3D-Printed, CNC'd, MakeBlocked, and Phone-Controlled TrotBot!
Scott Anderson has taken TrotBot to a new level. In addition to using modern Maker tools and gear, Scott reduced TrotBot's width by printing leg parts that link in-line, strengthened the upper leg parts by printing them as bend-resistant triangles, and added those cool hinged feet! Scott shares how he created his TrotBot below, and you can access Scott's files on his Thingiverse page.
Some details from Scott:
Main Assembly
- Motors, gears, belts and beams are from MakeBlock
- Plywood chassis panels are CNC cut using a Carvey from Inventables
- 3d printed legs, crankshaft and brackets are printed using a Rob3d printer
Control system:
It is controlled via bluetooth from any phone. It uses Adafruit Bluefruit LE Connect app. The arduino code on the walker is modified to respond to the directional buttons and keys 1&2 to rotate clockwise / anit-clockwise. There is a great example project using all these pieces https://learn.adafruit.com/bluefruit-feather-robot/overview.
- Adafruit Feather 32u4 Bluefruit LE
- Adafruit DC Motor + Stepper FeatherWing Add-on For All Feather Boards
- Lithium Ion Polymer Battery - 3.7v
Motors
- 9V 30RPM Motors
- powered by 5V USB battery pack
- voltage boosted to 9V (motor rating) using Pololu 9V Step-Up Voltage Regulator U3V50F9
Other Hardware
- M4 bolts, nylon washers and nyloc nuts
- M10 plastic washers (spacers on the crankshaft)
- 4 mm brass tube - top leg pivot hinges
- 1/4" square brass tube - crankshaft end supports
Software
- Linkage simulator - www.linkagesimulator.com - modelling walking gait. File below
- Autodesk Fusion360 - design and assembly testing. It also generates the CNC mill tool path.
- Simplified 3D - slicer for 3d printer
- Octoprint - 3d Print server software
I shared the 3d print STL files on thingiverse.
Whats next....
I plan to scale it down slightly
I will be designing a better looking chassis and legs (purely cosmetic changes). My initial thoughts were to make it steampunk looking (hence the old school beam looking legs in this prototye). I am now leaning to a more mecha style (google mecha anime tank walker images to give you an idea).
I also might look to align the legs (ie. rather than pushme pullyou style align them so they both face pairs face forward)
As always please feel free to ask questions.
Cheers
Scott
[email protected]
| trotbot_v6_final.linkage2 |
Looking forward to Scott's Mecha Anime Tank TrotBot!
