.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSs1Qho-gZlr2Zs_0rOuFbEAMQI-skC4yJAaBu__dAyN3K5I8nRrqS4c7fuTbnZAkYc3U48_z8h1EhZyHJboyrQoPetpfODKBF-0S9foagwWePjadsrbVZlxKabJB47b852hQA_VfRI1M/s1600/Photo+Apr+12%252C+1+34+05+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSs1Qho-gZlr2Zs_0rOuFbEAMQI-skC4yJAaBu__dAyN3K5I8nRrqS4c7fuTbnZAkYc3U48_z8h1EhZyHJboyrQoPetpfODKBF-0S9foagwWePjadsrbVZlxKabJB47b852hQA_VfRI1M/s200/Photo+Apr+12%252C+1+34+05+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeBw2iz11KbFw0BY-o0Fi7ZJQ6sKLgTZiBE4b3xKhmnkL0e0DsbgEKlh7GS3d6k_8Lz5vP7Bwa2e3AMeIsq-W-UBXhLYHq4CLCMBALwQvhMokV9I84Jg2fhhmLoyHa1-cunHPhNiGB4KY/s1600/Photo+Apr+12%252C+4+14+09+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1197" data-original-width="1600" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeBw2iz11KbFw0BY-o0Fi7ZJQ6sKLgTZiBE4b3xKhmnkL0e0DsbgEKlh7GS3d6k_8Lz5vP7Bwa2e3AMeIsq-W-UBXhLYHq4CLCMBALwQvhMokV9I84Jg2fhhmLoyHa1-cunHPhNiGB4KY/s200/Photo+Apr+12%252C+4+14+09+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudaBzgFVEaY5Kikot4dNTqi3WksqyE407QnwS9RJLZcHfOUWfFfT1b5hTZL3yglORGENfbiu-T4u4TPP1sNbCdcRQKVXMThksctI0DXIwVjTT4_1i-48HhcyFG-mQq8Fr7OS1tcrvfZY/s1600/Photo+Apr+12%252C+4+14+16+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjudaBzgFVEaY5Kikot4dNTqi3WksqyE407QnwS9RJLZcHfOUWfFfT1b5hTZL3yglORGENfbiu-T4u4TPP1sNbCdcRQKVXMThksctI0DXIwVjTT4_1i-48HhcyFG-mQq8Fr7OS1tcrvfZY/s200/Photo+Apr+12%252C+4+14+16+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLnWgCAPuIvgzIpg2fBSMkbUz1_aBAzhNCda9kQ2GYxb7V3kYqW9vWyYyap3gkqUsb-fHg9Oq9JAXNrYNGOwWhboPy1vGo5hb3yWjdEzR2v5ZTHBhjIEQ2MPZZnjkIALDSXzgrlLE0PIA/s1600/Photo+Apr+12%252C+2+20+48+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLnWgCAPuIvgzIpg2fBSMkbUz1_aBAzhNCda9kQ2GYxb7V3kYqW9vWyYyap3gkqUsb-fHg9Oq9JAXNrYNGOwWhboPy1vGo5hb3yWjdEzR2v5ZTHBhjIEQ2MPZZnjkIALDSXzgrlLE0PIA/s200/Photo+Apr+12%252C+2+20+48+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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We also take the opportunity to run everything again in the test arena just to be sure it's all good. We're feeling pretty content at this point. We have our new spare engine ready in case we need it after this match, but we'll fight this upcoming match as-is.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NHH2PZES-Pc3Aqjip8f8ChH6EIWeoVV0WEOxL4prfIQk4dW6_4TUhBTKX_fDAhWt4x5fwqIdwgmAVVbNk5N3ll6DQgKozLw68nOHGbxZj3xjD8JgZu6P13bg8OYzMLGmrT6YBUMAmaA/s1600/Photo+Apr+13%252C+2+04+10+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NHH2PZES-Pc3Aqjip8f8ChH6EIWeoVV0WEOxL4prfIQk4dW6_4TUhBTKX_fDAhWt4x5fwqIdwgmAVVbNk5N3ll6DQgKozLw68nOHGbxZj3xjD8JgZu6P13bg8OYzMLGmrT6YBUMAmaA/s320/Photo+Apr+13%252C+2+04+10+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Icewave v. Rotator</b></span><br />
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We learned going into this match that Rotator was changing configurations. Victor was going to add our least favorite defense mechanism, a big sloped plow on the front of Rotator, in place of one of their discs. As usual, this is frustrating, but expected. Without putting much thought into it, I guess I mistakenly assumed their single disc would be the one near the floor. It wasn't until we were lining up to fight that I realized this configuration meant their disc would be raised up high on the back. Our engine cover is only made from very thin 1/8" aluminum sheets. This should be fine though, since our primary defense is our spinning blade anyway. In 3 seasons no robot has done significant damage to our engine, because they just can't get past our blade. We make our way to the arena.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7N2afgplejVUG5PvFrFKPABB7gegNkoXwjoAtCD33hwtBYIxWczxnPzeKR_TQ5HzNEEUMI3onS9pUtLWRXXXQ56zB-CaLiJn2xkZwtMuVUVP69hwy6hx3ufi7Gx8xti2ZbqvCE9ixtI/s1600/Photo+Apr+13%252C+6+37+33+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7N2afgplejVUG5PvFrFKPABB7gegNkoXwjoAtCD33hwtBYIxWczxnPzeKR_TQ5HzNEEUMI3onS9pUtLWRXXXQ56zB-CaLiJn2xkZwtMuVUVP69hwy6hx3ufi7Gx8xti2ZbqvCE9ixtI/s320/Photo+Apr+13%252C+6+37+33+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Victor looking like he's ready for an EDM festival.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEjRYB06cj8mPlO7THJWcNPUCm14w5YaHuAODtfbyhFmGoAq4NVHHA_OYSGjR6ZHcNPEY8Q1fZzw7gakIp1KI8ZePvt8xNfQcfjbVGnTxlenMOGRnB_gEu50TBqXvuRo1JxEBgdcEMy4/s1600/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Dan-Longmire-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEjRYB06cj8mPlO7THJWcNPUCm14w5YaHuAODtfbyhFmGoAq4NVHHA_OYSGjR6ZHcNPEY8Q1fZzw7gakIp1KI8ZePvt8xNfQcfjbVGnTxlenMOGRnB_gEu50TBqXvuRo1JxEBgdcEMy4/s320/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Dan-Longmire-2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Angie's back!</div>
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Upon learning we made it into the tournament, Angie couldn't keep herself away. She flew back in for the weekend so we were a complete team again!<br />
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The match gets started, and we spin up to full speed. Our two bots clash a few times and our blade creates a shower of sparks off Rotator's new titanium plow. Everything seems to be going fine, and we've avoided flipping over so far.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhH7PfNt8tblZi3iQb5X-klRguH4sn1_zPVDFI3Xln5d6lMhJ3iNXMX6k_Y3lNbSDOMrwu_r9BnHmMp-e77q-nwmlnQC36A5IUcenNdV0WgivgpEfvDcMK4I6RHpDP2Xb92Evq_C5OHNc/s1600/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Dan-Longmire-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhH7PfNt8tblZi3iQb5X-klRguH4sn1_zPVDFI3Xln5d6lMhJ3iNXMX6k_Y3lNbSDOMrwu_r9BnHmMp-e77q-nwmlnQC36A5IUcenNdV0WgivgpEfvDcMK4I6RHpDP2Xb92Evq_C5OHNc/s320/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Dan-Longmire-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRgHkTjSd87owLo8NRASmiEprpAPDRJF00vxg8P3JW96m9L_qSTmUyPTLLJPzYkEZqpFo0_9KV8YQFv0VCaCOAoVzOFK9TGmMzcr0AA1MSA_pzkt5wuoVanKxQgUo-B__mPL5dkMGkyV0/s1600/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Jon-Bennett-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRgHkTjSd87owLo8NRASmiEprpAPDRJF00vxg8P3JW96m9L_qSTmUyPTLLJPzYkEZqpFo0_9KV8YQFv0VCaCOAoVzOFK9TGmMzcr0AA1MSA_pzkt5wuoVanKxQgUo-B__mPL5dkMGkyV0/s320/BB-EP119-Icewave-vs-Rotator-Photo-Jon-Bennett-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then, seemingly out of nowhere, our engine cuts out. I drive around for a few seconds to avoid Rotator while we recover. Alex is operating the engine controls, so he immediately hits the starter and we can hear the engine restart. The engine dies again a few seconds later. We haven't been able to spin up. Alex restarts the engine a second time, and we can hear it run for a few cycles, but then it dies again.<br />
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This entire time I am doing my best to avoid confrontation with Rotator in the arena. I ask Alex what he thinks is going on, but it's not clear why the engine is behaving this way. Regardless, now it seems dead for good, as Alex attempts to restart to no avail. I drive around for a few more seconds, but without a spinning blade, I know I'm going to have to face the music at some point.<br />
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I bite the bullet and drive straight into Rotator. His disc immediately tears through our engine cover with ease, and the engine inside has been hit. At this point, nothing else could be done but to try to show aggression by driving straight into him and shoving him around. Unfortunately, this meant more and more engine pieces would get ripped off until Rotator had slowly dismantled the entire upper half of Icewave.<br />
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Short of a miracle, nothing would stop Rotator from taking the win at this point. We continue driving as aggressively as possible for the remaining 2 minutes with a 5 MPH robot and no blade. The judges rightly claim Rotator as the winner, and that ends our run at the 2018 Giant Nut!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZC_T7xFLAomJnufHbsOTnB6eczQokpWkHcpFV1XYCog3l9O3ottzK1U9ywNkOaITjHBsY1Mulsn9ONnljksmP15rbCyxg4l46ni5nIeip2JcZUopMFVq5Da5l-ce9QiFkz-1J0mUZNc/s1600/Photo+Apr+13%252C+7+27+42+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJZC_T7xFLAomJnufHbsOTnB6eczQokpWkHcpFV1XYCog3l9O3ottzK1U9ywNkOaITjHBsY1Mulsn9ONnljksmP15rbCyxg4l46ni5nIeip2JcZUopMFVq5Da5l-ce9QiFkz-1J0mUZNc/s320/Photo+Apr+13%252C+7+27+42+PM.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSBucchV_dB-6Ed0fi9xVfAwMSZfDVPwRg3H96lnesIoXG6xkjwGm-cprOepRx0BTys5w_5dqlbJWpHbthJoAWYagdzBrzAXRKyr2r-4atizc292N0ylrfh8NH-wpEOkeEX8TlcrTOtt8/s1600/Photo+Apr+13%252C+7+37+21+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSBucchV_dB-6Ed0fi9xVfAwMSZfDVPwRg3H96lnesIoXG6xkjwGm-cprOepRx0BTys5w_5dqlbJWpHbthJoAWYagdzBrzAXRKyr2r-4atizc292N0ylrfh8NH-wpEOkeEX8TlcrTOtt8/s320/Photo+Apr+13%252C+7+37+21+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Affectionately known as "Zombie Icewave" now.</div>
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While we're disappointed at how this match turned out, we're mostly frustrated that we'll never know why the engine died. It's nearly impossible to investigate the root cause when your engine is spread across the arena floor in 100 pieces.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What's Next for Icewave?</b></span><br />
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Overall we are very pleased with Icewave's performance this season. It was a drastic improvement over our missteps in 2016, and we definitely had some amazing fights. Another season hasn't been announced yet, but we've already begun thinking what to do next. We're excited to have a clean slate (literally) to work with. Should we double down and build a custom engine that is more robust than the old one? Should we do the smart thing and switch to electric motors and abandon the ICE completely? Send us a message on our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/teamicewave">Facebook page</a> and let us know what you think we should do!<br />
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Thanks for reading!<br />
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-marc<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">*** Photo Credit: Jon Bennett, Tony Woodward, Dan Longmire ***</span></div>
Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-20733945784314516872018-09-30T05:31:00.002-07:002018-09-30T22:04:18.616-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 5 - HUGE<span style="background-color: #cc0000;">Warning: This post contains spoilers! If you have not watched our match with HUGE, you should come back later and read this after watching! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Back in the Pit</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>After our frustrating loss to Skorpios, we knew we had to step it up in our next match to prove we were fit for the Tournament of 16. At this point we don't know who we are fighting yet. Fortunately, we now had a day off from filming to tear Icewave down and inspect everything. We were about to find out that we needed it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1_QJUVZUUitPSe9kMlz0zVLm3zE_sRG3mL0jNJEQ5e9Jh2Q79839rIdSmI513-lzbrb-4uu0-6D_VBQIf0tLNvi9BrkSKzw9DU5sY1b8O6W2wQT2ysFE9__oi1qVA_umaIJTlpqTUJk/s1600/Photo+Apr+09%252C+1+19+42+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1_QJUVZUUitPSe9kMlz0zVLm3zE_sRG3mL0jNJEQ5e9Jh2Q79839rIdSmI513-lzbrb-4uu0-6D_VBQIf0tLNvi9BrkSKzw9DU5sY1b8O6W2wQT2ysFE9__oi1qVA_umaIJTlpqTUJk/s320/Photo+Apr+09%252C+1+19+42+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It seems like our new red engine has now succumbed to the shock like the first one, and pieces were breaking off left and right. We also noticed half of our drive train was feeling pretty seized up. We brainstormed for a few minutes about potential engine solutions. The new crankcase we had overnighted from Ebay had not arrived yet due to a FedEx error. They always seem to have the worst timing.<br />
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Having Alex look over the engine allowed us to see the problem with a fresh set of eyes. Why were we using all of the existing mounting holes on the weak flange of the engine instead of the more reinforced, thicker areas of the housing? Now it's too late. The housing has lost so many pieces that it's going to be difficult to salvage. With the event progressing and more bots getting damaged, the <a href="http://www.tormach.com/">Tormach </a>guys had an overwhelming amount of parts in their queue.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVvvQ9DorczNswfr0pI2o1MKVLMDSWgYPnUCNWFIhPekO8lq9m6TzI6eYmX3CChD1brV447Hj63WoVCsX1S7l3G8NBIeP19SUz5255ZgEIBMH08pklbYaRRfhe8feeQOOjL5cayaYl8s/s1600/TormachTable.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="868" data-original-width="1600" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilVvvQ9DorczNswfr0pI2o1MKVLMDSWgYPnUCNWFIhPekO8lq9m6TzI6eYmX3CChD1brV447Hj63WoVCsX1S7l3G8NBIeP19SUz5255ZgEIBMH08pklbYaRRfhe8feeQOOjL5cayaYl8s/s320/TormachTable.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Tormach guys were awesome, but they needed to learn to say "no" to some of the crazy parts.</div>
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We needed a solution much faster. Without a spare engine, and with limited tools and materials at our disposal, we come up with a plan to 3D print some blocks that will support the engine. Fortunately, Donald Hutson from the Lockjaw team had arranged with his sponsor, Stratasys, to have one of their fancy new FDM 3D printers at the event for the builders to use! 3D printed parts can be weak in a lot of situations, but in this case, we felt pretty confident our solution would work. We spend the next hour or two measuring the engine, designing parts in <a href="http://www.solidworks.com/">Solidworks</a>, and running some test prints.<br />
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The parts would be used mostly in compression, sandwiched between the engine mounting plate and the engine. This would provide us with more mounting points that hadn't previously existed on the engine. We decided we would also epoxy these new plastic parts to the engine housing to fill any gaps between the two parts. Here you can see me feeling very confident about our solution.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>So Many Problems</b></span><br />
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While I was working on the engine, Alex was getting waist-deep in our drive train. After tearing everything down, we concluded that one of our drive motors had loose magnets. This happens generally after large impacts (like in BattleBots?) and most motors can only take so much abuse. When the magnets break free from the outer can of the motor, they can prevent the motor from spinning. Fortunately we have two spare motors and we're able to swap one in. We also take this opportunity to replace our little wheels, which had turned into even littler stumps of plastic by now. Actually, come to think of it, does Icewave have the smallest wheels of any bot at this event?<br />
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I think by around 9PM, we had everything back together and the epoxy had cured long enough that we were going to try to squeeze in a quick test run in the safety arena before the pits closed for the night. We wheel the robot outside in the dark, set up some work lights at the test box, and fire up the engine. I ease the throttle up, and everything seems to be running great, so I continue spinning faster. The engine is roaring at full bore now and we're pumped that it all came together so well.<br />
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Suddenly we start to hear the engine losing some speed, even though I haven't touched the controls. It couldn't be running out of gas already! We look up, and now we see fire and sparks shooting out from the exhaust pipe, and we immediately know something is wrong. The engine coasts to a halt and we bring it back to the pit area to assess the damage. Somehow the head of the engine had managed to work itself loose from the crank case, and now there is a large gap between the two. Otherwise, everything looked fine! Honestly, how did the engine rattle itself apart at 15,000 RPM and not cause complete mayhem?<br />
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We immediately jump into replacing parts with spares we had brought to the event: new piston, piston rings, and cylinder head. We work like a NASCAR team and get the engine back together just before the pits close, with enough time for one last test run. This time I should probably take it easy on the throttle. We find out that tomorrow we fight HUGE.<br />
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">Icewave v. HUGE</b><br />
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Huge is an amazing robot. It's not often that we get to see very new, unique bots at BB. And upon first glance, it seems like a design that would never work. Then I remember watching one-by-one as they took down each of their opponents in some amazing upsets. It became clear to me by now that their weapon had to be taken seriously. We make our way to the arena.<br />
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I look like a lobster, so that means we're in the Red Square!</div>
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We might be a little delirious at this point.</div>
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The match gets started. I knew I had to be very patient with my driving to avoid their weapon. I try to circle them a few times, but they rotate in place very well. Eventually I'm able to sneak in and clip one of their wheel spokes with our blade. Huge is still standing, but the missing chunk from their wheel causes them to get hung up for a second. The wheel starts to collapse a bit, and I move in for another hit. This time our weapons make direct contact and both robots get thrown apart.<br />
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Huge is now limping severely, but their weapon is still spinning and they're pivoting on one wheel near the arena wall. I probably could have stayed back as Kenny suggests in his on-air commentary, but we're only 30 seconds into the fight, and we haven't seen any of the massive hits that are expected from Icewave. Going into this match, I knew I needed to impress the judges if I wanted to have a shot at the tournament. I move in for another hit, and this one rips Huge completely in half.<br />
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Photo Credit: Jon Bennett, Tony Woodward, Dan Longmire</div>
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">The Aftermath</b><br />
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It's always a little bit sad to see someone's creation get split apart like that. I have to give credit to Jonathan and his team though. They took the damage in stride and actually had Huge rebuilt before the end of the night! Check out the chunk missing from Huge's blade where our weapons connected!<br />
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They were also kind enough to sign a piece of their bot and give it to us as a souvenir!<br />
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We decided to take a much needed break to go out to dinner. The next day would be another day off, but then the tournament begins! <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2018/09/icewave-2018-recap-part-6-rotator.html">Click here to continue to Part 6!</a><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">*** Photo Credit: Jon Bennett, Tony Woodward, Dan Longmire ***</span><br />
