Just got my ominibot in for my Sunshine Project!
** I was going to give an actual realistic account of every step of the construction of the project. But, when I looked back, it seemed to be a collection of Negative thoughts. So, I have forgotten all of the Negative thoughts and have edited them out. It is sort of like having a baby. It is painful at first , but once the baby is born. Or, in the case of Frankenstein, "It's Alive!" "It's Alive!" , you forget all of the pain and behold your new creation. So, I will simply record the steps that worked and NOT the ones that didn't. Many times after finishing a project and making all the mistakes, I learn how NOT to do certain things.**
:-)
Good news, I have made arrangements to buy some parts over the next two months. I hope to find that the parts that I am buying will include enough for me to put this all together.
God Bless All of You that will follow and Support me in my journey.
Sincerely,
Mel Addison
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Guess What? I took both robots BOB and Marti completely apart. I am using the Base off of Marti to complete Fred#2 which is a turtle-bot. I gained the base and I have been learning ROS on my QBO robot. So now, I have just about everything I can think of to complete the turtle-bot. Fred1 will be resurrected as Fred2 and then I will change his name to Freddie.
Now, when I did that, I also got some Extension cables for the servos, microphone, speakers, some sensors,notebook, ac adapter,two blue LED eyes,Nose and lips (Which I won't use),blonde wig,two cameras. two extra servos, a pan and tilt that might work on Sunshines head, and TWO EZBs so I don't have to buy any. Aint that GREAT? I will know Tue if I won the mimoimo monitor. If I did, I have a monitor that is work $185 for less money. If I don't , I have more money to spend on more stuff to put into Sunshine. Either way I go, I win!
Thank All of the forum members for your support in this project.
Head need LEDs and neck vent Hose waiting for allowance in Sept,waiting . . .
Arms need second omni-bot ordered due in AUG waiting . . .
Servos are on order. Waiting for them to come in. waiting. . .
Body not sure exactly What I need not there yet waiting . . .
Trash Can Promised, but no ID or SKU number yet, so I can't order waiting. . .
Back Pack Again, don't know exactly what I need. Not there yet . . .
Monitor Made bid, we will see if I won bid . . . waiting . . .
CPU-Motherboard -HD Haven't ordered yet. Waiting on allowance in Sept., Oct., waiting. . .
Batteries Need to order. waiting on funds . . waiting. . .
EZB I have two from previous robots.
Sensors I have some 04s, but would like to put PING units. Have some IRs need other PIRs. waiting. . .
H-Bridge waiting for funds waiting . . .
Base not there yet. waiting . . .
Paint Have two 3oz. cans of paint. Hope that it is enough. Need to buy trim paint. waiting. . .
Program waiting for all of the above to happen. waiting. . .
The above is sort of a Master Plan so I can keep focused. Just 14 EZ steps!
My adrenalin is pumping! Yeah!
I have two wires coming from the left motor and two from the right motor. Are those all I need for a double H-bridge? Or should I use the rest of the other little wires going to the little circuit board and then to the main board, I guess.
Thanks,
Mel
Probably a little late now, but I have had decent experiences with UPS in terms of getting insurance money for repair of damage products. If something arrives damaged you have to take lots of pictures and document everything. Took about 1.5 months for me, but it certainly helped. (This is all assuming the insurance value was filled out correctly.. but thats a different story)
-M
Finally got the right trash can. It was a Mainstay 5.5 gal from Walmart.
Looking forward to the next update.
-M
next big splurge, I will get the batteries (X2),Ext. cables,Light chasers, epoxy, bondo gold. After that the next time, Masking tape, brushes, sand paper, clear hose, tupperware,epoxy, pc from radioshack, backpack.
Next time MotherBoard ITX, and SSD Hard Drive., misc. sensors.
Next time, I may have to order the replacements for the 10 servos I ordered. :-(
This could take months, but I am doing my best to expedite it. I will find myself smiling at my wife more. If she smiles back, ChahBoonga!
Thanks for being here with me.
I have been following your thread and I sure like your excitement and determination!
I am sure you will build a great robot.
Looking at your parts list, you mentioned a pc from Radio Shack?
Can you tell me what you are looking at?
Thanks
Steve S
P.S. I'm sorry he was talking about it in aameralis' thread. Just a small little copper striped pc card.
As for the servos, the torque may be OK if you increase the voltage, there are other things you could tinker with too which could mean avoiding changing them if they aren't good enough - I'm sure we can think of something between us all.
Until Next time,
Mel
I am watching your build with enthusiasm.
Keep plowing forward !
Steve S
Thank You guys for your support. Sometime when I fail at what I am trying to do it can get a little bit discouraging. But, you guys help hold me up.
I have decided to scrap the itx part of this project and go with the notebook that is what is being used on the Omnibot3000 tutorial. I will keep you updated with further developments. I have also decided to go with a lighter color of paint. My robot is pretty light already but the paint I was going to use was way too dark.
