Shitty Robot

Quick-and-dirty, rough-and-ready. I came up with an ugly and ridiculous-looking contraption that the Queen of shitty robots herself might approve of.

Here was the problem: where I live, there is only one switch to control the light in the staircase leading to the basement. You turn the light on before going downstairs. And it stays on until you come back upstairs, since there is no way to turn it off from below. What a waste of energy! Especially when people spend hours in the basement (don't ask)! It upsets me. I don't own the house, so I can't modify the wiring. The landlord is not keen on upgrading the place.

I knew what I had to do. To devise a clunky, inelegant solution to a simple problem. A remotely operated arm that flips the switch on and off. I thought of using a servomotor and a microcontroller. I also wanted to use an old TV remote control... but alas, it wouldn't work from downstairs (Infrared communications usually require a line-of-sight path). So I went for radio signals instead.

That's when the gods of serendipity smiled on me. I had ordered an RC cat toy for a different project of mine (More on that later). When I received the $5 gizmo, I realized that making turns is not an option: you can only drive straight and back. Boo. Silver lining: cheap RC parts!

The not-so-little bugger.

Then everything fell into place fast. I did not change any of the electronics, just removed some plastic things and added two lollipop sticks, one rubber door stop, one tea box, zip ties, the obligatory duct tape. Done.

Philosophy Bit

Today, American citizens elect their new president. Coincidentally, an interesting thought crossed my mind. I was pondering over biology and evolution, but it applies as well to political systems, religious beliefs, software engineering, you name it:

You think the body's sole function is to keep the head alive? Wrong.
The body grew a head to increase its chances of survival. The head's duty is to protect the body.
But the head is betraying the body. The head dreams of getting rid of the body, of living as a pure spirit, forever, for its own sake.
The head thinks the body's sole function is to keep the head alive.

Bodies that grow heads will be used and betrayed.

Hail to the Queen

Last night I've met with the self-proclaimed queen of shitty robots, Simone Giertz... inasmuch as watching someone's youtube channel counts as meeting them. I fell in love with her antics and goofy machinery. She might not be as technically savvy as Limor Fried, but she's quite the entertainer!

She inspired me to add some moving parts to my projects. I'm envisioning a mix of a video game and a toy... that would hopefully make me laugh as much as her videos! The player would use a "robot" to try to build a pyramid... or pick an object with a crane... or move a marble... but the game AU (Artificial Unintelligence) would get in the way and ruin their efforts when they least expect it. I giggle at the thought of a printed kitten picture popping out of nowhere (with a meow?) and pushing the marble or destroying the pyramid.

Oh, and this nutty Swede is turning 26 today, so happy birthday to her! :)