<br />Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-50895206348984189112018-09-30T03:16:00.003-07:002018-09-30T22:14:32.695-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 4 - Skorpios<span style="background-color: #cc0000;">Warning: This post contains spoilers! If you have not watched our match with Skorpios, you should come back later and read this after watching! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Kenny's Intro</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>It had now been about 2 days since our Yeti fight, and even though we didn't have much to do, we worked non-stop and used every bit of those two days to repair. I'm not sure where all the time went. The producers asked if we would be able to do a cold open with host Kenny Florian out near the safety arena. The story was that Kenny was trying to talk about Icewave, but couldn't get his lines out because Icewave was so loud. This was one of the more fun (and scary) parts of non-combat we were able to do. I was very hesitant to run Icewave with everyone standing so close, but we kept the blade speed relatively slow and it turned out great. This actually aired as the intro to the episode where we fought Vanquish.<br />
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The film crew wanted one more take but we ran out of gas.</div>
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">Icewave v. Skorpios</b><br />
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We learned Skorpios had been adding some attachments to their bot, similar to Ghost Raptor's "De-Icer" from Season 1. We had prepared for this with very simple solution that we call "the beak". It is a small piece of aluminum that we could attach to the front of the engine cover to deflect the pusher-style attachments like the De-Icer. We also had a sheet of polycarbonate for overhead defense that we were going to add, but didn't have enough weight for in this configuration<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtGrvdnj9LHRsa1ks5Nd53QRsOgXwezyc2Q38GI9FY_GhLbK78h11JXtZfC5m3KkZ57AMJVMcUBo7N2-HwB0lOtAE1f42IOeNfYo8ju9EGbBz_tMhy0j4RMjgBlcoDMvPo4DmPNl9BFk/s1600/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtGrvdnj9LHRsa1ks5Nd53QRsOgXwezyc2Q38GI9FY_GhLbK78h11JXtZfC5m3KkZ57AMJVMcUBo7N2-HwB0lOtAE1f42IOeNfYo8ju9EGbBz_tMhy0j4RMjgBlcoDMvPo4DmPNl9BFk/s320/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-29.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Skorpios's version of the De-Icer was made from hockey sticks!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJPMwfUGnPiNU83vpQPiJz0ktCpJ-WZTTua8YpaWhOhT5TByY9cu8rVEIswPHrIQM6sfzK1TUSbRkrofLaBgn8mq6bANn3zQzco3mGyBSoPnSnvBlZKEweEXZrBOkn1sfP72OJeqd6gA/s1600/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJPMwfUGnPiNU83vpQPiJz0ktCpJ-WZTTua8YpaWhOhT5TByY9cu8rVEIswPHrIQM6sfzK1TUSbRkrofLaBgn8mq6bANn3zQzco3mGyBSoPnSnvBlZKEweEXZrBOkn1sfP72OJeqd6gA/s320/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-26.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">The beak is the orange thing. Oh hey, it's Alex!</span></div>
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Normally Team Icewave is myself and my teammate Angie. Angie and I used to work together, and she's a very talented mechanical design engineer. She is responsible for most of the CAD design of Icewave back in 2015, as well as half of all the fabrication and assembly. Unfortunately, Angie was only able to stay for the first half of the two-week taping due to work, so I convinced my good friend Alex to fly out and take over half way through.<br />
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Alex is a seasoned, old-school BB veteran. Some of you might remember him from Team Loki back on Comedy Central (Surgeon General, Turbo, Rammstein, and Afterburner). He's also very experienced with engines, which made him perfectly suited to jump right in. This match also turned out to be a Main Event, so it was really cool being able to walk through the tunnel as a complete team for this one day before Angie had to leave!<br />
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The match gets under way, and as usual, our bots exchange some decent hits. Very early in the match, we somehow managed to hit a tiny piece of metal on Skorpios that they used to restrain their weapon for safety outside the arena. The hit bent that metal piece into their weapon, eliminating the ability for their the arm to articulate for the rest of the match.<br />
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I knew Orion, the driver of Skorpios, was a great driver. I now also realized that Skorpios was much faster than Icewave. At one point we connected and managed to remove part of their front armor. However, normally after a big hit, we are able to evade for a few seconds while our blade gets back to speed. In this match, Skorpios was able to recover quickly and stay on top of us, not allowing the blade to spin up.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggqVVTHTOKY-7dZCfLUL5XvX6pE8FU_6fIis_hYzj9vDt5AjwjH80EnHqYp7T-FU7R3cnGvlawk5o1Zci9Aw0lFsgkYL7ovmWZqSyP67JtRrr0GRJ4o0KFrDKPsB4rpiiBNF1P9wpYZGY/s1600/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="995" data-original-width="1600" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggqVVTHTOKY-7dZCfLUL5XvX6pE8FU_6fIis_hYzj9vDt5AjwjH80EnHqYp7T-FU7R3cnGvlawk5o1Zci9Aw0lFsgkYL7ovmWZqSyP67JtRrr0GRJ4o0KFrDKPsB4rpiiBNF1P9wpYZGY/s320/BB-ep109-Icewave-v-Skorpios-photo-Dan-Longmire-5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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To make matters worse, this uncovered a technical detail we had been overlooking for a while. Icewave's engine is coupled to the blade through a two-stage belt and chain reduction, but first through a centrifugal clutch on the engine output shaft. This allows our engine to idle without the blade spinning, and allows the engine RPM to rev up into a more efficient power band during spin-up. For 3 seasons now, we never really needed to REDUCE the throttle back to idle much during a match.<br />
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Here's the problem. The servo we had connected to the throttle was attached in a way that allowed us to reduce the throttle low enough that the engine would stall. I had convinced myself this was an added safety feature, in case our remote killswitch failed for some reason. But in reality, this makes idling the engine very difficult for the person controlling that lever. Only a few ticks on the throttle would be the difference between "too fast" and "about to stall". <br />
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Never having been in this situation before, Angie (who was controlling the throttle) rightly kept the idle pretty high throughout the match to avoid a stall. Over time, this took its toll on the first stage belt, which became hardened and slick from the heat. After that, our spin-up time became much worse, so we had no shot of spinning the blade up quickly even if we had broken free. The match went the full 3 minutes, but Skorpios had pushed us around most of the time. The judges gave the decision to Skorpios.<br />
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After each match, all bots are required to be taken outside for safety reasons. We don't want any damaged Lithium batteries exploding in the pits! Here we joined the Skorpios team as they were being interviewed by a film crew. It looks like we managed to rip off a few pieces of their wedge at least! These guys were awesome enough to give us one of the hockey sticks signed by their team too.<br />
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You can see by now it's dark outside, so it's late in the day and we still need to get Icewave apart and inspect everything. With a 2-1 record, a spot in the Top 16 is now questionable, and we need to make sure we're at 100% for our fourth and final pre-season match.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhipe5yxyKTg3xBFKwpebz7Iny3aEd3Z5c3ENsZMKs2P9wm307UCBTmr1EM1fKXs5lYnFlr_e1HYDc3OSJbTTQAgSVSogi7c7_is4YaeJKTq-W7Lyx7ibKktkJr8ixa4N62MieTPo1Nzsk/s1600/Photo+Apr+08%252C+11+00+00+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhipe5yxyKTg3xBFKwpebz7Iny3aEd3Z5c3ENsZMKs2P9wm307UCBTmr1EM1fKXs5lYnFlr_e1HYDc3OSJbTTQAgSVSogi7c7_is4YaeJKTq-W7Lyx7ibKktkJr8ixa4N62MieTPo1Nzsk/s320/Photo+Apr+08%252C+11+00+00+PM.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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"Nope, scratch that! We need you to put on a very serious face for some intro shots."</div>
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Stay tuned for our next post where we get back to the pit, see what broke, and prepare for our fourth match!<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">*** Photo Credit: Jon Bennett, Tony Woodward, Dan Longmire ***</span><br />
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Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-79873825027822030532018-09-30T00:50:00.000-07:002018-09-30T22:27:49.886-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 3 - Yeti<span style="background-color: #cc0000;">Warning: This post contains spoilers! If you have not watched our match with Yeti, you should come back later and read this after watching! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Icewave v. Yeti</b></span><br />
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By this point we had spent quite a bit of time swapping our engine out and preparing for our fight with Yeti. We ran into a number of other small problems along the way. We noticed our throttle servo was not behaving properly, so we had to swap that out. We didn't have many spare servos, so this was concerning. Nevertheless, the filming schedule was fairly spread out at this point, so we felt pretty prepared for the fight. We learned Yeti was removing his forks in favor of a large fixed wedge on the front. This is always frustrating, because fighting a wedge means we flip ourselves over, but of course I would have do the same if I were fighting Icewave.<br />
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This fight was to be filmed as a Main Event, presumably because of Yeti's high ranking and great performance last season. This means we enter through the tunnel!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4UFK1j4TV7Z0lTNuwGz5vmGu-gWyk-3RkLwOSSPjd9P3octnpp5pZi2FoTIdrjaQOaiVpARhhAVqFHOlJO688UCYlH_6WxaEuTac_XAPOeDJ4_jBa_2SXb27_nXfLMp33gCKN89E_tdM/s1600/Photo+Apr+06%252C+2+54+39+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4UFK1j4TV7Z0lTNuwGz5vmGu-gWyk-3RkLwOSSPjd9P3octnpp5pZi2FoTIdrjaQOaiVpARhhAVqFHOlJO688UCYlH_6WxaEuTac_XAPOeDJ4_jBa_2SXb27_nXfLMp33gCKN89E_tdM/s200/Photo+Apr+06%252C+2+54+39+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The match gets under way, and we engage in a few big hits. Neither bot seemed phased though, and we kept going. Lots of sparks were flying, and it felt like an eternity. According to these pictures, we were approximately 20 seconds into the match at this point.<br />
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Then, all of a sudden, our blade has a direct impact with Yeti's wedge. This sends Icewave flying as I predicted. I remember being stunned, hoping Icewave still drives when it lands. Amazingly, we land on our wheels and we can still drive! I try to maneuver Icewave to a safe area to spin up again, not even noticing that Yeti isn't moving. What happened? The driver of Yeti, Greg Gibson, is trying everything he can, but Yeti seems unresponsive. The refs start a countdown on Yeti.<br />
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The replay of this shown on Discovery was really cool to watch because it shows how much our blade flexes on impacts like this.<br />
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At this point, it's probably worth going off-topic to talk about something I'm sure most builders go through. Icewave, along with most of the other robots on the show, weighs 250 pounds. It requires at least 2 people to lift onto a cart when it's fully assembled. Because of this, Icewave spends most of its time at our shop in 3 pieces: the bottom part (drive train), the blade assembly, and the top part (the engine). If we're lucky, we'll get the whole thing together a few weeks before the event and drive around with the engine running. If there is ever a point where the engine is ready to run and the blade is installed on the robot, we NEVER install the belt that connects the engine to the blade. In previous matches, we've seen Icewave flip over, explode catastrophically, and send shrapnel flying in any direction. It is just too dangerous to run Icewave's blade anywhere outside of an arena. All of this is worth mentioning because I think it provides insight into how I operate Icewave in the arena.<br />
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At this point in the match, our blade is getting up to full speed again and I stop driving to avoid hitting any arena floor seams or uneven areas that might cause us to become unstable. I have positioned myself to attack Yeti again if he recovers, but he's still being counted out. By now I realize that I haven't moved in a while, and the referees also need to see movement from Icewave to prove we're still functional. At the end of a match, it is common practice to drive back to your starting square to signal that you are still operational. I decide to try to drive between Yeti and the arena wall to make my way back to our square. In doing so, I was fooled by our own paintjob (apparently) and accidentally nicked Yeti's wheels with the tips of the blade. I didn't realize this had even happened until I turned to Greg after the match had ended and he said what happened. A few minutes after wheeling our robots outside, Greg's team had discovered the cause of their shutdown -- a loose connection on their radio receiver. I've been on the other end of this before, and it totally sucks.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Post-Fight Teardown</b></span><br />
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Back at our pit area, we immediately inspect our recently-replaced engine for cracks. So far, everything seemed like it was holding up. We had a few small things to fix, like more servo troubles. We had to drive to a nearby hobby shop to buy more servos, then fabricate new servo mounts because of the different form factor. We also had a small crack in our engine cover, which is a common occurrence because the engine cover is thin aluminum that I welded myself. The builders were fortunate enough to have the support of <a href="http://www.lincolnelectric.com/">Lincoln Electric</a> with some really nice machines at the event. Here you can see Rob from Lincoln has repaired the cracked engine cover within a few minutes. He was also awesome enough to give me my first lesson and test run at TIG welding. Their new high-tech TIG machines made it pretty easy for a complete newbie like me to pick up. I just wish I could afford one!<br />
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<a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2018/09/icewave-2018-recap-part-4-skorpios_30.html">Click here for our next post</a> where we prepare for our match against Skorpios!<br />
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<br />Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-38233207312284316722018-09-29T04:46:00.000-07:002018-09-30T00:50:52.853-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 2 - The First Match<span style="background-color: #cc0000;">Warning: This post contains spoilers! If you have not watched our match with Vanquish, you should come back later and read this after watching! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Getting Settled In</b></span><br />
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The BattleBots 2018 season was filmed over 2 weeks in April of 2018 in Los Angeles. We arrived early in the morning after driving most of the night and began to set up our pit area. We were pitted right next to Mohawk, Minotaur, Hypershock, and Blacksmith.<br />
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<span style="text-align: start;">Being familiar with the same robot for 3 seasons paid off and we passed safety quickly. </span></div>
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Waiting outside at the Test Box for functional safety inspection.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirZVzgXxXG5ggOyQB2MUx-DO3uev8S_DwvdgtOVDDVQMmDTVGha9MgCfqF31XDM3mr9LCLitzXrrauzlmd551YmF_OnG-UqOq-sVJkTuRurF3jEM4YC2ghISaXsRRInU1QCrr3u772J4/s1600/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+29+37+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirZVzgXxXG5ggOyQB2MUx-DO3uev8S_DwvdgtOVDDVQMmDTVGha9MgCfqF31XDM3mr9LCLitzXrrauzlmd551YmF_OnG-UqOq-sVJkTuRurF3jEM4YC2ghISaXsRRInU1QCrr3u772J4/s200/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+29+37+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiK2044DjUYT_pKLsygWpeCvxZKUaxtwkmyggS64D_D1hfHQ0bJBbb1-_QiUoRX57rRrsNkBnUYngBO1hVhtg_zNE1XOijmp6_OumsqISU6KaGF6a_qiA9fHlimbJfU9MNQmkvV1-NBtU/s1600/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+30+36+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiK2044DjUYT_pKLsygWpeCvxZKUaxtwkmyggS64D_D1hfHQ0bJBbb1-_QiUoRX57rRrsNkBnUYngBO1hVhtg_zNE1XOijmp6_OumsqISU6KaGF6a_qiA9fHlimbJfU9MNQmkvV1-NBtU/s200/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+30+36+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">We moved on to taking pictures. </span><span style="text-align: start;">Here you can see how the TV crew gets some of those amazing intro shots in the tunnel. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoYFhtQ0_rqBBrqnGb5AAkMU3HD9TdfbAarAmdPtdoGq5vEJfCYF5cj8EO7CEiz9KFw9H6qVtZM6BgUsAvb57oc1f2hIeA7Grz_c5J5_dN2mqTpiMiQNTVJ8YMm6hmAJYOg2yMNeTJUs/s1600/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+38+04+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoYFhtQ0_rqBBrqnGb5AAkMU3HD9TdfbAarAmdPtdoGq5vEJfCYF5cj8EO7CEiz9KFw9H6qVtZM6BgUsAvb57oc1f2hIeA7Grz_c5J5_dN2mqTpiMiQNTVJ8YMm6hmAJYOg2yMNeTJUs/s200/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+38+04+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl6C1gVD-ShHxrUWcRtUlLv0M83NxsnmYpaDR7lIVEaohm8gH2D59ymmwQ_2haHWx-EPPkizgkVKqHrSFgQsB2FBDcxKuMCXLC6NcpvZNK88ybLyAD7f4Y1_TurLFafMdltOkIqoqA_Gc/s1600/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+50+23+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl6C1gVD-ShHxrUWcRtUlLv0M83NxsnmYpaDR7lIVEaohm8gH2D59ymmwQ_2haHWx-EPPkizgkVKqHrSFgQsB2FBDcxKuMCXLC6NcpvZNK88ybLyAD7f4Y1_TurLFafMdltOkIqoqA_Gc/s200/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+50+23+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUsyjdfpEjBrSpv-S3K2rMkByl0c2kioRMJcKjLfGBUHmmY0gzt2JLhTTpeUd7ecNMZBnz8OFBw5g32Zsr9Qk7ziYBk5c3zsqnoply2KPaIjXkrjMUrsIHLnoDvmP5oIbVFVkteAliu6A/s1600/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+52+25+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1335" data-original-width="1600" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUsyjdfpEjBrSpv-S3K2rMkByl0c2kioRMJcKjLfGBUHmmY0gzt2JLhTTpeUd7ecNMZBnz8OFBw5g32Zsr9Qk7ziYBk5c3zsqnoply2KPaIjXkrjMUrsIHLnoDvmP5oIbVFVkteAliu6A/s200/Photo+Apr+02%252C+6+52+25+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;"> </span><span style="text-align: start;">The bot and team photos were taken by longtime BB photographer Dan Longmire. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First Matchup: Vanquish</b></span><br />
