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The Damping System

The Damping System Play "Test & Recognise" by "Seekae (Flume Re-Work)"  to see this post.  I shall lead or die trying to lead. I won't come back, you all have one chance. This one's my favorite song. This post is my favorite? Nah, Every post is otherwise it wouldn't exist this website.  This contraption DOES NOT have anything to do with  Commander Keen . The story is pretty much - Got an expensive desk + got a fancy 3D printer -> both didn't like each other and started fighting.  So? I stepped in and fixed the fight. Made this damping system to completely stop the desk from wiggling around when the printer violently moved the axis'. My dad got two pieces of Saint Gobain 12mm glass for it. Looked crazy fancy, see the pictures they are amazing.  And No, It doesn't affect the printer quality if you calibrate the vibration compensation and make sure ...

The ARM (Auckland Version) #3

The ARM (Auckland Version) #3

Update n° Next

Play "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" by "Tears For Fears" to see this post. 

Hello guys,

It's here, all of them, yes the PCBs, a lot of PCBs. I made so many PCBs, they call me the PCB guy now. Took so much time just to create, get it approved and then check again before getting it manufactured.

I have a bunch of boards come in as you can see, all of them have a purpose. Its for art. Yes, art. I paint a lot, just not your brilliant modern art.

I made these boards with specific text and if you noticed, ALL THE NUMBERS ARE IN HINDI?? well I hate English, sometimes. The description of these boards are in French, ooooo the French made it in ro'h'bots finally.

Before we beign below are the different 3D models of all the PCBs used in this project.

(Might show artifacting/glitching on Phone Screens)

UnAssembled PCBs in 3D

Fancy Components

I like fancy stuff. I mean come on, the world's superficial. I am living like zorba right now. I will go for a lot of fancy stuff. 

So, I got white header connectors instead of black. Costs like a Euro more, no one should care. ZigZag connectors for the on board soldering? Well this was a necessity turned into a fancy opportunity to buy fancy stuff. I like designing beautiful things. 

Wireless Solder? Yes my good people. I am a fancy guy. A hyper model. Yeah I am an actor too, not joking.

C. Connections Board - Servo to Potentiometer

First off we start we 'C' because the world has lost its order aswell.

The white board is a connection board that combines all the potentiometers from finger joints to the servos' internal feedback system directly.

This board is very simple to understand. It has mainly two types of connections. Each pair of connectors includes one SM03B-SURS-TF and one PHR-3, each just connected to the other. The PHR-3 is connected to the internal feedback system of the servos. The SM03B-SURS-TF is connected to the finger potentiometers. I included a assembled version of the board below to develop understanding. 

Assembled Connections Board in 3D

A. The Main Board

The black board is the main board combining all the components together, which include 2 ESP32s and 3 PCA9685s, along with 23 individual power regulators to power the 22 motors and the control system (2 ESP32s, 3 PCA9685s).

There are 23 amber LEDs on the board as well, each connected to the activity state of the regulators, indicating if the regulators are turned on or off. This was implemented to make it easier to identify whether the regulator failed (power supply) or the servos themselves.

Also, what's with the Zigzag SMD pads? Looks dumb, you might wonder. Nope, just art.

The board itself is shaped peculiarly you say? well its the shape of a human forearm, MY ARM!

There are some SMT headers I found, making my life easier for a lot of complex connections so I don’t have to drill into the board, freeing up a lot of space for overlapping traces—hence the Zigzag SMD pads.

The GREATEST, THE BEST OF THE BEST, REALLY NICE 3D model is here. This DETAILED model took me 48hrs of time to detail. EVERYTHING on it precisely to the dimension. A LOT OF WORK, CRAZY STUPID AMNOUNT OF WORK. OMG. IT's 128 MEGAbytes of data going to your eyes. I made a dedicated page for this model, Turn your screen to portrait mode, YES ROTATE THE SCREEN RIGHT NOW AND GO TO MY PAGE OF THE GREATEST 3D Model RIGHT NOW! or watch the small little model below dumbass. 

Assembled Main Board in 3D

D. The Buck Regulator Board (Originally by Sparkfun)

It took such a long time to cut these tiny boards from the panel.

This buck regulator saved my life so hard. Oh man. This one was a god sent, even though I don’t like him. The buck regulator in question is the AP63356. Why did I choose this? Hoho???

Pretty much, I was stumped, as an incorrect choice of a regulator would be catastrophic—it would waste both time and money. I had both, but wine and cheese need time as well.
The AP63356 was, first of all, immensely tested by SparkFun—good people, those guys. Second, the schematics of the regulating board were made public, so I could modify and improve it. And lastly, it was simply cheaper to order the PCBs from a PCB manufacturer and utilize the pick-and-place machine at my disposal to assemble them. My friend Fish Guy assembled them. I was way too lazy to do it. He was a god sent as well.

Assembled Buck Regulator Board in 3D

E. The Finger Joint Board (Originally by WIll Cogley)

These boards are made by Will. Ask him, "What’s this?"

The star of the palm. This board has a potentiometer on it with an SM03B-SURS-TF connector. It simply connects to the connections board via a very expensive wire.

Man, someone pay for my ramen. I am running out of money. I WANT RAMEN.

Assembled Potentimeter Finger Joint Board in 3D

B. Connections Board - The Main Board Snap on 

This board was made in under 6 hours. From nothing to fully DFM-checked, ordered, and gone to sleep—ALL UNDER 6 hours. For real, for real, this guy learned how to speak a lot of nonsense.

The purpose of this board is very important. I have around 30 thick wires in the bottom section of the arm, and it’s horrendous. It just cannot be managed. So I basically break all the servo connections on this board to be soldered onto. The broken-out connections go back to the carefully placed headers, which then connect to the same headers on the main board. The sides of the board have a wedge cut out on the sides to accomodate all the wires so a cover can be put on top to hide them.

Essentially, this board allows the main board to be replaced in a few seconds, and moreover, you can add any kind of functionality to the main board—just keep the headers in the same place.

I call this the PCB CONNECTOR. THE MOST GLORIOUS CONNECTOR made by Roro. Yours truly. The best guy. Peacock hates me now though; I didn’t even do anything to her.

The Servo Internal Board (Modified By This Genius)

This board was made by the manufacturer of the servos. Ask them my man/girl. They won't tell you anything though. 
 i t ' s   a  s e c r e t 

I reverse engineered it with a flash light. I am not telling you either ahahahahahah.  

i t ' s   a  s e c r e t

Misxellaneous Components

Update 13th March 2025:  Heres the few components that I made painstakingly in blender. These components were used off the market. I never manufactured them. 

Miscellaneous Assembled PCBs in 3D

so?

Now all that what remains is to solder a LOT of components on them and test, test, test.

P.S This project is part of my thesis for both Auckland University of Technology and ECAM LaSalle and Anglo Scientific. In my life Henry was a god sent as well. 

Originally posted on Linkedln

Made in A.U.T. Room 1552, New Zealand by RolandThsive

Have a nice day,

Picture that took 20 minutes to click

A picture that took 20 minutes to click

Connections Board Front

Connections Board - Servo to Potentiometer (Front View)

Connections Board Back

Connections Board - Servo to Potentiometer (Back View)

The Main Board (Front and Back)

The Buck Regulator Board (Front and Back) Originally by Sparkfun


The Potentiometer Finger Joint Board (Front and Back) by WIll Cogley

Connections Board - The Main Board Snap on (Front and Back)

The Main Board Assembled (Back Side)

The Main Board Assembled (Front Side)

The Servo Internal Board Which Was Modified By This Genius

The Finger Joint Potentiometer Board Assembled With Its Bracket

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