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Advice Needed
Okay Gang. Here's my conundrum. I'm trying to build a body for the mech in the video I'm putting on here. my problem is the wood and mechs aren't strong enough to support the body weight. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks A Ton, Kahula
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X322SL2UdA&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2gPaM3fy1yzPDcOibn6yIvaAmeAIr08ilXbsJ54ESPljdTVSOndoiTCrM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X322SL2UdA&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2gPaM3fy1yzPDcOibn6yIvaAmeAIr08ilXbsJ54ESPljdTVSOndoiTCrM
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To strengthen the wood you can brace it by gluing in strips that are perpendicular to the flat surfaces. Something like a "T" in a profile view. The strip does not need to be super tall, just enough to help prevent the wood from flexing. That flexing also uses up energy, so making things rigid can increase the efficiency on any moving parts.
For the servos, this is where things get a little more complicated. There are 2 main approaches here. One, which is never fun, is to get more powerful/larger metal gear servos. But we all know how expensive that can be. The other is to change how the servos are operating. Most of these movements appear to be driven directly off the servos, meaning there is no added mechanical advantage. If you design linkages that take advantage of leverage (or pulleys) you will be able to move heavier loads, though this comes at a cost of speed and range of motion.
From a fine-tuning perspective there are some other things that can help. Reducing the overall weight of the support structure could help, but it already looks pretty lightweight. Try and find areas to remove material where possible. Sometimes this can be as simple as drilling large holes in things.
Also make sure no servos are supporting weight, as their ability to move will be decreased if they are already supporting a lot of weight. For example, if there is a servo at the bottom of the character that is supporting/moving the weight of the rest of the character This can be helped by using linkages to move things, and sometimes with counterbalancing. The trick with counterbalancing is it can mean adding more weight, which in some cases is counterproductive. One thing I like to do in a situation where a servo needs to lift a heavy load is to use an elastic material like latex surgical tubing or bungee cord to provide a little extra lift.
Using bearings on anything that rotates can also help, as the bearing can support some of the load and also reduce friction.
Beyond that making sure anything you add for the skin is as light as possible will help.
Hope that helps!
/Chris
Since the character is a penguin you could possibly make an outer covering of feathers that would be super lightweight, but that may limit your control over the character design and desired aesthetic. You could also use overlapping layers on the body so as it moves the material can slide without revealing what is underneath.
Changing the servo configuration to use linkages may also give you some strength so you can stabilize some of the moving regions (using something elastic) to counteract the wobbling that is common in animatronics. Ramping animations can also help address wobbling.
Great looking setup by the way. Excited to see where it goes!
/Chris
/Chris