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Going into this match, we weren't sure what to expect. Vanquish is a relatively new bot built by Jack Tweedy from the UK. We felt pretty prepared and comfortable with Icewave, but Vanquish does have a thick steel wedge on the front, which historically has been very bad for us.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSxtbKnvQ1dCR9rXxYGd4q32Xr2g594YSTsMookFq3CVPCWSKBb_uVk1cYksIHHxEjTLBu4E1RcOOM6lWZwZmmAvWaTTlK0zFLVpjKbu44OD2x3vsqjbZ3J_ueV2gwLbPdIq3meBvgEg/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+3+07+22+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXSxtbKnvQ1dCR9rXxYGd4q32Xr2g594YSTsMookFq3CVPCWSKBb_uVk1cYksIHHxEjTLBu4E1RcOOM6lWZwZmmAvWaTTlK0zFLVpjKbu44OD2x3vsqjbZ3J_ueV2gwLbPdIq3meBvgEg/s200/Photo+Apr+03%252C+3+07+22+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05QefKpWpZ-fayqqG2sfZlXFi4b2qnrh5jFNyZ_MHDnKO8F8wKZqm3kQnXJu8CvguRsKOYlak5tEN_G2z4xWAzEj_Visg7INHqqmgefodoLSIxmQJTgGZ31RD2W8lj-GKm5F7AzJNs-g/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+6+17+27+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05QefKpWpZ-fayqqG2sfZlXFi4b2qnrh5jFNyZ_MHDnKO8F8wKZqm3kQnXJu8CvguRsKOYlak5tEN_G2z4xWAzEj_Visg7INHqqmgefodoLSIxmQJTgGZ31RD2W8lj-GKm5F7AzJNs-g/s200/Photo+Apr+03%252C+6+17+27+PM.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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Our only real preparation for this match was to make sure our wedge was adjusted to scrape the floor. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicnIogEdcgYNHqX0nKOZGgYyWdCj2JZSuPK-m5BtnrPRGXxfrwbl7-vhLMkHK4TDZSVoshi73oQgz3_QpSqW9oD724xGWbjOLfmDkivvXX3oC4ga9VdUxPTGFJIaXAXNSgcrbKYpo0Oco/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+7+27+21+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicnIogEdcgYNHqX0nKOZGgYyWdCj2JZSuPK-m5BtnrPRGXxfrwbl7-vhLMkHK4TDZSVoshi73oQgz3_QpSqW9oD724xGWbjOLfmDkivvXX3oC4ga9VdUxPTGFJIaXAXNSgcrbKYpo0Oco/s200/Photo+Apr+03%252C+7+27+21+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBeKKv2DGZ21CastQr5-YZMEIj1R-W7i5SlP-XG_WsExUnYED17Louq0MRuboLCB2PGRFCttcUNsL8HuTep4o58byiJiX7aGPJRl9PxtnR8tyU0F5hAlkuYCYi6-PxtMHriA6z9cbs28/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+7+18+25+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1153" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgBeKKv2DGZ21CastQr5-YZMEIj1R-W7i5SlP-XG_WsExUnYED17Louq0MRuboLCB2PGRFCttcUNsL8HuTep4o58byiJiX7aGPJRl9PxtnR8tyU0F5hAlkuYCYi6-PxtMHriA6z9cbs28/s200/Photo+Apr+03%252C+7+18+25+PM.jpg" width="143" /></a></div>
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Walking one building over, we make our way to the arena with Icewave. It is always very surreal getting lined up to fight backstage because the lights, sound, and audience are turned up to eleven. We make our way into the arena, the referees prepare to start the match, but we learn that Vanquish is having technical difficulties and the match needs to be postponed. We're instructed to keep Icewave close by the arena, so we park it near the bleachers and just hang out for a while.<br />
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Eventually Jack gets Vanquish running, but his weapon is having trouble. We talked to Jack to ensure him he can have as much time as he needs to get everything working. Eventually I was told by the backstage crew that our match was on, and Jack was ready to fight. Our match gets started, and we get a couple decent hits on Vanquish, who seems to be holding up just fine. Then we run into a snag...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSK-fCPwcpf29p_VbjXoBT05zRaxyIH6jLBsq7OUVTZnHviPs3ralNf4CXN88FxNYp4O_RVcuuT9oTuxg1q2tZWCv03ujoVXI-4Ydka-4tmt3FRahyp1E_VNqQOx5ugajHx0uslTEaO78/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+46+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1091" data-original-width="1600" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSK-fCPwcpf29p_VbjXoBT05zRaxyIH6jLBsq7OUVTZnHviPs3ralNf4CXN88FxNYp4O_RVcuuT9oTuxg1q2tZWCv03ujoVXI-4Ydka-4tmt3FRahyp1E_VNqQOx5ugajHx0uslTEaO78/s320/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+46+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnTl1QtZeoCkiT5VHwLnOKy9hR_Cxo9K-2MF3C9xMVDCepoh6-j6dzD2_sP46jagpyHzjB9ajndXE-Khxpmt-4PmfpqvyKGVsCsEMdCcxPM4fmvcMeoA1rWA7bu4IQSu9CRFIhpd3UoM0/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+55+PM+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="968" data-original-width="1600" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnTl1QtZeoCkiT5VHwLnOKy9hR_Cxo9K-2MF3C9xMVDCepoh6-j6dzD2_sP46jagpyHzjB9ajndXE-Khxpmt-4PmfpqvyKGVsCsEMdCcxPM4fmvcMeoA1rWA7bu4IQSu9CRFIhpd3UoM0/s320/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+55+PM+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5CWDQclf2gLtrg2xLhs3jf_a6ngY2s9K0d96AbJBIMlR4NoJC1Vbpcjodrj4PrW9b8jkhDx5oRp1EDdCs-hlJ3Tn4rDekpRewnyM-NhROw0EyjJo_nFtpvgqXz8Ydcsw2GIadrCAHApY/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+55+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5CWDQclf2gLtrg2xLhs3jf_a6ngY2s9K0d96AbJBIMlR4NoJC1Vbpcjodrj4PrW9b8jkhDx5oRp1EDdCs-hlJ3Tn4rDekpRewnyM-NhROw0EyjJo_nFtpvgqXz8Ydcsw2GIadrCAHApY/s320/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+55+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4G8fEbQTvjqipJg0L_MakOEhTtkgKMJuj80DL8JRZ_XR1vkwFmkVRTnWmaPBxqvgrdnj-wFjzZ61uYkkEoE3ASiD5fqO3rHfLgi1_PAlFPc2ZBbuCTF22Se0voLGJ4pOUzdvqkYqwb6E/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+56+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="1600" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4G8fEbQTvjqipJg0L_MakOEhTtkgKMJuj80DL8JRZ_XR1vkwFmkVRTnWmaPBxqvgrdnj-wFjzZ61uYkkEoE3ASiD5fqO3rHfLgi1_PAlFPc2ZBbuCTF22Se0voLGJ4pOUzdvqkYqwb6E/s320/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+45+56+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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(Photo credit: Jon Bennett, Tony Woodward, Dan Longmire)</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Well that's embarrassing</b></span><br />
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One thing competitors know about, but most TV viewers don't see, is what happens when two robots get stuck together during a match. You can see in the last photo where we rode up on Vanquish's wedge and we became high centered. With Icewave on top of Vanquish, Jack was also having trouble moving, so the fight was at a standstill. The two bots were stuck together, so the match was paused per the rules (<a href="https://battlebots.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/BattleBots-Tournament-Rules.2018.Rev-1.01.pdf">Rule 7.4.7 here</a>). Thanks to clever editing, we didn't get to see this bit of shenanigans on TV, but a lot happened here. With the match paused, the co-creator of BattleBots, Trey, enters the arena to separate the stuck robots. Before doing so, he asks me if I can remotely kill Icewave's engine for safety purposes. Naturally, I agree, knowing we can restart the engine after the doors are locked again.<br />
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The bots get separated, the box is locked, and they signal for me to restart Icewave's engine. I push the button on the radio, but don't hear anything. Normally it would restart immediately. I knew something had gone wrong. They unlock the arena for me to go inspect what is happening. Immediately, I look under the engine and notice the chain that connects our starter to the engine is completely gone. We find it lying over near the wall of the arena. I explain the situation to the Trey, and he says I can’t fix the chain because that would be unfair to Jack (since it was probably knocked off while we fought), and would take too much time, but if I can start the motor another way he’ll allow it. This type of situation isn't exactly planned in the tournament rules and procedures. They ask how much time I need to fix it, but that would be too long to hold up the film crew. I suggest a last ditch effort: We can try to restart the engine manually with a cordless drill.<br />
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I race back to our pit area to pick up the necessary bits and pieces to make this happen. I've never started Icewave's engine with our DeWalt drill before, but I know it's not easy. The engine has a lot of compression, even with the relief valve we use, and the drill might struggle. On my sprint back to the arena, I see Will Bales and ask to borrow his drill as a backup.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM6doPyF77a4x117xNtbN6EkEK85rEI-V3ctmxymefwaLLqRgf4HJZs_RqKAPVw9FEFUxT1Is02NEMmBhVVLXC85pgVDlSpG6cqpbgrS0IPUWHq01Gp49NkWBoozK_uWHmPoVTnZUfoOw/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+59+47+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1183" data-original-width="1600" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM6doPyF77a4x117xNtbN6EkEK85rEI-V3ctmxymefwaLLqRgf4HJZs_RqKAPVw9FEFUxT1Is02NEMmBhVVLXC85pgVDlSpG6cqpbgrS0IPUWHq01Gp49NkWBoozK_uWHmPoVTnZUfoOw/s320/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+59+47+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I imagine this conversation with Greg went something like "Come on dude, you're killing us."</div>
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HyperDrill saves the day</div>
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Back at the arena, with the weapon safety lock in place, I try to operate the drill with one hand while operating the throttle with the other hand. This proves to be difficult, and the drill seems to be too slow. The engine will pop once or twice, but not stay running. Trey offers to operate the drill while I operate the throttle to give the engine just enough gas to start. Eventually the DeWalt drill starts smoking and we're ready to give up. I suggest using the Hypershock drill as one last move. Trey grabs the drill, pulls the trigger, and the engine starts immediately!<br />
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I am in shock. The match is back on. Just a few seconds later, we land the hit on Vanquish that has been replayed 100 times. Vanquish is split in half. Jack immediately gives me the signal that he's done, and I know the match is over. Jack screamed STOP after that first big hit. The show editing made it seem like I might have been angling to go in again for another hit, but I was not. The only thing I do actually feel bad about is ending the match so quickly after Jack had waited patiently during the whole restart craziness.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAP3GghSlIAM1oVQT4rBxid-3pGknw9n6qdzAP8gcfi46fqJ7wG40KowHPNHAI_bKWgdzgEl4l9dNb4SYHjNzOp3-scap6SB3VxGOAxHXZQhsXRQ3kJ49ude_7M8bPPgLxac6pftzvmMI/s1600/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+57+22+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAP3GghSlIAM1oVQT4rBxid-3pGknw9n6qdzAP8gcfi46fqJ7wG40KowHPNHAI_bKWgdzgEl4l9dNb4SYHjNzOp3-scap6SB3VxGOAxHXZQhsXRQ3kJ49ude_7M8bPPgLxac6pftzvmMI/s200/Photo+Apr+03%252C+9+57+22+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpgJBS5fW7sJnonLoGwWTEf1G2tG80Mofj9QXDucDzYLgDj7qB11VTWXV3OE6wfvzs9ZzqnMYqASgB59XlZtyXVxkbGxngSuZdFNp8vaJk4mFI3nFOFL1wnqf_jvYSKUc0sYXGWccEmCA/s1600/Photo+Apr+04%252C+8+26+43+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpgJBS5fW7sJnonLoGwWTEf1G2tG80Mofj9QXDucDzYLgDj7qB11VTWXV3OE6wfvzs9ZzqnMYqASgB59XlZtyXVxkbGxngSuZdFNp8vaJk4mFI3nFOFL1wnqf_jvYSKUc0sYXGWccEmCA/s200/Photo+Apr+04%252C+8+26+43+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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One of these cuts is probably the one that tore Vanquish's wedge completely off, taking half the bot with it.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Post-fight</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
Our first order of business was to figure out what happened to our starter chain. Here you can see the bottom of our engine plate when it is separated from the base of Icewave. The chain is near the bottom of the photo. It becomes clear that our weapon blade is flexing enough upon hard impacts that it starts hitting things it isn't supposed to, like this chain.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-M1luUgWAZ1kebmiqselFbeEvUZBwNGnLcyHOp6kvOLvA3xK8ru7_GAaHm49TRuZL8upK6nZc3uYrfEOgzVm4YSaCrf_go9MhpfstZSmSkDP6AG4ndzITSC58WCJh0329Qd-TRuNj9Ic/s1600/Photo+Apr+05%252C+11+51+02+AM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-M1luUgWAZ1kebmiqselFbeEvUZBwNGnLcyHOp6kvOLvA3xK8ru7_GAaHm49TRuZL8upK6nZc3uYrfEOgzVm4YSaCrf_go9MhpfstZSmSkDP6AG4ndzITSC58WCJh0329Qd-TRuNj9Ic/s200/Photo+Apr+05%252C+11+51+02+AM.jpg" width="150" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5UjJV4fwRsVrdobs7LpEcdLYAAHQZrVSPV2ua4ql1HSYbIXbcwm4t0jVIozMDxJiC4W8ypJKDZlmIn2dYLuUAj8-sIvXhRTdcVdjchfRpv5A1m4vDCFZRBCpRqXDElBnt7M9VpHd7vNI/s1600/Photo+Apr+06%252C+6+05+45+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5UjJV4fwRsVrdobs7LpEcdLYAAHQZrVSPV2ua4ql1HSYbIXbcwm4t0jVIozMDxJiC4W8ypJKDZlmIn2dYLuUAj8-sIvXhRTdcVdjchfRpv5A1m4vDCFZRBCpRqXDElBnt7M9VpHd7vNI/s200/Photo+Apr+06%252C+6+05+45+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Fortunately we have some time to work on a solution because our next fight is not for another day or two. We know we can't prevent the blade from flexing, and we can't add more clearance without affecting a lot of other parts. We decide the best course of action is to design a metal "ramp" part that will prevent the blade from hitting anything important even if it flexes. Over the next couple of hours, we design the part up in <a href="http://www.solidworks.com/">Solidworks</a> at our pit table. We are fortunate enough to have Jason from <a href="http://www.tormach.com/">Tormach </a>with two great machines in the pits ready to make parts for all builders. After waiting our turn, Jason cranks out our part with ease and we are ready for our next fight! Or so we thought...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First sign of engine troubles</b></span><br />
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We continue combing over the robot to find any other issues that we may have not noticed at first. Then we discover something bad. Our engine crankcase has a hairline crack near some of its mounting points.<br />
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To provide some back story: Our engine is from a Partner/Husqvarna K1250 saw and was never meant to have an electric starter. It is a very lightweight engine because it is carried around by construction workers. The crank case is made from cast Magnesium for strength and weight. We have spent a stupid amount of time retrofitting this engine with our own custom electric starter system. When we first built this version of Icewave back in 2015, we used to mount our engine using rubber shock-absorbing mounts. The starter mechanism was not shock mounted, but designed to accept a certain amount of movement. This turned out to be too much movement, and after much prototyping and testing, in 2016 we opted to just rigidly mount the engine to the robot through some plastic blocks instead of rubber. We fought our two matches in 2016 with no problems.<br />
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After our Vanquish fight, seeing the hairline crack forming in our engine housing, it became clear that this was our new major problem that needed to be dealt with very quickly. Fortunately we brought a spare engine. Unfortunately, there was not enough time before the event to assemble the spare engine with all of its accessories, so we had to begin that process. Simultaneously we also located and ordered a new engine crankcase from an Ebay vendor in Florida. Finally, as a last resort, we also began fixing up the cracked engine: Sand off the paint, drill a hole near the end of the crack to prevent it from spreading further, and epoxy the crank case back together so it can be curing for a while.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggP4A21pAu_Rz4vbd_B34ONl0-6a23TTMQO4hQ6ifin0FP_UiG2bPuvJf__JLHNb8Hc9aFxbkC06aMuyBZ2V-ebdyLdAt7-69v-c4t6wRwKPZiffUcnkFYxbnDANTiaWCCHfsXqCubzLQ/s1600/Photo+Apr+07%252C+11+57+13+AM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggP4A21pAu_Rz4vbd_B34ONl0-6a23TTMQO4hQ6ifin0FP_UiG2bPuvJf__JLHNb8Hc9aFxbkC06aMuyBZ2V-ebdyLdAt7-69v-c4t6wRwKPZiffUcnkFYxbnDANTiaWCCHfsXqCubzLQ/s320/Photo+Apr+07%252C+11+57+13+AM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Doing our best to repair the cracked housing as a backup plan</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76P9sah4ROVksA_gTx1rmEGVD4sx0-kbCtLgDj5i2VmzuIysIEQbh-md_rBxV4joi6rDpEV6XQco0EEnmzkKrGXqq8VHVZugULldoW1I_d-PBx8rh1ogu552q0SSUqvLL7DBH64Cltl0/s1600/Photo+Apr+08%252C+2+16+00+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76P9sah4ROVksA_gTx1rmEGVD4sx0-kbCtLgDj5i2VmzuIysIEQbh-md_rBxV4joi6rDpEV6XQco0EEnmzkKrGXqq8VHVZugULldoW1I_d-PBx8rh1ogu552q0SSUqvLL7DBH64Cltl0/s320/Photo+Apr+08%252C+2+16+00+PM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The spare engine is red, which means it was made after Husqvarna acquired Partner.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAvLDxHDwf7HdlT7mnhNYnxZaxX8CXOgPUXLxMPX4MmuXzEg05z7-zzZzXJC624c45Ps2W1fuS8aOL2cGbO5YJMWVMKN8a1sw7qltgyHRASrWXYcA2zzUMBLXtPXTjjxHCG65cIkcXII/s1600/Photo+Apr+07%252C+12+26+34+AM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAvLDxHDwf7HdlT7mnhNYnxZaxX8CXOgPUXLxMPX4MmuXzEg05z7-zzZzXJC624c45Ps2W1fuS8aOL2cGbO5YJMWVMKN8a1sw7qltgyHRASrWXYcA2zzUMBLXtPXTjjxHCG65cIkcXII/s320/Photo+Apr+07%252C+12+26+34+AM.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Post-match interview in our pit area</div>
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That's all for this post. In the next post, we get ready for our fight with Yeti! <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2018/09/icewave-2018-recap-part-3-yeti.html">Continue reading here.</a>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-65676786117543385152018-09-29T01:44:00.001-07:002018-09-29T04:49:19.526-07:00Icewave 2018 Recap Part 1 - Preparing for the SeasonNow that the BattleBots 2018 season is coming to a close, I thought it would be useful to recap the season from our perspective. If you have not seen up to Episode 19 yet, there will be some spoilers after this post. Since we haven't gone into much detail about each fight as they aired, I'll go back to the beginning here, since even some of our earlier season wins left us with a lot of work behind the scenes. Overall we are very satisfied with Icewave's performance this season, and we're excited for the next one!<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">What happened in 2016?</span></b><br />
The 2016 season was very disappointing for Team Icewave. We won our first match against SubZero, and then lost unceremoniously to Nightmare due to radio problems. Neither match made it to TV, but at least you can watch them on the BattleBots YouTube channel:<br />
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Losing in a way that felt beyond our control was not something we could let happen again. Most teams recommended ditching our Spektrum radio for an FrSky radio, so we did. But that didn't seem like enough. Other teams use multiple receivers to control various parts of their bot with one transmitter. That didn't seem ideal either, since the transmitter is still a single failure point, and losing half your functionality is still pretty bad. It was then I decided I wanted two completely independent radio systems, and I should be able to decide remotely which one to use.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Dual Radio Solution</span></b><br />
