Flex Sensor

After quite a long time, I managed to construct my very own "Flex Sensor".
You can see it in this video, I made a prototype, using some speaker wire,
electrical tape and "Velostat", which is a material used for electrostatic protective bags. And you can see the resistance changing when I bend and straight the sensor.
After I cleared this project, I ordered an "Arduino Mega 2560" microcontroller board, which I'll be connecting the sensors to. You can check it out on http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardMega2560
So now I just need to build 15 of these sensors, sew them to a glove, and then connect them to the board.
Wish me luck

YouTube link
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y7TawVjNCQ

Hand Test

Well the remaining engines have arrived, and I also got the glove, so I wanted to try out the new hand.
Works pretty good as you can see. Now I need to start teaching it to grab stuff without breaking it, and to get Flex Sensors, for the glove, so I'll be able to mimic the glove's movement with the robotic hand.
The thing is that the Flex Sensors are more expansive and tricky to find than I thought.
So what I think I'm going to do, is to build the Flex Sensors myself by this video I found in YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkPekPiA-sc&feature=related
That way, I can custom build them to fit the glove and save some money.
If anyone has any other idea, about how to connect the glove to the robotic hand, just leave a comment I'll be glad to get some ideas.
And if you want to see what a Flex Sensor is exactly, then you can check it out here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ku-qjfsArA

YouTube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN38n5qrOqY&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

3D Module

Well I made this 3D module using SketchUp, and it's pretty exact.
I already built the base from wood, and connected most of the engines to it. Now I'm just waiting for the rest on the AX-12 engines to arrive.
I also ordered a paintball glove, because it looks pretty easy to connect sensors to it.
Now I only need to see where I can find the sensors I need.
http://www.amazon.com/Grip-Armor-Paintball-Gloves-Regular/dp/B003BM7FFW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1288596581&sr=8-1

YouTube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZArCbERF0c&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

Goofing Around

I tried to do a bit more advanced choreography, inspired by RUN-DMC & Jason Nevins, "It's like that"
 video. Anyway now I'm waiting for some more AX-12 engines I ordered, which I need to complete the hand module, and I found this clip on YouTube explaining a bit about electroactive polymers
http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=ckwm_QiPo5A&feature=related

YouTube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Hc3D3QHY4Y&feature=related

2 Fingers Movement

Well before continuing to a full hand model, I wanted to see if I can make some basic choreography between 2 fingers, and make them interact a bit.
Now you can really see here, just how big these fingers are going to come out. But it won't matter because it's the feedback from the engines that I'm counting on, and not how real the hand module will be.

YouTube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpdWfI5mX2Q

Equipment testing

Well I bought 10 Dynamixel AX-12 servo engines,  to use as the finger's joints. Now it's a bit problematic due to the size of the engines, but they were the only one's that were in my price range.
Also they have a strong torque, and most importantly, they have a load voltage feedback, which i can use as pressure sensors, and get a feedback from every joint of every finger.
In this video, I'm trying out for the first time moving the engines by programming them using c++.
You can check out for information about the engines in
http://www.trossenrobotics.com/dynamixel-ax-12-robot-actuator.aspx

YouTube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tme37v7LOIs

The Project

Hi everyone.
Well what I'm trying to do here, is to build a robotic hand, or a robotic palm to be more precise, built with servo engines. 
The hand will be operated by a glove, and will move according to the glove's movement, wore by the user.
But the main purpose of this project isn't the robotic hand, but the glove itself.
I want to be able to get a feedback from the robotic hand, back to the glove, and that way to feel with my own hand, what the robotic hand is feeling. So for instance if I put a ball in the palm of the robotic hand, I will get the illusion of holding the ball in my own hand.
The way I'm planning to do this is by using electroactive polymer, sewn into the glove.

Now I'm not sure yet exactly how I am going to this, because this project suffers from a lot of limitations, the most important one is money. Continuing with the lack of resources, tools, equipment or time to work on the project, being a student.
Nevertheless, slowly but surely, the project is progressing step by step, and hopefully the last post on this blog will be a video of me solving a Rubik's cube, without touching it.

So wish me luck, cause here we go...