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I have decided to start my InMoov project. I think I will call him Spock out of respect to Leonard Nimoy who passed away on the day that I started this project.
I am editing this post so as not to confuse people with the current configuration. I continue to update this post with the latest photos. If you are reading this for the first time, don't be confused. There have been a lot of changes to the InMoov over the past couple of years including starting over.
https://synthiam.com/Community/Questions/7398&page=21 Post 203 starts the rebuild of the InMoov.
I have decided to use an onboard computer. I chose the Latte Panda due to it having an onboard arduino Leonardo and also because it uses little power.
I used 2 EZ-B controllers connected via the camera port to Adafruit FTDI friend boards. This allows the Latte Panda to have a non-wifi dependent connection to the EZ-B's. I use a powered USB hub connected to the USB3 port on the Latte Panda to attach other items.
The Omron HVC-P is used to identify people, emotions, human bodies, hands, age and gender. It is attached to the Latte Panda via an FTDI friend which is then connected to the powered USB hub. It is mounted in the chest of the InMoov. I also use a 3 element microphone which is a MXL AC-404 microphone. It is disassembled and the board and microphone elements are mounted in the chest of the InMoov. This mic board is connected to the Latte Panda via a usb cable which is attached to the powered USB hub. There is a USB camera in the eye of the InMoov which is connected to the Latte Panda via the powered USB hub.
I chose to use the Flexy hand with the InMoov. The design is far more rugged than the original hand and works very well. There are 4 EZ-Robot Micro Servos in the palm of each hand which controls the main fingers. The thumb is controlled by an EZ-Robot HD servo. The wrist waves and uses an EZ-Robot HD servo to do this motion. I use the standard Rotational wrist.
I have castle BEC's for power in the following locations set to the following voltages. Forearm's - 6.2 V - Controls fingers, wrist and elbows Custom power distribution board (2) set to 6.2 V controlling head, neck and Shoulder servos. EZ-B's - set to 6.1 V - it is mounted in the controller mounting plate and connects to the EZ-B fused power boards from a power base. Latte Panda - Set to 5.1 V and is mounted to the EZ-B controller mounting plate. Waist - set to 6.2 V and is mounted in the lower right side of the back. This provides power to the lean and pivot waist motors..
There are some custom power and signal distribution boards. These are in the forearms, lower back and in the upper back. The upper back or main board connects to these distribution points via USB cables to provide signal to the other boards for servos. The main board also has servo connector pins that are for the neck, head and shoulders. This allows the power to be distributed between multiple BEC's and also allows the servo signal cables to be shorter and more protected via the USB cables.
For power I use a LiFePo4 battery that is rated at 30 amps. It has the balanced charging circuit built into the battery and also has a low voltage shutoff built into the battery. This protects the battery and allows the battery to be charged with standard car chargers.
I put switches on the back on the InMoov which are rated at 20 amps at 12 volts. These are rocker switches that allow the user to pretty much slap the switch to turn it off. There are two of these switches. The servos for the elbows and fingers are on one switch. The latte panda, neck, shoulders, EZ-B's, waist motors and some lighting is on the other switch.
I also added a fuse block. This allows 20 amp fuses to be put in line to help protect things. The switches above drive the fuses for each of of the motors listed in that section.
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@David Sorry to hear that these parts break easily. I know by experience that the handling error margin is thin.
I am still working on BHouston neck mechanism. I'm almost there
@Aerius, The part broke because the hand was caught under something when I tried to move the entire robot. I guess this is better than breaking at the wrist and having to rerun all of the strings and such.
I have access to a 4 axis CNC machine that can cut out aluminum. After I complete this build, I will experiment with making some of the joints far more durable by having these parts made from aluminum. It will be a while before I am to that point though.
Aluminum, that will be great, But no matter how robust those parts are, I believe we still need some sort of feed back to gain control of all articulation. I am presently working on finger feed back mechanism found on thingiverse http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:92352
Hope I could apply it to arm and shoulder articulation.
That is cool. it is the first time that I have seen this. I think I try to incorporate this into the left hand when I finish getting the head and left arm rebuilt. Thanks for the info.
Wow, that sucks D. I bet your heart dropped into your shorts when you saw the break. A stronger joint is certainly called for. This is the downside of 3D printing that scares me. A little too fragile for my current needs. Do you think the added weight of the aluminum will cause problems for the servos trying to lift it?
I plan on using them in at the top of the arm. I may have to go with linear actuators but all of that is a ways off. For now I used an acetone ABS mix to strengthen the upper arm. I am also using this on the skull right now to make it look like one solid piece (which I guess it will be when it all bonds).
It sucked but lesson learned. This is the thing I really like about ABS. Being able to build up parts is really nice.
Edit There are little gaps between the pieces that will be gone when I am finished. There are some very visible parts to an inmoov. The head is one of them for sure.
Also I doubled the infill that is suggested. This should make the parts stronger.
Left arm replacement complete. Working on the head now.
I found that a lower stomach is available on thingiverse. I see that Bob is going to build one. I think I will wait for a bit and finish up what I have before adding more. The good news is that I already have a v4 at the lower back that will be able to drive the servos for this. It is practically unused at this point.
inmoov lower stomach
As far as my head goes, I ordered 2 180 degree fisheye lenses for the eyes. They should be here in the next couple of days. I will build the eye mechanism when I get those. They match some eyes that I have printed. Until then, I will work on the alignment of the eyeglasses and upper lip piece with the head. The head is being built and painted kindof like you would do an old enamel paintjob on a car. The paint is used to fill in the imperfections and then sanded back down. Right now there is a little too large of a gap between the eyeglasses and the bottom of the forehead for my liking when the eyeglasses are screwed in place.
One more thing that I found on thingiverse... There are vulcan ears, and since this is spock, well it is only natural that I print them out, so that is what the 3d printer is doing now.
looks like I am going to pass on the vulcan ears. I dont like how they look printed mainly because I loose the holes that are around the ears. I have plans for those holes.