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Unable to find what I needed, I decided to make my own PCB (printed circuit board). This board would go inline between two radio receivers. It would allow for two independently-powered radio systems, and either system would power the board's logic. One receiver could lose signal or power completely and the other would still function. The system would default to using the primary (new FrSky) radio, but on command, would switch to receiving commands from the secondary (old Spektrum) radio. The command would be triggered by two switches on the radio, which send specifically-chosen PWM values to the custom PCB to signal a switch-over while avoiding false positives.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRjebopobcwLrx9J-2CacftG1IRVVisFm2-KVXcPR2Bw49mj2qVmRMxpYEwh5fB2VQwYSGTiwpVamaU0iiAx0EJCq2Q1VtaUl9k-uG0vbLBDqamLYdlvsqiTy8v2TC3VND30lcAPNECM/s1600/Altium.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1239" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRjebopobcwLrx9J-2CacftG1IRVVisFm2-KVXcPR2Bw49mj2qVmRMxpYEwh5fB2VQwYSGTiwpVamaU0iiAx0EJCq2Q1VtaUl9k-uG0vbLBDqamLYdlvsqiTy8v2TC3VND30lcAPNECM/s200/Altium.png" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwPMxyLsVAdd2m4YE1jJ6SIorlG4jboH6Vj1mP2tqLzH1OSUX-ljbvBeOLfXoL2WR3CLNwWisIV4kN0XpwzFtNbk3p5m-FPCBivubAJZiy_prva7oMreTn1nL0OPjX6mlRBiNeWs1MYdE/s1600/Photo+Feb+13%252C+5+53+35+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwPMxyLsVAdd2m4YE1jJ6SIorlG4jboH6Vj1mP2tqLzH1OSUX-ljbvBeOLfXoL2WR3CLNwWisIV4kN0XpwzFtNbk3p5m-FPCBivubAJZiy_prva7oMreTn1nL0OPjX6mlRBiNeWs1MYdE/s200/Photo+Feb+13%252C+5+53+35+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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Board design in Altium, ordered from OSHPark, and bringing it up from a bare PCB</div>
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Adding this board to our system also required some debugging, at which point we were able to see the exact signals being sent from the radio receiver to our speed controllers. We figured this could also help us debug our interference problem from last season, if it still existed. We started up the engine, and we immediately saw the symptoms: the radio values were all over the charts. This alone was not enough to cause the speed controllers to shut down, but it was very telling.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Eliminating the Interference</b></span><br />
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We began the process of elimination, replacing one part after another on the engine, starting with the likely culprits. The engine has a spinning flywheel with embedded magnets which pass by a coil, called a magneto, to produce a quick spike of high voltage in the spark plug that is precisely timed to ignite the fuel in the engine. Replacing the spark plug was an easy test, but didn't solve the problem. Next we replaced the magneto and the problem disappears! We inspect the old magneto closely and realize what happened.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirexcZ7jboq_ozmpiS-mse07ToMGcnueW06SsGbeZL5VMt6KyFfrnZKu7mciJtM_KDZBiqkOd5TQI_mXVcvSFNq9PEjYPbSXnNrAxqj6uwE0xlX1k5QqAjwoiwubzHEdiUYildu65ztB4/s1600/s-l1600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1174" data-original-width="1600" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirexcZ7jboq_ozmpiS-mse07ToMGcnueW06SsGbeZL5VMt6KyFfrnZKu7mciJtM_KDZBiqkOd5TQI_mXVcvSFNq9PEjYPbSXnNrAxqj6uwE0xlX1k5QqAjwoiwubzHEdiUYildu65ztB4/s320/s-l1600.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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An example photo of a similar magneto</div>
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The magneto is made of laminated sheets of metal. In our first 2016 fight against Subzero, a small brass part rattled loose from inside the engine cover, spun around inside the engine flywheel, and eventually ripped the spark plug wire out of the magneto. This little brass part also happened to hit the magneto laminations, but we didn't notice it at the time. The laminations separated ever so slightly, which we can only assume turned them into little transmitting antennae for electromagnetic interference. So the damage we took in the SubZero fight actually caused us to lose the Nightmare fight. Amazing.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Getting Organized</b></span><br />
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We all recognized that a lot of last-minute, frantic work in 2016 put us in a bad position throughout the event. Things like electrical wire routing and logistics at the event never get enough attention. Inside our engine housing was a complete disaster of electrical components for the engine crammed in alongside poorly-routed wires and gas lines. I set out to clean up this mess for 2018 with a custom electronics housing. This would be machined out of a single block of plastic, and contain each electrical component in its own compartment with foam for shock mounting. I designed everything in <a href="http://www.solidworks.com/">Solidworks</a> before a single part was made. This was crucial because this assembly had to fit around all of the existing components! Here's what it ended up looking like:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHf3Ws1OAzTAtfnpo2WvmhJ1et-UpT6qPngVD_1YwrV-s78SqVO3ckfkWY9mxolx3lMsMKrKKYo8CpZjeXo5FTanng3d_FlbOpQJgz0zOnRTHMd14aRpNgeM6rAz8LIkT9Y3rUd_3cHNo/s1600/29339653_1993276524274422_228434462772297728_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1177" data-original-width="1600" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHf3Ws1OAzTAtfnpo2WvmhJ1et-UpT6qPngVD_1YwrV-s78SqVO3ckfkWY9mxolx3lMsMKrKKYo8CpZjeXo5FTanng3d_FlbOpQJgz0zOnRTHMd14aRpNgeM6rAz8LIkT9Y3rUd_3cHNo/s200/29339653_1993276524274422_228434462772297728_o.png" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm7_UlUhplCC_g73swu37OvR0C3_eTvuWSNW1S8ldrksJ9Ikw3TlkJNtSzTYeV787lQM8ELQy53Yh1yWsyceBo5Wma83aEl9zfEDU6G2tFy1Px8qOa4ETaAdOSWePruzdOFcDeUYbJ9fY/s1600/Photo+Mar+11%252C+6+45+23+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm7_UlUhplCC_g73swu37OvR0C3_eTvuWSNW1S8ldrksJ9Ikw3TlkJNtSzTYeV787lQM8ELQy53Yh1yWsyceBo5Wma83aEl9zfEDU6G2tFy1Px8qOa4ETaAdOSWePruzdOFcDeUYbJ9fY/s200/Photo+Mar+11%252C+6+45+23+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiRLEj4ReDHmj-rBcx0Yfsgut-4QE1i68nnfMhTPUHBc-2RbzTJuee1ceJkAPN-7Vsg7ZlqVLsjMhIrO7_eVZjQFELq1Z4QzxeFatHgpHnhCglLl7cloQgTKMWPKzcjVJi9PmRtAGDTdc/s1600/Photo+Mar+11%252C+8+56+34+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiRLEj4ReDHmj-rBcx0Yfsgut-4QE1i68nnfMhTPUHBc-2RbzTJuee1ceJkAPN-7Vsg7ZlqVLsjMhIrO7_eVZjQFELq1Z4QzxeFatHgpHnhCglLl7cloQgTKMWPKzcjVJi9PmRtAGDTdc/s200/Photo+Mar+11%252C+8+56+34+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipDcFoBvwWkDdKHh8K9jmsGCuEzpdXuy2mDBWSn7WajblXZq-YDpX_6dRJnW2BT7n0pxXBEGVFPHh7a3nbEKAhH5SjR75a5U1c0LhbhkHmKjS0WwQhXaPH0shTNOdciaWA7i2W8smK3uc/s1600/Photo+Mar+12%252C+6+24+36+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipDcFoBvwWkDdKHh8K9jmsGCuEzpdXuy2mDBWSn7WajblXZq-YDpX_6dRJnW2BT7n0pxXBEGVFPHh7a3nbEKAhH5SjR75a5U1c0LhbhkHmKjS0WwQhXaPH0shTNOdciaWA7i2W8smK3uc/s200/Photo+Mar+12%252C+6+24+36+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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<b style="font-size: large;">More Spare Parts</b><br />
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This season we were told in advance that the fight format would be different. Each bot would get at least 4 fights in the preseason before the tournament of 16. To me, this changed the way I prepared significantly. Previously, a catastrophic failure meant a loss, which meant elimination from the tournament. Suddenly I realized I needed as many spares as possible for this year. Over the previous two seasons, we had amassed quite a few spare off-the-shelf parts, but never really had the time to invest in fabricating spares of the custom things. The night before driving to LA, I pulled an all-nighter to make as many spare parts as possible. Since a lot of the parts were made on our CNC mill, I was able to make quite a few parts very quickly. We also received our spare engine cover and wedge parts from our sponsor, <a href="http://www.bigbluesaw.com/">Big Blue Saw</a>, so it was time to weld them up!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6WoBFlUm87olz103TDQKMuXu7QaBPbRExRJgCSt9-WCEnTIh8KYFWX3UmNNGTUbLYeHI1YDqSM9LJ08yXN7ePardUoBQLds8_fUumNs3mSTCGEHBM6CKmvSgCG5cxoDFRb_FLJNZxrzk/s1600/Photo+Mar+14%252C+9+34+49+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6WoBFlUm87olz103TDQKMuXu7QaBPbRExRJgCSt9-WCEnTIh8KYFWX3UmNNGTUbLYeHI1YDqSM9LJ08yXN7ePardUoBQLds8_fUumNs3mSTCGEHBM6CKmvSgCG5cxoDFRb_FLJNZxrzk/s200/Photo+Mar+14%252C+9+34+49+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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Main weapon sprocket machined from 8"x8"x1.25" 6061 Aluminum block</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNK_PeM1eYs45xEzT2PzcHfDTiPFmCM775V90vZnVJRteljwXUj8Fl-5rrc5ZplwuWjklNt5t9SMkiz8DYyw_PVCe6orqC2bvAyBKXFJprMrEQPPbf5AvYkbUQuzPROzD7AdxRW1q5-tI/s1600/Photo+Mar+17%252C+8+16+47+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNK_PeM1eYs45xEzT2PzcHfDTiPFmCM775V90vZnVJRteljwXUj8Fl-5rrc5ZplwuWjklNt5t9SMkiz8DYyw_PVCe6orqC2bvAyBKXFJprMrEQPPbf5AvYkbUQuzPROzD7AdxRW1q5-tI/s200/Photo+Mar+17%252C+8+16+47+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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Engine mounting plate machined from 3/8" 7075 Aluminum plate</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZgivwdDnD-l1bFZStAlCGyqMZY0BKZQL06YLaPN_yeDwRS8ruh7EsYWx8ouYSjF2UOlC26DlKbEUw42V2u4hLbybwp7O8oqUQPU_wMKFrLECnj9oSXH3Q6D8t2u0PTrect8_58jixKrQ/s1600/Photo+Mar+28%252C+10+49+34+PM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZgivwdDnD-l1bFZStAlCGyqMZY0BKZQL06YLaPN_yeDwRS8ruh7EsYWx8ouYSjF2UOlC26DlKbEUw42V2u4hLbybwp7O8oqUQPU_wMKFrLECnj9oSXH3Q6D8t2u0PTrect8_58jixKrQ/s200/Photo+Mar+28%252C+10+49+34+PM.jpg" width="200" /></a>
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Gearbox for engine starter machined from 6061 Aluminum flat bar</div>
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<div align="center">
Laying out and welding a spare front wedge</div>
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Machining spare lower frame rails out of 6061 Aluminum flat bar</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Packing Up</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">With as many spares as possible, it was time to pack the van and make the 6 hour drive to Los Angeles for the taping! In my next post, we'll get to the event and start talking about our first fights! <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2018/09/icewave-2018-recap-part-2-first-match.html">Click here for Part 2!</a></span>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-66560854759513121552015-06-23T02:54:00.001-07:002015-06-23T02:58:54.031-07:00BattleBots 2015 - IcewaveA few months ago, I was invited to compete at the new BattleBots event to be televised on ABC this summer. I put together a team with some people at my office and we built Icewave, a 250lb gas-powered blade spinner. The show just debuted on Sunday evening, and we were extremely honored to be picked as the first episode and builder profile of the entire series. <br />
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The show provides some background about each of the teams, so here is the piece they put together about me:<br />
<iframe width="416" height="236" src="http://abc.go.com/embed/VDKA0_8cksezjd" frameborder="0"></iframe><br />
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And here is our first fight against the robot, Razorback:<br />
<iframe width="416" height="236" src="http://abc.go.com/embed/VDKA0_rdt6e1w5" frameborder="0"></iframe><br />
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Be sure to check out our Team Icewave pages for more updated information, build reports, and photos from the event.<br />
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<a href="http://teamicewave.com" target="_blank">http://teamicewave.com</a><br />
<a href="http://facebook.com/teamicewave" target="_blank">http://facebook.com/teamicewave</a><br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/teamicewave" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/teamicewave</a><br />
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You can watch the full episode for free on <a href="http://abc.go.com/shows/battlebots">ABC.com</a> or Hulu.<br />
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Enjoy!
Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-64809424200708209532014-08-26T03:43:00.000-07:002014-08-26T04:22:29.260-07:00Daft Punk Thomas HelmetFour years ago, the office where I worked had a really big, professional 3D printer (a <a href="http://www.stratasys.com/3d-printers/production-series/fortus-400mc" target="_blank">Fortus 400MC</a>). I was able to print a lot of cool things while I was there, including both Daft Punk helmets (Guy and Thomas). My friend Alex, a true Solidworks guru, took about a month of his spare time to model each helmet flawlessly. We printed Thomas over a few weekends (some of the pieces took 30+ hours to print each). After it was printed, we both got very busy and Thomas started collecting dust on a shelf. These are pictures of the prints a few days after they came out of the machine. These parts are extremely strong and light, as the Fortus printed in polycarbonate material. However, as with all FDM prints, there is a heavy ridged texture on the parts that must be filled, sanded, and polished smooth. Years later, when I realized I would never have more time to work on it, I gave the printed parts to another friend (Shaggy) to finish.
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It wasn't until June of 2014 when I was browsing through Sparkfun's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sparkfun.com/news/1499">New Product Post</a> and I saw some LEDs that caught my eye. Now, I know the WS2811/2812 LEDs have been the craze for the past few years, but I have been out of the loop for a while. For my last LED project (<a target="_blank" href="http://youtu.be/sLGi5a-LweA?list=UUtnIAI-dEm7LKytAgVTYqGg">Mau5head 2.0 for Deadmau5</a>) completed in 2012, I designed custom flexible PCB strips that held 5mm SMD LEDs at a 10mm pitch. Each pixel had its own LPD-6803 controller IC, which I had to order custom from China in a QFN-16 package to get it small enough. It was a 6-month long project. Maybe some day I will write up a post about it.
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These days, WS2811 LEDs have built-in controllers and apparently come in all shapes and sizes. When I saw the 5mm thru-hole LEDs on Sparkfun, I immediately thought about the Thomas helmet. This was the missing link I needed to make a really awesome display for Thomas. I called Shaggy and told him to get sanding. With the goal of bringing it to DragonCon 2014, we had to hurry.
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While the sanding and painting was taking place at my friend's house in Ohio, I started fabricating the parts for the LED matrix. Fortunately I have access to some really awesome tools at <a href="http://www.doublerobotics.com/" target="_blank">my office</a>, including this brand new Epilog Fusion 60 laser cutter. I grabbed some 3/32" PETG sheets (<a href="http://www.mcmaster.com/#85815k34/=tg0njy" target="_blank">McMaster #85815K34</a>) leftover from the Guy helmet and threw them on the laser. PETG is a great plastic that is easily reshaped with low heat. Alex was thoughtful enough to have designed the LED mount ages ago, so exporting a DXF from Solidworks was easy. Good thing I cut two of each part, since I was a bit rough with one of them and it cracked.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJwj9Fp-5VnFX_H0Cz-UgEVTOqg6oa_ZHu9_AfQr2QHcLljc0TNHfTV6MwyuJPFE6eeKsj35YrtlWrFakvSCliBZuxXuR4Muiu9dvq9_Wlw_kJSGEqqRXfi9PhyphenhyphensSMEC46vbequUWFA70/s1600/2014-08-18+19.19.53.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJwj9Fp-5VnFX_H0Cz-UgEVTOqg6oa_ZHu9_AfQr2QHcLljc0TNHfTV6MwyuJPFE6eeKsj35YrtlWrFakvSCliBZuxXuR4Muiu9dvq9_Wlw_kJSGEqqRXfi9PhyphenhyphensSMEC46vbequUWFA70/s200/2014-08-18+19.19.53.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlj2hJgZpIERVd16RiL90xFVTXgb-RiTLSivbbBQm0zdt7wohaBDZ_9IuqUUq4Pm8S2q4Xh3WiCbkl3_1_KLAgJ6EQzce4npvXXSTWxw_p-gnoPOTYtr3PP7ltZjTZ8CD9kG4_R8efkgU/s1600/2014-08-20+23.39.05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlj2hJgZpIERVd16RiL90xFVTXgb-RiTLSivbbBQm0zdt7wohaBDZ_9IuqUUq4Pm8S2q4Xh3WiCbkl3_1_KLAgJ6EQzce4npvXXSTWxw_p-gnoPOTYtr3PP7ltZjTZ8CD9kG4_R8efkgU/s200/2014-08-20+23.39.05.jpg" /></a>
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By now, my bag of LEDs had arrived and I could get started soldering. I sent Shaggy the laser cut parts for test fitting and he confirmed they fit well. I also started thinking about the main controller for the LEDs. For past projects, I've created a custom PCB that uses a PIC18F microcontroller to load animations from an SD card. I wrote a custom Windows-based program to convert JPG sequences into the proper format for LPD-6803 LED controller ICs. While that would have worked, I would have to change the code to output the correct data for the new WS2811 LEDs.
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<br />Searching for a quicker solution, I came across Paul Stoffregen's <a href="https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/td_libs_OctoWS2811.html" target="_blank">OctoWS2811 library</a>. The library is designed to run on PJRC's Teensy 3.1 board, which contains a 32-bit Freescale ARM Cortex M4 processor. Normally getting a completely new microcontroller up and running would be a giant time waster, but the Teensy comes with a bunch of code that makes it essentially Arduino compatible right out of the box. The Teensy packs an amazing amount of power into a board the size of an Arduino Mini -- perfect for the Thomas helmet. OctoWS2811 even includes a VideoDisplay example, which lets you stream movies from your computer over USB to strips of LEDs. This is good, but I don't want to carry around a computer. Apparently neither did Paul, because for Maker Faire 2014 he <a href="http://community.arm.com/groups/embedded/blog/2014/05/23/led-video-panel-at-maker-faire-2014" target="_blank">built a display</a> that instead runs off an SD card. Perfect!
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With the PETG laser cut already, I wanted to form it into the proper shape as a template for soldering the LEDs. I hopped into Solidworks and drew up a quick fixture to hold the PETG sheet. The fixture is laser cut out of <a href="http://www.mcmaster.com/#8505k95/=tg131r" target="_blank">6mm black acrylic sheet</a> and then glued together with epoxy. Using a heat gun at a fair distance, I was able to heat the PETG sheet evenly as it was held in its shape by the fixture. When it cooled, it retained that shape.
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The plan is to solder each LED to the next, and the pin layout of these LEDs makes that very easy. There are 4 leads on each LED, from left to right: Data In, +5V, Gnd, and Data Out. With this layout, I could bend the two power leads toward the top of the screen, and the data lines out to each side. Each row of LEDs would daisy chain, and no pins would have to cross each other.
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To solder each LED, I quickly 3D printed a small fixture with eight 5mm holes in a line. Below you can see the layout of the LEDs as the screen starts coming together. The green and yellow leads were temporary and I was able to run the screen off a solderless breadboard during initial testing.
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With all the LEDs installed, I was able to run larger (~18 AWG) wires across the top of the screen like a power bus to each column of LEDs. I used an 8-pin ribbon cable to bring the data line for each row over to the Teensy. Trying to avoid having to design a custom PCB for the project, I chose a <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9802" target="_blank">Sparkfun MicroSD Shield</a> as my platform to build upon. This board is nice because it only has a Micro-SD socket a large prototyping area, perfect for the Teensy and other components.
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In order to choose which animation to load from SD, I knew I wanted to add Wifi capability. The <a href="https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10822" target="_blank">RN-XV WiFly Module</a> is an inexpensive way to add WiFi capability to a project. It is extremely easy to hook up, and it can create an ad-hoc network that a phone can join.