But, I will use a net-book connected to a mimo monitor and windows7.
I have found many places that the netbook fits just right. But, the stupid usb cables coming out on both sides of it stop it from working there. It seems the ONLY two places to fit it would be the backpack and inside the trash can. The backpack would have more air circulation.
I am very anxiously awaiting the 1st. It is about a week and a half away. At that time I will pay the first $100 on my second omni-bot. I can't wait!
I have made a decision.
I am going to put the netbook on a knapsack on the back of the robot. I will have holes coming out of the trashcan and having the sound and mic and speakers and plugging in to the netbook that is on the knapsack.
Pictures will follow once I get far enough in the contruction. Speakers will be in the trash can.
Thanks for checking up on me. I know that you are busy with your machine.
I thought about using the 12v to drive the motors and arms. And using the 6 volts to drive the EZB cards. I am planning to use two EZB cards. One card would be for the speech and stuff. The other card for the Navigation. That's my plan. The mimo fit Perfectly in the front. Too bad it was not a touch screen. I will buy a brand NEW mimo for $135 or so. But it will take me about 3-6 months.
Thanks for your support!
Also, I seem to remember that @Rich recomended not to put all my sensors on one EZ-B but to spread them across both EZ-B's.
P.S. I just got my trashcan in. So, I have only a few items left and I can start pushing forward.
I am in the middle of moving and will have some room to build again.
3D printers are not too big for apartments and can print cool robot parts!
Here is the solid wood base that started cracking. Needed 3/4" plyboard, didn't have any, so i used plastic.
I tried wood first and it cracked. It was on the INSIDE of the body. Then I tried a plastic base on the outside that the body is lying on top of. The LS works Great. you can see the bottom of the trashcan with wood braces to screw the LS to the wood. I locktite superglued it to the top. the glue did not stick very well. It may be solid now, but earlier it did not stick right. I had something that happened that was quite funny. I was having trouble making the body fit on the just cut frame. And after about 15 minutes of seeing it go lopsided, to the right and left, I realized I had the body UPSIDE Down! Duh! Anyway, once I turned it over, it fit and worked fine. That is just the Lazy Susan part, not the servo. I also painted it camaflouge grey. I also show a picture of the supplies I picked up earlier. I had an item that I returned to Walmart so I could push this forward.
I got a hold of Epoxy putty. That is easier to work with then Bondo. My wife does not like Bondo. So, I puttyed things in place and it seems to hold ok.
More Pix to follow. My camera is low on Battery Juice.
Here is a little Update:
I thought that gathering the parts was going to take about six months. But, I have most of them. I just need two more major purchases. The Mimo and the servo power boards. I discovered that if you have those powerboards, you don't need the rectifiers because they are built in. So, that is nice. Oh, I need about 100 more gallons of paint. I have been eating those 3 OZ. cans by the dozens. I can't seem to get enough of them.
I should be getting my second omnibot2k around Aug 15th or so, then I can start working on the arms. Things are going nicely. My Lexi (Sunshine) will not turn out as pretty as Mr. A's. But, she will probably do in a tight. I am not as artistic as he is. But, he has taught me a lot. I am anxiously awaiting Sept. so I can buy more goodies. I will have more pics later when I get some batteries for my camera.
Thanks for being here with me and reading my posts and helping me make it through this project. It is easier doing a project when you are not alone.
I look forward to reading your posts.
I admire your energy and determination, you are doing great.
Thank you for sharing with us.
Steve S
Question 4U Mr. A. are we using more than:
one Lazy Susan in the kneck.
one LZ in each arm.
I ordered two LZ for the arms and one for the neck.
Thanks,
Mel
I will get the powerboards,Lazy susan,paint, and pay off the 2nd Omni. Next first which is September.
In October, I will get the Mimo Monitor and terminal strips.
In November, I will get misc. Hardware from my full allowance.
In November, I will be wiring Sunshine.
In December, I will be programming Sunshine.
That is my Plan. Wish me Luck!
God Bless! and take care.
I think I got the head pretty well finished.
I will keep you updated as I progress. Pix to follow once I get batteries for my camera.
I am still in the Hunt and Gathering stage. But, things are moving faster than I expected. Hope to have a good report for you soon.
@MCSDAVER, Hope to see you printing parts soon. But, be careful selecting a printer. Lots of Horror stories out there.
Thanks for your support!
**** Hang on, More to come . . . . . . . . .. . .
I just got the extra arms in. So, I can do quite a bit more on the project.
I have most of the stuff in, so all I need now are the voltage regulators, the ball casters, and the mimo monitor. I will be finished completely with my gathering stage. I have all the other stuff is collected. On the first, I will put a dent on what I have to get and by the second 1st of the month, I will be done.
I will keep you informed . . . .
Thanks for your support.