In the field of animatronics and animatronic hobbyists sometimes running wires to a hand or figure is not possible. The good news: wireless data boards are now very reliable and inexpensive!
For hobbyists, Arduino compatible controllers and their programming language is an ideal platform to program an animatronic hand. This is quite straightforward and the common microcontrollers are enough compact to easily embed into tight spaces.
Overview of an Animatronic Hand:
Animatronic figures can be powered by actuators using pneumatics (compressed air), and in some cases hydraulics (pressurized oil) or by electrical methods. The figures are customized with the exact proportions and dimensions of living creatures.
The same precision and flexibility is also desired while designing an animatronic hand. That’s why an XBEE wireless module and a Arduino UNO can be used while developing such an animatronic hand for hobbyists.
Hardware Design:
- Arduino UNO
This is a micro-controller board that has on-board micro-controller ATmega-328. Altogether, it has 14 pins including both analog and digital pins.
It has 6 analog inputs, 6 PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) output pins, a power jack, a USB connection, an ICSP header, a 16 MHz ceramic capacitor, and a reset button.
It has been around for more than 10 years, and has proven to be a very stable platform.
- XBEE
This is a wireless communication module. The module is used for peer-to-peer networking. It is designed for the applications that require low latency and predictable communication timing.
- Servo Motor
Servomotor is a linear or rotary actuator that allows for specific control of acceleration, velocity, and angular position. This motor is suitable for a closed loop control system. It’s used for handling finger movements in this case.
Application
Wireless animatronic hands and end effectors have found a wide application in various fields. For example, in the field of industrial and robotics equipment, adopting the right method of handling dangerous equipment and chemicals is extremely important for safety purposes. The traditional way of handling these was with bare hands. But this has caused multiple accidents and driven the researchers to offer a solution.
With remote controlled wireless robotics, we can accomplish various difficult tasks with greater precision and higher safety.
For instance, during bomb diffusing operation in the defense field, the animatronic hand or in some cases claw / grasping mechanism can be placed on a moving platform with a camera to diffuse the bomb from a safe distance without causing any harm to human life.
Also, this hand can help deaf and dumb people to interact via sign languages. The language instructions can be saved in the microcontroller and the hand can easily interact with hearing-impaired people. Such a hand is the Mecha TE GEN3 hand that has 13 degrees of freedom and was designed for such an application.
Conclusion
The versatility of its work range has made the animatronic hand quite popular. This has led the roboticists to put further effort into making the hand more flexible, precise, and user-friendly.
For more information about the wireless animatronic hand, you may contact Custom Entertainment Solutions. Call 01.801.410.4869 now!
2020