Lastly, the LEDs required 5 volts, and experiments showed that the screen was capable of drawing 6 or 7 amps at times. I chose <a href="http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__17065__Turnigy_1600mAh_2S_20C_Losi_Mini_SCT_Pack.html" target="_blank">Turnigy 1600mAh 2S Lithium Polymer batteries</a> which are small, lightweight, and can supply more than enough current for the LEDs. With two cells in series, these packs provide a nominal 7.4 volts. This needed to be stepped down to 5V, so I chose a <a href="http://www.pololu.com/product/2866" target="_blank">Pololu 9-amp switching regulator</a>. The Teensy can run on 5 volts, but to provide 3.3V to the Wifi module, I had to use an additional 3.3V linear regulator because the Teensy's onboard regulator cannot supply enough current.
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After seeing how easy it was to control WS2811 LEDs, I knew I wanted to make the ears light up as well. Alex's original solid model only had one solid part for each ear, not allowing for light to pass through. I revisited Solidworks and split the body into three pieces. A clear acrylic ring would be sandwiched by two printed parts. To save time and avoid needing much finish work, I used our Objet24 3D printer, which provides a much nicer glossy finish than FDM.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeXqWyXP2MkiYa7bFK0iCnVV3a3_9UjyPc4p20np4fWcixkTdbZxr8MlfypwdKAmaWfs1ehe3-L2_yYa_5r9tTHgPaNiBUOJrXflzd9Mkr172S_FAJTNcQRd_4J0BuxqRH4JsDA08fgM/s1600/Ear3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeXqWyXP2MkiYa7bFK0iCnVV3a3_9UjyPc4p20np4fWcixkTdbZxr8MlfypwdKAmaWfs1ehe3-L2_yYa_5r9tTHgPaNiBUOJrXflzd9Mkr172S_FAJTNcQRd_4J0BuxqRH4JsDA08fgM/s200/Ear3.png" /></a>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKllOmiBXYO3JR3a1cdY8e0OOV9BbrPR82U_pSs1439Oa3nM06FyBC5mCTRLHVm4yDf8LW0lWpgzLHtszXm_NrKSoCj6n4a7eOn0At0X8Tw7K3u0OwGK812sQsBtuC1M2n2HjNuc6L6xs/s1600/2014-08-18+19.31.31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKllOmiBXYO3JR3a1cdY8e0OOV9BbrPR82U_pSs1439Oa3nM06FyBC5mCTRLHVm4yDf8LW0lWpgzLHtszXm_NrKSoCj6n4a7eOn0At0X8Tw7K3u0OwGK812sQsBtuC1M2n2HjNuc6L6xs/s200/2014-08-18+19.31.31.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iRl-6ZiqFzbMXPOu7xvXiZ3E3PLvXfgMqnErCJtJhDhtBcs4XnpVPdoMNikCoAvLbCSwwT94tO4NtczOo92cJyOuzxBxVIlSaE7S8t-nWmstOtDFriq3loUD6zuiR1C8S4clePUnUmc/s1600/2014-08-20+12.57.56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iRl-6ZiqFzbMXPOu7xvXiZ3E3PLvXfgMqnErCJtJhDhtBcs4XnpVPdoMNikCoAvLbCSwwT94tO4NtczOo92cJyOuzxBxVIlSaE7S8t-nWmstOtDFriq3loUD6zuiR1C8S4clePUnUmc/s200/2014-08-20+12.57.56.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLUxdHeNGd92Yetl4vz5iPEsczZ7j7ObD8CWyTCxm6ldS11GcpA2jjS-gNkJ0nVf5DMhnSajsEYLApNx5pvqT07JyUqNWI2QJYEu1Vb2wymHvKWnNTffZi6xTfZl9Oa0Yf-0oNeLPwXz8/s1600/2014-08-21+03.00.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLUxdHeNGd92Yetl4vz5iPEsczZ7j7ObD8CWyTCxm6ldS11GcpA2jjS-gNkJ0nVf5DMhnSajsEYLApNx5pvqT07JyUqNWI2QJYEu1Vb2wymHvKWnNTffZi6xTfZl9Oa0Yf-0oNeLPwXz8/s200/2014-08-21+03.00.10.jpg" /></a>
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After iterating on the acrylic ring a few times, I finally settled on a shape that diffused the light well enough. I beadblasted the edges of the acrylic to help diffuse the light further.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpTONskthHLhc5B2k-ZV-ra_WIfjFswQlL827CHdxcxePUu4jfLzo-PP9-hUAc9UEprBjezPW51-sELDrUsBCyOy2NCsJ61C9qBzo4kg1F_4saGQudRwxHGQWdSDUGubI6jSuxm6s-cDg/s1600/2014-08-23+20.36.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpTONskthHLhc5B2k-ZV-ra_WIfjFswQlL827CHdxcxePUu4jfLzo-PP9-hUAc9UEprBjezPW51-sELDrUsBCyOy2NCsJ61C9qBzo4kg1F_4saGQudRwxHGQWdSDUGubI6jSuxm6s-cDg/s200/2014-08-23+20.36.04.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4NNbGFEI7QQ5iCkbcV74JzmNXKEFBqwRopyy1GdCz145HFwSU1d33sTaUQSLs42vhRR0NpAztXTlFtUVlwK1jQx4_nGpNGk7W1otmemnJvDnU7ZXs1wBdT7ji7OCO24FqkQjAd-Xozg/s1600/2014-08-23+20.45.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4NNbGFEI7QQ5iCkbcV74JzmNXKEFBqwRopyy1GdCz145HFwSU1d33sTaUQSLs42vhRR0NpAztXTlFtUVlwK1jQx4_nGpNGk7W1otmemnJvDnU7ZXs1wBdT7ji7OCO24FqkQjAd-Xozg/s200/2014-08-23+20.45.45.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj8xc7XzLAmZujv5652YIF83NhSRjyk-DroE8khbjmEUJieBUuhbO1xBNVMhEs60YL6D-u9Spidiq1izuzmgTvnHZ0plyv-Xbp8SHUasp8B1K5cqL81KC8WHS_PYADtnM6w1wy3k8ezL4/s1600/2014-08-23+22.07.37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj8xc7XzLAmZujv5652YIF83NhSRjyk-DroE8khbjmEUJieBUuhbO1xBNVMhEs60YL6D-u9Spidiq1izuzmgTvnHZ0plyv-Xbp8SHUasp8B1K5cqL81KC8WHS_PYADtnM6w1wy3k8ezL4/s200/2014-08-23+22.07.37.jpg" /></a>
</div>
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With about a week until DragonCon, I was starting to get nervous about the entire helmet coming together in time. Shaggy was working for countless hours filling, sanding, painting, and polishing the 3D printed plastic parts. When they were ready, I pressured him into shipping them to me as soon as possible for the final assembly. Unfortunately, in the rush, the last clearcoat he had put on the helmet had not fully dried. Combined with some rough handling, when it arrived a few days later, things did not look good.
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40CQE9PTT-5v75vcx9I-UCIusYV6SSjf05jF5ltFabxvUCxbSlGbq9sh54VyyXa8XcMIAuLfEUUDp-VYHKNHamGSl81RyLFxUIWd-EJ-TyApjgmm4zM19Pbu3dS-KhciQs1-OfYLIz5M/s1600/2014-08-20+12.28.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40CQE9PTT-5v75vcx9I-UCIusYV6SSjf05jF5ltFabxvUCxbSlGbq9sh54VyyXa8XcMIAuLfEUUDp-VYHKNHamGSl81RyLFxUIWd-EJ-TyApjgmm4zM19Pbu3dS-KhciQs1-OfYLIz5M/s200/2014-08-20+12.28.14.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiF89UHlq_SkjJgPR5XvTWluybVDso1tp_AVrUbLFHZZFQUK0I48LQWteVSFg1zzccnkFNXyO34pilzY1KraWV1qjAIxOft5hvf1yAnIRvXbxt2l2vTR_ErpO37hD99cEHJfh5FcwXQnI/s1600/2014-08-20+12.45.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiF89UHlq_SkjJgPR5XvTWluybVDso1tp_AVrUbLFHZZFQUK0I48LQWteVSFg1zzccnkFNXyO34pilzY1KraWV1qjAIxOft5hvf1yAnIRvXbxt2l2vTR_ErpO37hD99cEHJfh5FcwXQnI/s200/2014-08-20+12.45.06.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiSRai7-bQghkUysvcjjBFOXeITJKrjD6MgleL6Uuobp01Fik60_2hBVvmmXDVwGxWTrjoj0QuXbR_ZZGGab9fHkOVPHtYcJIbsfz65bCp0fe-DIAtYY1ZEzTzHJSAAlRdXl4XfOW-9fE/s1600/2014-08-20+12.47.24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiSRai7-bQghkUysvcjjBFOXeITJKrjD6MgleL6Uuobp01Fik60_2hBVvmmXDVwGxWTrjoj0QuXbR_ZZGGab9fHkOVPHtYcJIbsfz65bCp0fe-DIAtYY1ZEzTzHJSAAlRdXl4XfOW-9fE/s200/2014-08-20+12.47.24.jpg" /></a>
</div>
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Fortunately, most of the bondo and primer underneath the paint was still in good condition. I was able to use acetone and a bunch of rags to wipe off the runny paint. After some sanding to touch up a few areas I damaged, it was ready for new primer.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTpVEJzZsCdHaUnovbdNb0HQepDYrmTz79Dixb9YY51aXksHayAtrECKu1zC6pMa7xdDe0BYDchKzbP6wU16V30nNdDAkq_zb6G2bQVnW8l-eJRgSzPXJ3V3VNh-OoisJhBLSbPXaAO9s/s1600/2014-08-20+20.19.14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTpVEJzZsCdHaUnovbdNb0HQepDYrmTz79Dixb9YY51aXksHayAtrECKu1zC6pMa7xdDe0BYDchKzbP6wU16V30nNdDAkq_zb6G2bQVnW8l-eJRgSzPXJ3V3VNh-OoisJhBLSbPXaAO9s/s200/2014-08-20+20.19.14.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUFXPvvejWmDVYr-NNrW52Pm-VUtsolyt6PYT08R-b-H7sdW5WWrf0K0cmDhR5JFQDdUe5sZkVf3dVaAHJ_9UTSnYZwkKA_bUG9TE1NMDfa3tvJmd7w6N7EVKDmCA0Ko6qFxgbucvFT8/s1600/2014-08-20+22.41.26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheUFXPvvejWmDVYr-NNrW52Pm-VUtsolyt6PYT08R-b-H7sdW5WWrf0K0cmDhR5JFQDdUe5sZkVf3dVaAHJ_9UTSnYZwkKA_bUG9TE1NMDfa3tvJmd7w6N7EVKDmCA0Ko6qFxgbucvFT8/s200/2014-08-20+22.41.26.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtYMajPzpsgzZAvsJVdcNPn5-eFm17Mp_burVo9ef3O58UIX3U8AjkO7N0iUm7udSH-zaLrpCs8HL7_LfrW-zFZuC8IWXuK_3rA9AGEOzPl2SBrAJY99JsGSoJrGnmJGn1KVLON1DeO2A/s1600/2014-08-20+22.41.32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtYMajPzpsgzZAvsJVdcNPn5-eFm17Mp_burVo9ef3O58UIX3U8AjkO7N0iUm7udSH-zaLrpCs8HL7_LfrW-zFZuC8IWXuK_3rA9AGEOzPl2SBrAJY99JsGSoJrGnmJGn1KVLON1DeO2A/s200/2014-08-20+22.41.32.jpg" /></a>
</div>
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From here it took about 10 more rounds of primer and wet sanding before it was ready for the paint. I really wanted to have the helmet chrome plated, but there just wasn't enough time. I will probably do that after DragonCon.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSrNkbWA1H35S1eUgqKjwfOWqhDtCh7-Iqi2pmxdn-k3EGoQ4IG3MEeSMkjvIJG6WnnDzPE6LfYR39J2X1Oak_-CyHY1iSjVDo2o83l0iZ4zeiu3S1eDUY3K2RKgWhdnFbJGnwoAlNFY/s1600/2014-08-21+02.54.38.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXSrNkbWA1H35S1eUgqKjwfOWqhDtCh7-Iqi2pmxdn-k3EGoQ4IG3MEeSMkjvIJG6WnnDzPE6LfYR39J2X1Oak_-CyHY1iSjVDo2o83l0iZ4zeiu3S1eDUY3K2RKgWhdnFbJGnwoAlNFY/s200/2014-08-21+02.54.38.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6saYoP9gYHxPkhWNs1gqJlJGfp1MZAF_uCZX1SdKcabM2YTtO8k-Qo96nmkCmSH4oxOg8vX7Dx9PD7CeTxt5gAZUEZil1wP55fIQ50u76S0_ATkBna_Iaa19lZfm4xPNV4b-1EmJn2hE/s1600/2014-08-21+02.54.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6saYoP9gYHxPkhWNs1gqJlJGfp1MZAF_uCZX1SdKcabM2YTtO8k-Qo96nmkCmSH4oxOg8vX7Dx9PD7CeTxt5gAZUEZil1wP55fIQ50u76S0_ATkBna_Iaa19lZfm4xPNV4b-1EmJn2hE/s200/2014-08-21+02.54.42.jpg" /></a>
</div>
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The clear visor in the pictures above needed to be tinted, so I started experimenting with that while each layer of paint was drying. The last helmet I made, we used automotive spray-tint from Autozone. While this provided a decent finish for the Guy helmet, it was hard to get the right level of transparency for the LEDs on Thomas. The spray always came out splotchy and uneven. Reading a thread on the <a href="http://www.therpf.com/" target="_blank">Replica Prop Forum</a> about tinting visors, I decided to try dying the clear plastic with Rit black fabric dye. Heat was recommended, so I purchased a large metal baking pan from Target and placed it on the stovetop so it would be easy to access.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBvYM1Z4mwIDueSW1U3xeUOpPtq8snlo0ktp4a9Qa3pI2XPoQP8RQgsiGf2aHpwUM1d2lGD98RQzPSVWVV5p-GwGBjzbbZzhazmk124p0wdXwf6Tz5zwnKTFio7b4qM_82_rioxgAj9YE/s1600/2014-08-20+23.32.00.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBvYM1Z4mwIDueSW1U3xeUOpPtq8snlo0ktp4a9Qa3pI2XPoQP8RQgsiGf2aHpwUM1d2lGD98RQzPSVWVV5p-GwGBjzbbZzhazmk124p0wdXwf6Tz5zwnKTFio7b4qM_82_rioxgAj9YE/s200/2014-08-20+23.32.00.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGq8oWcOcVs8RCsHPVUD7Xp5lebOzNlaN5eHEZjHQ7sGyI0fG6UKYqQUTKhpFISPOVZu_4bSklA_VsV3DkGtVe5D6Pf9EJiVWymwKfTkO8Kqcsr-Z0knbmuJbhZp5MN9ZNDto4CW15X74/s1600/2014-08-20+23.43.13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGq8oWcOcVs8RCsHPVUD7Xp5lebOzNlaN5eHEZjHQ7sGyI0fG6UKYqQUTKhpFISPOVZu_4bSklA_VsV3DkGtVe5D6Pf9EJiVWymwKfTkO8Kqcsr-Z0knbmuJbhZp5MN9ZNDto4CW15X74/s200/2014-08-20+23.43.13.jpg" /></a>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIK_64ex0J5Wigenbvrz7CvjjEFqT6UTL9VXuv7Aac8cS99GGQazHBx4di3PKcPShC0IC9eFOIeP5MUB0JkamosQfkteK2q79TZSXbmKPiVbAj9kfxcckpLUYeRmDBKwvIk-4n4g7jcxE/s1600/2014-08-20+23.49.43.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIK_64ex0J5Wigenbvrz7CvjjEFqT6UTL9VXuv7Aac8cS99GGQazHBx4di3PKcPShC0IC9eFOIeP5MUB0JkamosQfkteK2q79TZSXbmKPiVbAj9kfxcckpLUYeRmDBKwvIk-4n4g7jcxE/s200/2014-08-20+23.49.43.jpg" /></a>
</div>
I quickly realized the stove burners were causing the plastic to cloud up and deform in specific areas. Moving the pan of dye into to the oven solved that problem. Ultimately the dye never worked out. After baking the PETG for hours and hours with 3 packs of dye, it never took on a dark enough color. I was about to go buy a bunch more dye when my friend said "Why don't you use pretinted acrylic?" I initially had dismissed that idea because I figured acrylic would never flex into that shape without cracking. I was wrong about that (sort-of). We had some 1/16" tinted acrylic on our material shelf and a few minutes later I had a visor. The dye was just a colossal waste of time.
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Interestingly, after sitting overnight in the helmet, the new acrylic visor had started to show tiny stress cracks all over the entire surface when illuminated by the LEDs. This caused a bunch of reflections that didn't look good at all. I eventually cut another visor and heated it with a heat gun thoroughly before bending it into place. This seems to have helped greatly and the current visor does not have the microscopic cracks.
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I decided to paint the helmet with the same paint as my Guy helmet. It doesn't look great, but who's paying attention once the LEDs turn on anyway.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRnfA_Wx86kXe727lN7CUnufRlSCex_YrqHsDw-zQIPUoKhkjIlplp8TVMc8kGikNZCJ6-JOVsDSYy7_AjVM-9rjNacGVXFFIB2mRTL-AB2QMQ61LJidu-TvUr4M8IkpwOAvhrdMHDIK4/s1600/2014-08-22+13.59.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRnfA_Wx86kXe727lN7CUnufRlSCex_YrqHsDw-zQIPUoKhkjIlplp8TVMc8kGikNZCJ6-JOVsDSYy7_AjVM-9rjNacGVXFFIB2mRTL-AB2QMQ61LJidu-TvUr4M8IkpwOAvhrdMHDIK4/s200/2014-08-22+13.59.55.jpg" /></a>
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At this point, everything was starting to come together. I installed the LEDs (with a bit of a hassle and redesign on some of the parts) but it was starting to look good. Now I just needed to mount the electronics and tidy things up a bit.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwRWSShfgGcTnKT_5LoyxbwPfHLvTLKDYkNskp3ccjYXEXK2TUpptTzsKkqn48F8BAteeV8QcApM-nKEng9edai5A5KTlAgP5SVteo8YdPKHAMg2ktHlRjPTMlLkTu2qdA26aby0nEkg/s1600/2014-08-24+15.32.42.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwRWSShfgGcTnKT_5LoyxbwPfHLvTLKDYkNskp3ccjYXEXK2TUpptTzsKkqn48F8BAteeV8QcApM-nKEng9edai5A5KTlAgP5SVteo8YdPKHAMg2ktHlRjPTMlLkTu2qdA26aby0nEkg/s200/2014-08-24+15.32.42.jpg" /></a>
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Mounting the electronics turned out pretty easy. Most things are held in place with Velcro or hot glue. I added a power switch, some connectors, and two fans in the front for ventilation. For padding I used some 3/4" adhesive-backed closed-cell foam and built it up in layers until it felt good. It's not pretty, but it does the job. I did not put much time into this because it will likely come out soon when I send the helmet off for plating.
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This wraps up the hardware build for the project. I will be adding another segment to this post soon that explains all of the software and firmware for the helmet. In the meantime, check out this video where I explain and demo all of the features.
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<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/16Zui-_R588?list=UUtnIAI-dEm7LKytAgVTYqGg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<br />Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-83736383134276379302011-10-11T01:22:00.000-07:002014-08-26T00:27:08.565-07:00'See What Light Can Do'Check out this cool video posted by Philips Lighting that features the LED suits I worked on for the Black Eyed Peas this past summer.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/XhxD68mQDxs" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13Pd66OeNZtuHVmiQsxNcqtwkTv-XCYAoGRznzX8TTjYrE3uPITLOi84ots24o9tB80-UJl9fYXcZrFhkBDvG0yoBZrSF0460NcfQGR0BzKOR7nBivBSDE9DiHIlGmAU0nDA6opIFAN0/s1600/05_apl_de_ap_luminous_costume2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj13Pd66OeNZtuHVmiQsxNcqtwkTv-XCYAoGRznzX8TTjYrE3uPITLOi84ots24o9tB80-UJl9fYXcZrFhkBDvG0yoBZrSF0460NcfQGR0BzKOR7nBivBSDE9DiHIlGmAU0nDA6opIFAN0/s200/05_apl_de_ap_luminous_costume2.jpg" height="186" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp5Z9xRpOSdGHmn08WPEx1_d9RUVg1mmi-cjkXRbnXtKGidc9xE6b2CzqRdPPldMIrRYgVJ2B0_1yWJv6onMoqo_hzDdl2rHRynBTi5qr4Wnu3WHsRutew-hgOsbPsrXixUVIjWbD9MQ/s1600/02_fergie_luminous_costume2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPp5Z9xRpOSdGHmn08WPEx1_d9RUVg1mmi-cjkXRbnXtKGidc9xE6b2CzqRdPPldMIrRYgVJ2B0_1yWJv6onMoqo_hzDdl2rHRynBTi5qr4Wnu3WHsRutew-hgOsbPsrXixUVIjWbD9MQ/s200/02_fergie_luminous_costume2.jpg" height="186" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnn7pWFRpl3bZC6CPzMmR21H8tpEJk7oF5ibhJOlWj5hHgKZ3jnfeAwgv7xEeX0OlJXl0CqieeC6lpueZj4hamkDZxwYxorXv6-zC4aGQVAcmlPjM7bGzalUR_7C36RXFs_2-RlWSymWU/s1600/03_taboo_luminous_costume2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnn7pWFRpl3bZC6CPzMmR21H8tpEJk7oF5ibhJOlWj5hHgKZ3jnfeAwgv7xEeX0OlJXl0CqieeC6lpueZj4hamkDZxwYxorXv6-zC4aGQVAcmlPjM7bGzalUR_7C36RXFs_2-RlWSymWU/s200/03_taboo_luminous_costume2.jpg" height="186" width="200" /></a>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-70124856979957882102011-07-23T22:24:00.001-07:002011-10-11T01:25:33.813-07:00Deadmau5 LED head replica at comic con<div align="center">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/GS4uj9ylmMY" width="560"></iframe></div>
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Late last year I was contacted by a Deadmau5 fan and commissioned to build a replica of the Mau5 LED head used on tour and on the MTV video music awards. The finished project just debuted at Comic Con 2011 this weekend. Unfortunately I can't post or say much about this project. Here are just a few build pics.<br />
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Also enjoy a few stats about the head and some photos taken at Comic Con below. Animations seen at Comic Con were created by Chase Levin and ThinkMotion.<br />
<ul>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">760 individually controlled RGB LEDs</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Completely wireless, no external components</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Powered by Lithium Polymer batteries (2 hour run-time per set)</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">24 FPS playback</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Weight: 12.9 lbs</li>
<li style="margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Build time: 10 months</li>
</ul>
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<br /></div>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com70tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-2788015727692767772011-06-22T23:48:00.000-07:002011-07-01T01:14:05.674-07:00Black Eyed Peas Suits (The Beginning 2011 Tour)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Sorry for the lack of updates lately. I've been working on a couple of really amazing projects that will slowly be revealed over the next few months. The first one just debuted this past evening in Paris. I was part of a team that helped design the LED suits for The Black Eyed Peas' new 2011 tour: "The Beginning". The team has worked relentlessly to produce three suits for the band within two weeks' time: </div>
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The three suits were designed by Philips VP and Dutch lighting designer <a href="http://www.rogiervanderheide.com/">Rogier van der Heide</a> in collboration with <a href="http://nancytilbury.blogspot.com/">Studio Nancy Tilbury</a> of London. I was brought to London where I was responsible for the electronics and software for both APL's and Taboo's suits. I had the pleasure of working alongside electronics guru <a href="http://www.benjaminmales.com/">Benjamin Males</a> who was responsible for Fergie's revolutionary OLED dress, as well as Fergie's EL dress worn at the recent 2011 Billboard Music Awards.<br />
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APL's suit was designed to be a graphic spectrum analyzer that pulses to the music. 200 RGB LED modules provide the effect. Taboo's vest has a couple hundred RGB LED modules, each individually controlled, covered with translucent silicone pyramid "studs". Both suits house my custom control system that loads content from removable flash memory and is triggered wirelessly with a LumenRadio system.<br />
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The suits were scheduled to debut at the <a href="http://www.robinhood.org/">CONCERT 4 NYC</a> on June 9th, but the concert was canceled due to bad weather. Fortunately the suits followed the Peas on their tour and they appeared again tonight. I don't have many pictures from the trip, but here is some YouTube footage posted by some of the Paris audience.<br />
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<i>NOTE: The following footage is not mine -- I just found it on YouTube.</i><br />
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<iframe width="560" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/va-li4j7wuw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<iframe width="560" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_5nFxFww36M" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-60874042103220812272010-12-21T10:35:00.000-08:002010-12-21T10:35:47.832-08:00Xachi: Command in the App StoreDownload our new Xachi game for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. It's free until January 1st! <br />
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<a href="http://itunes.apple.com/app/xachi-command-multiplayer/id406443498?mt=8">http://itunes.apple.com/app/xachi-command-multiplayer/id406443498?mt=8</a>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-28884962248228904732010-12-01T00:48:00.000-08:002010-12-10T08:44:37.375-08:00Star Trek Door<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVtB2Lrd1vg"><img border="0" height="195" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPXB87Oi7UIInQI_QLHAvEqmW_JWETJV26XwdSmqzMNNgW8QJo3BvEIRD6HBHQoh2Ox9tnXMoG9gw83EjU8vTu1BQiIFabQ-xAz9S2GdSHptIrcjCOSsWItNQY1Wxj8FbhKqa1MXCz6sw/s320/Door.PNG" target="_blank" width="320" /></a><br />
If you don't feel like reading the whole post, feel free to just <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVtB2Lrd1vg" target="_blank">watch the video</a>! <br />
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>> Edit: I just posted a new "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOSBUU74SHc">extended version</a>" of the video.<br />
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>> Edit: Be sure to check out and vote for my Instructable in both the Humana and Craftsman Tools Contests starting next week!<br />
<a href="http://www.instructables.com/id/Air-Powered-Star-Trek-Style-Door/">http://www.instructables.com/id/Air-Powered-Star-Trek-Style-Door/</a><br />
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I haven't posted much recently because I'm working on a few projects that aren't complete yet and I would rather wait to post them after they're further along. But in the next few posts I'm going to be digging up an old project I finished over four years ago, which I am going to enter into the Craftsman Tools Contest. I'm also going to talk about my ongoing work on the project, trying to turn it into a viable product. <br />
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When I was younger, one of my favorite shows to watch was Star Trek: The Next Generation. I also visited Disney World about once a year with my family, and my favorite "ride" has always been the monorail. It is just an icon of all that is futuristic. To think that it was built almost 40 years ago is amazing. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDc9_nvnJH3XFvEhtEHrM7vvULezk7EmyfupdqeYDBMt1ADm18u0WKzidZ-aZtxcujIHJn94jkOcxzrnpijsAw1UV-WWfJCh4sgsigNDKqit3CWbhg9s0sYnwtKO_L0s0hs9DbsJD7Jxk/s1600/TNG-Bridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDc9_nvnJH3XFvEhtEHrM7vvULezk7EmyfupdqeYDBMt1ADm18u0WKzidZ-aZtxcujIHJn94jkOcxzrnpijsAw1UV-WWfJCh4sgsigNDKqit3CWbhg9s0sYnwtKO_L0s0hs9DbsJD7Jxk/s200/TNG-Bridge.jpg" width="182" /></a></div>
The USS Enterprise Bridge</td><td align="center" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggLp_UbF6JCLlcN6ovSbe-ZLwIkyzuvix3jZJ7qNAaY7Z-bGnCBVHqdoF30W6METZ2XPtJn1F8DcUre7sE2hi4NKKRHcUMVPKyk6ieaO2DdH9qZ-FIXwLwwoEH2l9XofRDsYrRohra5Fw/s1600/Monorail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggLp_UbF6JCLlcN6ovSbe-ZLwIkyzuvix3jZJ7qNAaY7Z-bGnCBVHqdoF30W6METZ2XPtJn1F8DcUre7sE2hi4NKKRHcUMVPKyk6ieaO2DdH9qZ-FIXwLwwoEH2l9XofRDsYrRohra5Fw/s200/Monorail.jpg" width="196" /></a><br />
Walt Disney World Monorail</td></tr>
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I always wanted a piece of Star Trek and the Disney Monorail in my house, and one thing they have in common is that they both have automatic sliding doors. It would be the perfect, most geek-ified entryway for my bedroom. Only one problem: I was still in school and still lived at home with my mother in New Orleans. I had tried to convince her for years that installing a Star Trek Door would be a good idea, but it never happened. It wasn't until we were renovating our house after Hurricane Katrina that she finally caved in. There wouldn't be a better time to do it. </div>
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To be acceptable as a permanent renovation to our house, I knew the door had to have a <strong>normal appearance</strong>, as well as be <strong>practical</strong> and maintenance free. To reduce the number of moving parts (and maybe for a little coolness factor) I decided to make the door air-powered. The air would be supplied by a small compressor and storage tank located in the attic. In order to open and close from the inside and out, the door needed a little bit of brainpower. I decided to use a small PIC microcontroller, my platform of choice still to this day. Arduino didn't exist back then. </div>
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With a rough plan in my head, I drew a quick CAD model of the door and the brackets that would connect the pistons to the door halves. I was ready to start purchasing parts:</div>
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<li>Small air compressor with tank from Home Depot</li>
<li>32" wide, solid wood door from Home Depot (to be cut in half)</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Pocket Door Track from McMaster.com</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Two 16" stroke, 3/4" bore pneumatic pistons from McMaster.com</li>
<li>A 5-way, 12V solenoid-operated valve from McMaster.com</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Various pneumatic hose, fittings, a regulator, push-on hose connectors, two valves for air supply and purge</li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVXrOBQm6XgR6AeaAvBrbq2x452qfhKRfUIr_GHzMHMjXdeh0oAMhYtOoPkvAlzbzfitNyC5YCwKtFOM8AGKv5vymBgypAnJe1h6aNiFtyH8aiQleeWHlNof4N-pOYCuwTiICElkhldJU/s1600/bracket_cad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; height: 213px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; width: 215px;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="195" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVXrOBQm6XgR6AeaAvBrbq2x452qfhKRfUIr_GHzMHMjXdeh0oAMhYtOoPkvAlzbzfitNyC5YCwKtFOM8AGKv5vymBgypAnJe1h6aNiFtyH8aiQleeWHlNof4N-pOYCuwTiICElkhldJU/s200/bracket_cad.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKwGcfw5EkqbJsTC1tsU40k6YK4wR2QAF4dbDbOeiBZiP0qzkj0_RnFOYoQWLce74MnNtE0mGM663PQW56WTXlAxbsKiJRocj-VKxoCKNdWvAC9f_hLiSZ-h-A6xj1t72H294mTqdnRx8/s1600/compressor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="212" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKwGcfw5EkqbJsTC1tsU40k6YK4wR2QAF4dbDbOeiBZiP0qzkj0_RnFOYoQWLce74MnNtE0mGM663PQW56WTXlAxbsKiJRocj-VKxoCKNdWvAC9f_hLiSZ-h-A6xj1t72H294mTqdnRx8/s320/compressor.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here is the site of installation, where I had already started busting out the wall. </div>
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I proceeded to cut the solid wood door in half with a circular saw, sanding the edges when done. I considered using bi-fold doors which are already the right size, but they didn't give the appearance of a normal door when joined together. </div>
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With all of the interfering studs removed from the wall, I held the rear drywall in place with 3/4" thick wood boards, which would still leave room for the door to travel through the wall. I added a new 2x4 stud on one side to support the pocket door track, and installed the track and a door half using the included hardware. You can see below how the one half will slide into the wall cavity. </div>
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The track only came with one pair of rollers, since <em>normal</em> people only put one pocket door, not two, on the same track. Luckily McMaster sells the rollers individually, so I ordered another set. With some additional metal L-shaped brackets to reinforce the wood, the second door gets installed. I also started adding electrical boxes for light switches that would need to be moved out of the way. </div>
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By this point, the hallway outside my room was a mess, with cracked drywall from my not-so-elegant crowbar and sledgehammer stud removal process. Carpet was about to go down in the hallway, so it was time to patch things up on the outside.</div>
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Some strips of drywall, mud, and trim take care of the hallway with no problem. Of course you know what the keypad is for. It was one of those things I had laying around from back in the day when Radio Shack was actually cool. After about 8 years, I had finally found the perfect application for that piece of alarm equipment I purchased for no reason. </div>
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With steady progress, the project is starting to take shape at this point. Now it was time for some of the details to come together. I welded up a bracket out of some steel flat bar and attached it to the back of the door with a spacer block. I could have really used some more advanced tools at this point, but I had to work with what I had at the time. </div>
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With the two brackets fabricated and installed, I mounted the two 16" pistons above the door, side by side. Air supplied to the back of the pistons would open the doors, and air supplied to the front of the pistons would close the doors, as seen below. I rigged up the valve temporarily to test everything out. </div>
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With the mechanical side of the project functional now, it was time to work on the electrical a bit. I mounted a DIP socket, a relay, and a few other components on a Radio Shack perf board, and placed the whole thing inside a plastic junction box. I added two power switches, one supplying AC power to the wall adapter for the circuitry, and the other supplying power to the compressor in the attic. I wanted the whole system to be enabled and disabled from this "control panel", including the air supply. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTWJhs9xaL0EFmSvwe0AGgh0Ifqyxwx8eDWusp4S9G_EH6HlWsclH807aBl_KepVziPGuIBXt52KUra9J6YJjcEsjT6Bvmx00bSx95QB2j5cgamtanV9itZaqSCspGwM0VLbo3BOoYbA/s1600/14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="133" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTWJhs9xaL0EFmSvwe0AGgh0Ifqyxwx8eDWusp4S9G_EH6HlWsclH807aBl_KepVziPGuIBXt52KUra9J6YJjcEsjT6Bvmx00bSx95QB2j5cgamtanV9itZaqSCspGwM0VLbo3BOoYbA/s200/14.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1x8pX49hyysLy52XUz8WlgLD3sx233IddN7Zo1s8ELd738xsnirH-Zf73mN9XH5DAf8pzXrd3OWOp7hVJiBal_VoTw5L378Ua8oGAKKNjkPqZ8xSKJ6ewPl3tu9ORvVlN9zGmfom9wg/s1600/15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="133" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1x8pX49hyysLy52XUz8WlgLD3sx233IddN7Zo1s8ELd738xsnirH-Zf73mN9XH5DAf8pzXrd3OWOp7hVJiBal_VoTw5L378Ua8oGAKKNjkPqZ8xSKJ6ewPl3tu9ORvVlN9zGmfom9wg/s200/15.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Around this time, the doors were starting to move under their own power. The solenoid valve required a minimum of 30 PSI of air to activate properly, and with nothing limiting the flow of air, the door motion started out very violent. Occasionally they would even cause damage to themselves from such rapid movement. I also had to add a flow control to each individual piston in order to tweak the doors to meet in the center at the same time. </div>
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I took a few videos around this time showing the doors moving in the exposed wall. Sorry for the horrible video quality.</div>
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After countless cycles of testing and tweaking the door operation with the wall open for a month or two, I finally felt comfortable closing up the wall. Here you can see some of the new drywall starting to go back up.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmE-s8VbCSFPHF76fK6z1ZPsV4264UiD7WdoE7o7PqSxEpHydPXKiQuIci8WlK3kbPXhEEEV2qEIsghbS9woQON0J9UqDd-l3ngzcYA8l2N_Z1fTpSrN3Z_bFFOubHmpBjzfbC4vvDg-0/s1600/16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmE-s8VbCSFPHF76fK6z1ZPsV4264UiD7WdoE7o7PqSxEpHydPXKiQuIci8WlK3kbPXhEEEV2qEIsghbS9woQON0J9UqDd-l3ngzcYA8l2N_Z1fTpSrN3Z_bFFOubHmpBjzfbC4vvDg-0/s200/16.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJX78mpYWv_6U8kUFs_6-pvFq_HEuLZNDRF7iKJifgZeDP8H3S-iNcDDaR4VeLhyNfLVYwwQ2l03CciKJNZRujHdqqY-ztyUX5dl53bl-fbOawEI0_YAcT4BtK8uRufqlPpQJHd4mXVLI/s1600/17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJX78mpYWv_6U8kUFs_6-pvFq_HEuLZNDRF7iKJifgZeDP8H3S-iNcDDaR4VeLhyNfLVYwwQ2l03CciKJNZRujHdqqY-ztyUX5dl53bl-fbOawEI0_YAcT4BtK8uRufqlPpQJHd4mXVLI/s200/17.jpg" width="133" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhXI3VJ7ycvsJeeDCup-4QR9XNizrhvRG6uGYy6-VDWj5kixe-VmfONghprYnGLfNOsem_MTJSk4DZz9RxvcJ1TxyTmokuc6BYBfSTbNGs0DieLXlIz1J9OgrG7ctO3150EgGh9dsixw/s1600/18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhXI3VJ7ycvsJeeDCup-4QR9XNizrhvRG6uGYy6-VDWj5kixe-VmfONghprYnGLfNOsem_MTJSk4DZz9RxvcJ1TxyTmokuc6BYBfSTbNGs0DieLXlIz1J9OgrG7ctO3150EgGh9dsixw/s200/18.jpg" width="133" /></a> </div>
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From there it was just a matter of painting the wall, and it was back to looking stock. I purchased a blank white wall plate from Home Depot. I drilled it out for an illuminated pushbutton and a 3-position keyswitch, both of which I bought from McMaster. I also purchased a plastic hatch door from McMaster for the control box. Lastly, I added an air conditioning vent above the door. This lets the air venting noises be heard, and it also provides me access to the valve and pistons should anything go wrong. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBzWlMd058fmRGdDLPnDKOHOOoc3lVzmiebjv15gW5_Enaop4MHVxwPkTYDjDqT0uMa3c3MPKRyJfOheEOcvsCDCq_nCsoRK_8foye35MJ15RXh6Yb5GYMtcMWp5jcVrLSj0PfParGbU/s1600/100_3241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="132" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxBzWlMd058fmRGdDLPnDKOHOOoc3lVzmiebjv15gW5_Enaop4MHVxwPkTYDjDqT0uMa3c3MPKRyJfOheEOcvsCDCq_nCsoRK_8foye35MJ15RXh6Yb5GYMtcMWp5jcVrLSj0PfParGbU/s200/100_3241.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiun96N6WFguRRFQeM41d1BMEjm0hZ66U12STJk39tPKzBbe_512b3a3U4sciJXKcPr_Azc5dc4d7uEeFW2t_sCbIOoMfOhP3ssFnNoo0AQYXIRL7SO5HkZOG91pMFL0EM93x4fL4k3wH0/s1600/IMG_1720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="149" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiun96N6WFguRRFQeM41d1BMEjm0hZ66U12STJk39tPKzBbe_512b3a3U4sciJXKcPr_Azc5dc4d7uEeFW2t_sCbIOoMfOhP3ssFnNoo0AQYXIRL7SO5HkZOG91pMFL0EM93x4fL4k3wH0/s200/IMG_1720.jpg" width="200" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;"></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrMo1J3Qfm3z5_X8e4b4GX_twTNDlNx_4Iwr8yGzrJCI2ThQpXDoiXN5ZIwizOSG4hustraOTo5PFonrql4lbHwW2Sbx1mecV6kWqx-OATZA6o7paAt2hy_QKMIib5N0rDUvOKYXk6tk/s1600/IMG_1722.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="149" ox="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrMo1J3Qfm3z5_X8e4b4GX_twTNDlNx_4Iwr8yGzrJCI2ThQpXDoiXN5ZIwizOSG4hustraOTo5PFonrql4lbHwW2Sbx1mecV6kWqx-OATZA6o7paAt2hy_QKMIib5N0rDUvOKYXk6tk/s200/IMG_1722.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The key switch has three positions: Hold Open, Hold Closed, and Normal Operation. Normal operation means the door will open when the inside or outside buttons are pushed, and close after a few seconds. I wired up the keypad so that I could lock the door from the outside, and a #* combination opens the door. The keypad also has red and green lights which I used to indicate the door's status. If the door is locked, the red light turns on, and the green light illuminates when the door is open.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLdvmgGhKKIjgXn1YlUQozpv3h3RKWNWvmS0OkdoG82CkwZ-w20jJWo3beqcPvODqO6BlEVA07KzEJomjtOV9swXcc8zVAxm6GHOMalw4zyQ041b0G2wnIVggEKAg8hvEk-prwYJD_vQY/s1600/IMG_1736.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLdvmgGhKKIjgXn1YlUQozpv3h3RKWNWvmS0OkdoG82CkwZ-w20jJWo3beqcPvODqO6BlEVA07KzEJomjtOV9swXcc8zVAxm6GHOMalw4zyQ041b0G2wnIVggEKAg8hvEk-prwYJD_vQY/s200/IMG_1736.jpg" width="149" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUQipIttTMmP2-3gv0ZNoGGOclluCuPm0m8jsbW39V0ZrQIx9s3o8-9deQQObQpXaRBDgJQ6N6S145wnVXIpt3wJEKanSGpEDHh42MywVmd86aYchocYa-v4nzWJ732rdY6lpj00d6uk/s1600/IMG_1726.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUQipIttTMmP2-3gv0ZNoGGOclluCuPm0m8jsbW39V0ZrQIx9s3o8-9deQQObQpXaRBDgJQ6N6S145wnVXIpt3wJEKanSGpEDHh42MywVmd86aYchocYa-v4nzWJ732rdY6lpj00d6uk/s200/IMG_1726.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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And that just about wraps it up. Four years later, the door is still up and running, and I recently took some photos and video of it in action during my last trip back home. I also decided to upgrade the air compressor to a new Craftsman 1HP model with a much higher SCFM for faster refilling. The compressor is hung from a roof beam in the attic with padding to dampen any vibrations. </div>
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<img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl_exXNRj8lGkOcjgPHkIfNgAYYUpxv70N2b05MllbZ16UckHgcKNoH4LEXJ2oaevG3dKk_kPuLSLHTzHVrNM8N6MhzNPLi6ZH36iWZe4g7JBRe1vj3JRJ6ezTJp_HmSrY3VFLqEb-NHQ/s200/IMG_1738.jpg" width="149" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8hSMArArGLNnVbtlSzipFiM1a_f_k5WspEFKuuNVaf-YdPNpDikXPOU84m7WMSXmdY2ceXYHqCcnaUM6B62b5hj1TJU34_uBjDY7QDUzbJJyw_7VRVuweaRvia03VSYOSkyvnPWOs9M/s1600/IMG_1746.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8hSMArArGLNnVbtlSzipFiM1a_f_k5WspEFKuuNVaf-YdPNpDikXPOU84m7WMSXmdY2ceXYHqCcnaUM6B62b5hj1TJU34_uBjDY7QDUzbJJyw_7VRVuweaRvia03VSYOSkyvnPWOs9M/s200/IMG_1746.jpg" width="149" /></a></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgffkFlFidrn1akkxqtwY6lYeAHVgvnUW-uNFyopffkx3dHkZUlS_dSq3-jvVjw2f62r8U0OTR5iVef6IVN9Q2JlcmWEH0Y9PbIARCPcUFShjd65xGUbN8wr2Lcy9dCkmo3vFEe6kDFBfk/s1600/IMG_1751.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgffkFlFidrn1akkxqtwY6lYeAHVgvnUW-uNFyopffkx3dHkZUlS_dSq3-jvVjw2f62r8U0OTR5iVef6IVN9Q2JlcmWEH0Y9PbIARCPcUFShjd65xGUbN8wr2Lcy9dCkmo3vFEe6kDFBfk/s200/IMG_1751.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Watch the quick video:<br />
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<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FVtB2Lrd1vg?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><br />
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And the extended version:<br />
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<object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qOSBUU74SHc?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qOSBUU74SHc?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com268tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-91684799625786950302010-10-26T19:56:00.000-07:002010-10-26T19:56:47.440-07:00Tron Helmet Preview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCRSRCOPkGICoGpSKmTyCAFXX_-t1AiQdq9_0PlguABVtfZVeW-Fr1gyGtH33IpIdEpM6VELh2nTVGPyUHEPQN3h_V8gIVsiolC9QAG3Ej6zcRAN_oSUDMm7iGKLk9362usaU6u5NLkQ/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="476" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijCRSRCOPkGICoGpSKmTyCAFXX_-t1AiQdq9_0PlguABVtfZVeW-Fr1gyGtH33IpIdEpM6VELh2nTVGPyUHEPQN3h_V8gIVsiolC9QAG3Ej6zcRAN_oSUDMm7iGKLk9362usaU6u5NLkQ/s640/photo.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-21978250452082699432010-09-07T04:05:00.000-07:002010-09-07T04:05:03.354-07:00iPhone Controlled LED Suit In ActionHere is a compilation video I threw together showing my LED suit in action this past weekend at Dragon*Con 2010 in Atlanta. More build reports, photos, and video to come soon. <br />
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<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/luOeJdosct4?fs=1&hl=en_US&hd=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/luOeJdosct4?fs=1&hl=en_US&hd=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-85575155791099088592010-09-01T09:49:00.000-07:002010-09-01T13:46:32.968-07:00iPhone Controlled LED Suit - Quick Demo<object width="660" height="405"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YTgMeG_Cja4?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YTgMeG_Cja4?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="660" height="405"></embed></object>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-81883268058818129932010-09-01T00:04:00.000-07:002010-09-01T01:38:52.762-07:00iPhone Controlled LED Suit -- Part 2<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><b>The Controller / PCB</b></span><br />
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In the interest of time, and seeing how well my Lantronix breakout board came out on the CNC mill, I decided to CNC my own PCB for the entire suit. I knew it would be fairly simple since most of the components are built on to the <a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=9218">Arduino Pro Mini</a>. I still haven't found a decent way to design a PCB to be milled. I use Altium for my circuit design, but this time I had to put my nerves to the test by taking the design into SolidWorks. <br />
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First, I started by drawing the overall board shape. Then I extruded a .002" layer of copper on top of the board as a separate body. Then I made a sketch containing all of the drilled through-holes for every component. This took a lot of time because it involved looking up every component (luckily there weren't very many) and creating the footprint in the 2D sketch. In the next feature I extruded away the excess copper, leaving only the rings around the holes I drilled. This is accomplished by offsetting all of the entities in the previous sketch by a certain amount that I varied accordingly for each component. Each piece of copper is a separate body in Solidworks at this point. <br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/AybU" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/TH3ugSWsC3I/AAAAAAAAAng/p9Tre7KeGQY/s200/Solidworks1.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://goo.gl/photos/jLzr" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZLem9VSp4vjQVgmZosXAbkEUiZQWqm283RUco16YSqX9Zqa65CKNAhy0UMQrJzhSQrdt-GAHuzgyTUdiBQdmIOrmk_jcm2tI4dnamiS-KON1wzcHT6pJ1NMLi7Rgp3UCx-EMb8jXosDk/s200/Solidworks2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Next I began drawing traces. Thankfully Solidworks lets me draw a single line, then extrude it in two directions to create a trace of the same height as the copper layer and with a thickness I choose. Unfortunately it won't let me create multiple traces in one sketch and extrude them all at once. So for now I am stuck drawing each trace in its own sketch and extruding them over and over again. It was a very slow and painful process, but once I got used to it I knocked it out in a few hours. </div>
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/HMuD" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNN5Rzav2HZsn_WLeS23MhTkaNNkRCVyWlIxL2OooIQcTDjaAjaxdsPSSwM3ZwVQb4XhXrr0j-EagDFx0K7kiF73t3NoDMdVwrFkhP58uh5JH1UAq3s1aycwD-UUsTtpWXcy8fpmtFVa8/s200/Solidworks3.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/lfGV" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/TH3uh_ikARI/AAAAAAAAAns/jWZZMIeMoYI/s200/Solidworks4.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Most PCB design software, including my favorite one, Altium, lets you design a PCB by viewing from the top, but while drawing traces on the top or bottom layer. Unfortunately I forgot about this when getting started with the PCB in Solidworks, but that was easily fixed with a Body Move/Copy to flip the copper to the other side without mirroring it. Then I performed the same steps on the other side for a few more traces. To check my sanity, I drew up the larger components and placed them to check for interference.</div>
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I chose a right-angle slider switch for the power, and screw terminals (not pictured) for attaching the wires on the right side. I knew it would be a heavy toll for a 3.3v linear regulator powering the Lantronix module (~250mA) from approximately 12 volt supply voltage. That is a lot of heat to burn off. I found this awesome little <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">1 amp 3.3v switching regulator</a> that is a drop-in replacement for the TO-220 style linear regulators, but it is way more efficient. <br />
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Being the impatient person I am, I didn't want to spend any more time on the design. It was time to start milling right now! First, all the tools were set up in the tool changer and indicated. Then a piece of double-sided copper-clad FR4 PCB material was taped down to a 1/4" aluminum plate and clamped in the mill vise. The first operation involved drilling the different sized holes, and then the traces were routed out with a .020" endmill.<br />
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After the traces got routed out and the operations for one side were complete, I cleaned up the burrs and the finish with a Scotchbrite pad. With some acetone, the tape's adhesive broke down and I removed the board from the aluminum plate. Then, using the holes that were just drilled, the aluminum plate was tapped for #4-40 screws, and I flipped the board over and mounted it back to the aluminum plate to perform the operations on the other side. Then with a razor blade under a microscope, the excess copper was separated then peeled away from the board with pliers, leaving just the traces.<br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/v09a" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/THyoCNfiq-I/AAAAAAAAAgU/mnLPEe3baV0/s200/IMG_1107.jpg" width="149" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/8Z4p" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnt1c4Kmg6CQKLILqs4CaW-HBqbjjVNf92Qj87wJQHYrpAR-NSOVtVkaDH0smxGos4teZMKnNOGTQcsWC70K9HGjEGvWKG0A3R-_rENw72SPYbNrI-bvgT03lTXAH4vgMlGM5SM8eWbd4/s200/IMG_1112.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/KouB" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbXdkWh70LVJflDA_02DsjqfMOQgVFRtl3mnWEpMaBZqztlMOAPkV2I6lfJYA5cQh0DpMfsXyKpRoD-MNcGuqMP63R5b5fb2YL6TIBIGRTFTjYk-HEwbcsdfBaEQ5uZHZ6ldq7ccGQt9E/s200/IMG_1115.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/Qm0K" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRSzlq9emMdpXpsdR4Pj8T_vIgYbeKXrMxMc4lu8ECxwy3arwG7zS9hojUMfV_UQL4hD1Dbf3x2l3LEA-N19rwOeGmUPVgARoejZJXJ6eg26OrKSG3y13vGfAyyq2kTPryrcvg803GmGY/s200/IMG_1122.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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Since the Lantronix module was not cheap (around $65) I knew I wanted to make it removable in case this PCB turned into a disaster. I had some <a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=8838">2mm headers</a> from Sparkfun, but they needed a little work to fit properly. The ends of the headers had extra material, which kept me from placing them in line with each other. I took care of this in a few minutes on a manual mill. <br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/CA4E" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7ZzvZfHrV4M7JoOUX4LKEWvQzeDlB1D59X9P9-24JohGMerr3vA4Yw5ehL6QZgCeLWZGBiz7TK-QAFSIWGejQopsG65ibYbx5UU3BbEGOkyEK8DwcFhcj4VjiR6eyxcssXSh0QmtHo6I/s200/IMG_1129.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/mA6S" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7BPipkilJTqCfyP6nq7GYapntS1MOa5xt9LpXpyEGd05nFVhZSgolTbLPfe9ED88bVF53ijJoeXnRym4lGFPVQM5lr-d-MAonM6TeXJeubRVjOk5xvYLjhDdIHgkqFyw2AmuB166cXw/s200/IMG_1127.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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I was ready to start soldering the components. I used a DIP socket for easy Arduino removal as well. Because the board is double-sided but the through-holes are not plated, I purposely designed some through-holes just to insert pieces of wire to transfer traces from one side to another. Cool, everything fits!<br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/9YAF" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyqEqYvnQP_LTHRtcGDvcWan2V-OYvh8hlB6l258sIhLd9TY3KGss5QXoaBXTmgsytD0pE8EwqeS7hAKSGmO0IFuXZdXlh0z6yFvoRJggGZzDqIjx0BDfG_AWLT2mw7FbfdXGib1hyeBk/s200/IMG_1130.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/Qr7G" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnkhsDcMSuMu8o-gJZcoT5uftVm2j1JLKBmhJW0yCguSxRcJzwen7eN9lpVPCtLGdqRbbHouPobxWg8zM2_PwUPpT9-xgdx8x9AbEaFdd_edq8DZ4BOEKYz1dgWgtcpETfKc-zzdR_noY/s200/IMG_1131.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/AC28" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGmDvPS07Q8uakN26OEC4lO9XbjVgSNeZWMB4nfBExpmNArfbfE8x8M6qJKpDCsli8LrX6Q0pghhb7fm8zXJofe0Ycar4wjMIoWAKl5MFjebYppBI_MRpJ-_cI7QXXgc-VJCEu9ORmqpg/s200/IMG_1132.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Now it was back to Solidworks to design an enclosure. When you have access to a FDM printer, it is fun to reminisce about all the adventures you've had with radio shack project boxes, but it's so nice to move on. My friend Alex taught me all the tricks to plastic enclosure design in Solidworks: Lip & Groove, Snap Hooks, and good practices in general. <br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/IAau" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbtWql38GPEAmJHOVIXoL1-o4JEnTz_S-E5_NyQIyNcs-NkfkgswuRKB7ne401udewc5pv51zmtmqtegpp4dQ3l2jxY5-uV-22ptbuEGvGaej3yUkxbsec-DR9ti7eWf4j6mCkqzbAsq8/s200/Solidworks7.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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And seriously, no lie, I pressed "PRINT" and it appeared a few hours later. I had picked up a <a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=145">2.4ghz antenna</a>, and added a right-angle male header to my Arduino Mini for easy programming using the <a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=9115">FTDI Basic Breakout</a>. <br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/Tu5A" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/THyoNt5YpbI/AAAAAAAAAfw/FAbnndDvgV4/s200/IMG_1136.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/gpHy" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/THyoOY2wy2I/AAAAAAAAAf0/pfrLmqPB67U/s200/IMG_1137.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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That wraps up the controller for the most part. I added a tactile pushbutton switch and a LAN activity LED after I took these pictures, but that is what those little holes in the top are for. Now it's time to get on to more important things, like coding this shenanigans...<br />
<br />Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-21402215793563894962010-08-31T22:43:00.000-07:002010-09-01T22:23:43.450-07:00iPhone Controlled LED Suit -- Part 1<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Since I just created this blog a few days ago, I will have to go back in time a few weeks to talk about starting this other project. The helmet is in Alex's hands getting prepped for painting. The circuitry is not done, but in at a good stopping point. Maybe I can work on them during my lunch breaks throughout the week. Anyway...</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">My friends had been trying to convince me to attend Dragon Con for the last 5 years or so. I myself am not a huge sci-fi fan or anything, but I am a nerd and I do like building cool stuff. That the same idea some of </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><a href="http://www.jamiepricecreative.com/bar2d2.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">my friends</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> have too. I attended my first Dragon*Con last year with nothing in hand and no idea what to expect, but I left with some crazy ideas. After a while though, those ideas got put on the back burner and </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><a href="http://www.xachipet.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">other projects</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> took priority. But with DC 2010 looming on the horizon, I got inspired to make an interesting outfit. I thought it would be neat to have a full-body suit of LEDs that I could control to any color or pattern I wanted. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">One of my friends and fellow DC attendee, Chris Williamson, decided to build a mobile dance floor this year. He showed me some LED modules he bought from </span><a href="http://www.bliptronics.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bliptronics</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. They are individually controllable, over 31,000 color combinations, and they looked pretty rugged. Check out some pics of Chris's dance floor and his installation of the LED modules below. The whole thing is motorized and fitted with a sound system. And notice the stripper pole in the middle - hanging out with our crowd will be interesting this year...</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The LEDs looked great though. I bought 40 of them to try out. I soon realized that in order to make an entire suit light up evenly, I was going to need both some good diffusion and A LOT of LEDs. I also finally caved in and bought an </span><a href="http://www.arduino.cc/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Arduino</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. Until this point I have used PICs for most of my projects. But </span><a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sparkfun</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> sells the Arduino Mini which is small enough to use on the suit. Since Ben from Bliptronics had published source code for the LED modules, the easiest way to test them out was to hook them up to an Arduino. Just a side-note about my gratitude toward Sparkfun: Not only are they a wildly successful company and a great resource to the maker community, but they are the reason why a young renegade web developer could ever be respected as a real electrical engineer building medical devices. Thanks guys!</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I couldn't come up with a good idea for an outer suit, so I decided to keep the nerd-factor down and just wear some white dress clothes. Below is a picture of my preliminary test to see how 40 LEDs looked under a white shirt. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The outcome was pretty cool, but 40 LEDs were quickly used up. I went back to Bliptronics, this time ordering another 160 LED modules. At $4 apiece, you can do the math. When I come up with a project, I tend to go a little overboard. Ben was nice enough to give me a discount on the modules. Thanks Ben. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I started sewing LEDs onto an old shirt I had. With the white button-up shirt over it, this is how it looked. The video makes it look brighter than reality. It didn't have the effect I was going for -- it needed more diffusion. </span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I also didn't know how I was going to control so many LEDs. But being a true iPhone user my first thought was "Oh man, it would be sweet to have an app for that...". If you've been following my links so far, you might have noticed that I have a good reason to be tight with the iPhone. However, there was one small problem. I didn't know how to write apps, and I didn't even own a Mac! The last time I bought a Mac was around the time when the App Store was first launched. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I bought a Mac Mini and </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I thought I was going to start writing iPhone apps overnight. I sold it on eBay a few weeks later after a lot of frustration. Well I found myself back at the Apple Store again, this time making an even bigger purchase.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Being familiar with the iPhone and its limitations, and having done it before, I knew bluetooth would be a bad option to attempt. A few weeks ago I had finally received a sample part I had requested from </span></span><a href="http://www.lantronix.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lantronix</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> almost a year prior. The MatchPort b/g Pro is a wifi-to-serial embedded module. Out of the box it is pre-configured to create an ad-hoc network. No access point required -- perfect for the iPhone. The module has two rows of 2mm spaced male pins, which made breadboarding difficult. My solution was to try to CNC mill a breakout board from copper-clad FR4 from Digikey. </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Success! My first PCB produced by a CNC mill. Now I could get started evaluating the Lantronix module. Right off the bat, it powers up and creates the ad-hoc network like it said it would. I hooked the RX and TX lines straight to a <a href="http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=718">Sparkfun FTDI Breakout</a>. I own about 5 of these little boards. They are so handy I typically don't have less than 3 of them hooked to my PC at any given time. Within a few minutes I had a Windows test app written in VB.NET to open a TCP connection to the Lantronix module and I was able to send data from my laptop to a terminal window on my PC wirelessly.</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At some point around this time, the rest of my LEDs arrived from Bliptronics. I went to town sewing LED modules onto a shirt and pants. The pants are actually white scrubs, slightly modified to not be so baggy. The material has to be strong to hold up the extra weight of the LED modules. This thing is starting to look pretty silly...</span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">There is more progress! <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2010/09/iphone-controlled-led-suit-part-2.html">Click here to see Part 2.</a></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'MS Shell Dlg';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-87870853082495460622010-08-31T22:23:00.000-07:002010-09-01T00:09:18.146-07:00Wrapping up the helmet<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 12</span><br />
Sunday. Alex began sanding and prepping the plastic helmet for painting. The <a href="http://www.alsacorp.com/products/killercans/kc/killerchrome.htm">Killer Chrome</a> paint will be arriving on Monday. We need to make the surface as shiny as possible or the paint will look horrible no matter how great the paint is. For the most part, Sunday was pretty relaxed and not much happened. I took the opportunity to work on my LED suit a bunch. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 13</span><br />
Monday. I began an all-out production line soldering up PCBs. There are 16 boards that go behind the rainbow side colors, and two main jaw boards that house the PIC microcontroller, the equalizer, and the 3mm round chasers. The rectangular boards with the three boards and the MOSFET are the rainbow boards. You can't miss the big through-hole resistor added last-minute. Oops.<br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/6DVP" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisr7ssa_tCuMywkb1co_GllEk7Qy4056LQi534urvJArYhxi3yMWj4ytf-NBfCXo_SA9ltrWmHd7kKsaJ9zfTQDYxakRP0OGkJdtWctX7oPKFrryTZJbk0W1jXTYfsS0fa3VgTrGe2exM/s200/IMG_1218.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/qHPe" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEBgN6V4eAv9SkUpfCdhAV-h3Vyc2AOYtvO10Og5fG8d4-ND_XILjMtgX_ZXVzCv2YioeArrqvy10s0UCehB1PyaYaiYshBNcpfgMfmhyJi0f7Mo-AUwIV3cXsVZRfGlX4TsDcF1p4AHY/s200/IMG_1219.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://goo.gl/photos/3lyT" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/TH3Wn8e-msI/AAAAAAAAAkc/YbaCjqZ--i4/s200/IMG_1221.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Meanwhile, we tested the LEDs out with the colored cellophane, and we were not impressed at all. The colors became very washed out under the bright LEDs. We decided to make some white plastic diffusers that would double as a little structure for the thin colored material. </div>
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Now for some bad news...</div>
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The Killer Chrome paint turned out to be a disaster, as we had worried might happen. For some reason, even though the surface was smoothed and shiny at the start, no matter what we did, the jet black base coat always dried flat. With a flat base coat, there was little hope for the chrome step. As expected, from that point the chrome step didn't turn out well either, and it was all downhill from there. Unfortunately, this is the one step we knew would cause us the most issues, and we were forced to resort to our backup plan: plain old "chrome" spray paint. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 14</span></div>
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Danny and I met up with Alex for our ritualistic lunch at <a href="http://www.fiveguys.com/">Five Guys</a>. Alex pulled up and grabbed the gold spray-painted helmet out of the trunk and Danny and I both let out a sigh of relief. It didn't look THAT bad. Actually it still looked pretty awesome. It's nowhere near Volpin-good, but its not bad. </div>
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Alex designed the diffusers to snap right into the existing light frames. Each one is a different shape and they are each numbered very secretively. Sick!</div>
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/19H6" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHXjxNHgedvHqemLMFuyvxOyIcuSXZhjJ-_lNF6hV9GM_h6FNFkm0OFEhrv7KWolGdV6Xdx2LjaLeM4TzXpEaWx1OdNz7YLBcdFbQepKqr6wrJAraiSVndR-YoVMGpbwiL2rqtrQleXRM/s200/IMG_1232.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/F39r" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXKRitiBZ9nlRcfKMuBg8eEGN6-fxS9Wf7D7p67sj4D2VzynfbHfzGUZQ9zgrfs6vbVjBx-mmOOoLLF_pf5fij17S8PjRnOlDjoSbKQyRYrt1raNgXritgbDtznSP3_rVvBCGnXDVsWgI/s200/IMG_1234.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Danny is starting to glue on some wires for the hair. It looks like a very painful process. After work, I started wiring up the electronics in the light frame assembly. We convened at Alex's house around 8 PM to work on the final assembly. I drilled and tapped the plastic frames to mount the PCBs with #4-40 screws, while Danny and Alex worked on the colored cellophane and the EKG decal. The color material is doubled-up and glued with 3M spray adhesive. </div>
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/P8Ot" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQkvOi_nIIuzUEU1jbo6r1MDCC5B34Mgv1lYDAaUJCD1oONgjSr60gZe8d-xlGz5y1HIKKAAhhQurOuOyasB54IP9EL7ktiXGwwD5AExhCdDsahD9sms9TD9m3XzcUoGfAwXC4S8gTyKw/s200/IMG_1235.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/CtZT" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_PstjZHLr-ic/TH3WswbAMoI/AAAAAAAAAk8/5jzKgg6Bpj8/s200/IMG_1236.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/k5tr" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh_XcjeKibGFEXLAo0_ogRR11azVorY1z5-YL4bW6hsfpN7E5FU4A6MMXljsqzVSDbbODshWfEFboL2VfYBaB3sD0tr2bqmzDWU6i6yrrbb39uziT3eznogF6ZvESuwJ_bvB4jjDYyHQA/s200/IMG_1237.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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When both of our parts came together, we tested out the colors under the diffuser panels. Pretty cool! We mounted the light frames into the helmet. </div>
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We adhered the visor to the helmet with some PSA (aka double-sided tape). With some quick splicing of wires, we were able to get both sides running a test pattern. We were expecting the two sides to slowly become out of sync, but happened sooner than we expected. I will be adding some basic communication between the two sides in order to alleviate the sync issues. We videotaped the "unveiling" since it was such a special moment.</div>
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All in all, I think we've done pretty good considering the circumstances. We're way ahead of schedule, only a few small items remain. Even though we knew we'd never reach perfection, we have learned a lot and it came out looking pretty nice. <br />
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<br /></div>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-42359635924761797072010-08-29T01:25:00.000-07:002010-09-01T22:22:56.770-07:00More Helmet - Vacuum forming & Circuitry<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 10</span></div>
Friday. PCBs and components have arrived. We've started the print job for the right half of the helmet, which should finish late Saturday evening. I got the PCB parts from Danny and began soldering the components on. Just trying to get the first LED to blink is turning out to be difficult. Because we used the ExpressPCB el-cheapo Miniboard service, there are no silkscreens or solder masks. Knowing where each component goes would have been nice, since Alex designed the boards and I'm doing the assembly. But I'll just have to figure it out.<br />
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Also, a second smaller printer is printing the plastic frames that hold the LEDs behind the visor. Here is a video of the smaller printer doing its thing:<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 11 (Part 1)</span><br />
Saturday afternoon. Danny leaves for D*C in 5 days. We test fitted one of the plastic light frames in the left helmet half. The printer is still printing the other helmet half. Alex has put about 6 or 7 coats of primer, spray paint, and wax on the MDF mold. It has the finish of a bowling ball. We wanted the finish to be perfect because we heard the plastic will pick up even the smallest of textures. The vacuum former is complete with a hole in the side that is a perfect fit for the shop vac hose. We cut our first piece of plastic to shape and mounted it between two frames of wood. The plastic is clear PETG from <a href="http://www.mcmaster.com/">McMaster</a>. With the mold looking so great, our expectations were set for success on our first try. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936637697/" title="IMG_1191 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1191" height="200" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4081/4936637697_0491322d0b_m.jpg" width="149" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936629287/" title="IMG_1158 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1158" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4936629287_c72763f9e6_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937214724/" title="IMG_1155 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1155" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4937214724_f37a43262c_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <br />
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Boy were we wrong. Our first mistake was trying it without the plastic being melted enough. Then the paint on the mold did not take the heat well and completely fused to the plastic. The resulting piece photographed below came from a lot of prying, cutting, and re-heating to get the mold out of the melted plastic. Notice the red paint all over the plastic. FAIL.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937215940/" title="IMG_1160 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1160" height="179" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4937215940_7264402191_m.jpg" width="240" /></a> <br />
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But after our first failure, we were determined to do it better. And we did. We decided to sand down the mold back to the first layer of primer. We left the protective coating on the plastic this time as well, figuring it would help the mold release easier. We also left our sheet of plastic a little larger to allow it to stretch around the steep sides more easily. Here is a video of our second attempt:<br />
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Success! We were all amazed at how incredibly well it worked this time. We sketched the sharpie line on the formed plastic and with a little prying the mold came out. Using some shears we cut the piece to the rough shape. Using the first bad mold as a tray, Alex hit the inside of the good part with some spray tint from the auto parts store.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936630007/" title="IMG_1162 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1162" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4096/4936630007_af1ddc5e45_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937218204/" title="IMG_1167 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1167" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4081/4937218204_3521309722_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937219238/" title="IMG_1170 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1170" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4121/4937219238_98d2812390_m.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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A few minutes later we test fitted it on the helmet half. And to wrap things up, we honed our vacuum forming skills making a few more copies as backups in case the tinting or trimming was difficult. At this point, things are turning out WAY better than we had hoped. Our first vacuum forming experience ever turned out to be an amazing success!<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937220250/" title="IMG_1173 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1173" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4115/4937220250_aecb1f1a8f_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936634697/" title="IMG_1175 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1175" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4074/4936634697_ee76858009_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937224660/" title="IMG_1197 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1197" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4937224660_f6b985050c_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 11 (Part 2)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"></span>Saturday Evening. Checking up on the printer, it looks like the right side is almost done. Check out the video to see how the printer can print some overhangs without any support underneath if the angle is right. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936639835/" title="IMG_1203 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1203" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4936639835_fde7290d62_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937225866/" title="IMG_1202 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1202" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4937225866_e728616a2f_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <br />
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While that finished up, I tried to figure out why the PCBs weren't working properly. It turned out that while rushing to finish the design, we completely overlooked the fact that the darlington transistor arrays we chose to power the LEDs are N-channel, meaning they sink current. We had them hooked up as if they were sourcing current. Essentially that meant both leads of each LED were connected to ground, so nothing was going to light up. With some "slight" modifications to the PCB, I was able to cut some bad traces with an exacto knife and solder wires to the right locations. Voila, we have light! I wrote up a quick test pattern to make sure the shift registers were working.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4936640321/" title="IMG_1204 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1204" height="200" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4936640321_379171a8a8_m.jpg" width="147" /></a><br />
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We tested the LEDs under the plastic frames. Danny has the colored material at his house, but a paper towel will suffice for now. At 2AM, that pretty much concludes our Saturday night. And even though the right side of the helmet looks exactly like the left side, it is so pretty I have to post it.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4937226962/" title="IMG_1206 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_1206" height="240" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4937226962_ae10f65d30_m.jpg" width="179" /></a><br />
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But wait, there is more progress! <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2010/08/wrapping-up-helmet.html">Click here to see Part 3.</a>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-29745277343645419962010-08-26T19:47:00.000-07:002010-09-01T22:21:08.111-07:00The Beginnings of the HelmetAfter seeing <a href="http://volpinprops.blogspot.com/">Volpin</a>'s video "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0TBZeCgL0E">How to make a Daft Punk Helmet in 17 Months</a>", my friend Danny decided he wanted to make one of his own. Soon the talk turned into action after his brother Alex started modeling the helmet in <a href="http://www.solidworks.com/">Solidworks</a> for fun. The helmet turned into an obsession and soon we had a very accurate 3D model that was actually manufacturable. Danny was quickly convinced that we could actually pull off some sort of Daft Punk helmet for Dragon*Con 2010 this year. All of us were extremely impressed with Volpin's craftsmanship and attention to detail. But 17 months is a long time. We thought it would be interesting to see if we could pull it off in 17 days (with the help of some sophisticated tools).<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Days 1-3: Solid Models</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS86D_-kihF9_lUtGfKWMiN2nCYNOBilLSaa0DUHEHG5oKD5ExGEVR_6RURoKgeBG0rL5EBqPpIMI4Tl_90BPrGqfQnXCVUKms4cUck6gQ0U0YaQJs736iumM9uiKtS04Et0zkgVInj-Q/s1600/Iso+view,+no+visor.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjud40EWlyKHLuIDTvzBQHdCAe3epJyry2Fkluji8l7x8WCJ_pXVnVV2_yWfUW6gfnlRHaLxs0qWPNaF8dzdld0QW-AWOvBIrAW_Gvkn5k-QAHil7Mt4xyVZF_7yLiTtjkDfOWJHDwxdTM/s1600/Render2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930999802/" title="Render2 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="Render2" height="150" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4930999802_891a3cdb82_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930409235/" title="Render1 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="Render1" height="150" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/4930409235_871cd8ed91_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930999808/" title="Render3 by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="Render3" height="133" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4075/4930999808_ff47bc0cfe_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930999762/" title="Iso view, no visor by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="Iso view, no visor" height="155" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4930999762_2944e4bace_m.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 4: </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"></span>The true number of man-hours Alex spent on the solid model is unknown, but Saturday, August 21st is when all the action started. We hardly had to lift a finger (literally). With a little help from modern technology, we pressed the "print" button and the helmet started taking shape. To make the complex shape of the helmet, we are using an <a href="http://www.stratasys.com/">FDM printer</a>. FDM (or fused deposition modeling) is a process where melted plastic (polycarbonate in this case) is fed through a print head and stacked up layer by layer to make real 3D parts out of plastic. Over 24 hours is required to print one half alone, but the results were very impressive. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 5:</span><br />
Sunday. As the printer continued to do its thing, there were plenty of other items to take care of. Danny got to work making a vacuum former for the visor. The base is a couple of 2x4's and some perf-board from Home Depot. We had planned to make a mold for the visor out of 3/4" MDF layers stacked and glued together. The whole block would then be CNC milled to shape. We blindly started milling the block on a ProtoTrak CNC bridgeport-style mill. After making a large mess of sawdust, we found out we didn't have enough Z-travel to make the entire mold without pulling some tricks in CAM software. The results were good, but we needed a better solution.<br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/ItRd" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_EF5OB3g5hQs/THfGeiCAs1I/AAAAAAAABBA/FT_jEdbW7N4/s200/IMG_2037.JPG" width="200" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930507863/" title="Visor mold on ProtoTrak CNC mill by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="Visor mold on ProtoTrak CNC mill" height="149" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4930507863_568a1c7d95_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 6:</span><br />
Monday. The left half of the helmet is finished printing, along with the backer plate for the hair. The printer adds support material under overhangs or empty spaces, and the support is broken off by hand. Here you you can see Danny test fitting the helmet half with some support remaining in the ear area.<br />
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<a href="http://goo.gl/photos/Sff3" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_EF5OB3g5hQs/THJJpA0nKyI/AAAAAAAAA7w/xSYzqQ1Ukho/s200/IMG_2028.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/KzB1" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_EF5OB3g5hQs/THJJqCc7ugI/AAAAAAAAA70/vVCK7ZW518E/s200/IMG_2030.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="http://goo.gl/photos/iM1f" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_EF5OB3g5hQs/THJJtbCREUI/AAAAAAAAA8U/HRTJoIPbFYw/s200/IMG_2035.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 7:</span><br />
Tuesday. Work continued on the side tasks, primarily finishing some design details with the plastic frames to hold the LEDs and the PCB design. In the interest of time, we decided to make the PCBs using the dreaded <a href="http://www.expresspcb.com/">ExpressPCB</a> software. While the software is a little outdated and clunky, they do get the job done fast and cheap. Danny also got to ordering the materials for the visor and LED covers. Below is the final layout for the PCB. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36385785@N05/4930538119/" title="PCB-Screenshot by uiproductions, on Flickr"><img alt="PCB-Screenshot" height="121" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4930538119_24d12fe47b_m.jpg" width="200" /></a> <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 8</span><br />
Wednesday. Danny and Alex come up with a new plan for the visor mold, involving a much bigger CNC mill. Below is a picture of Alex and his CNC (taken during another project), along with pictures (and video!) of the visor mold being machined. First a roughing pass was made with a 1" endmill taking 1" steps. Then another roughing pass was made with an extra-long 1/2" ball endmill and then a finishing pass.<br />
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The result is a work of art (and a giant mess). You can even see the indentation that Alex left in the solid model so we would know where the visor needed to be cut after the sheet of plastic is formed over it.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Day 9</span><br />
Thursday. Work continues. The PCB design was finalized and order was placed with rush delivery so we could have them over the weekend. Coats of primer were added to the mold, along with more sanding to get the smoothest finish possible. <br />
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That brings us up to where we stand today. Still lots of work ahead. I've learned that writing a blog takes a lot of time too! Hopefully I can make regular posts with progress. For tonight, it's time for me to move on to my other projects!<br />
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There has been more progress on this project: <a href="http://uiproductions.blogspot.com/2010/08/more-helmet-vacuum-forming-circuitry.html">See Part 2 Here.</a>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3246904198041450649.post-47802687531618152052010-08-26T12:41:00.000-07:002010-08-26T13:59:46.535-07:00First postI am starting a quick blog to post progress on a number of projects that I've been working on or helping other people work on. I will be making separate posts explaining the different projects and showing their progress. Topics to start with will include:<br />
<ul><li>iPhone controlled LED Suit (for Dragon Con 2010)</li>
<li>Daft Punk Helmet in 17 DAYS? (in honor of Volpin's incredible <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0TBZeCgL0E">project</a>)</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Automated drink pourer iPhone app (For <a href="http://www.jamiepricecreative.com/bar2d2.html">Bar2D2</a>)</li>
</ul>Marchttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02378002399979991035noreply@blogger.com1