Gidget The Gigapod Assembly Instructions - Revision history

Vorpalwiki: /* STEP 13: Insert Servo Screws */

2021-08-02T20:07:30Z

‎STEP 13: Insert Servo Screws

Vorpalwiki: /* ROBOT BOM */

2021-03-25T18:25:17Z

‎ROBOT BOM

Vorpalwiki: /* ROBOT BOM */

2021-03-21T18:55:58Z

‎ROBOT BOM

Vorpalwiki: /* Notes on Sourcing Parts Yourself */

2021-03-21T18:50:32Z

‎Notes on Sourcing Parts Yourself

Vorpalwiki: /* STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel */

2021-03-21T17:45:39Z

‎STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel

Vorpalwiki: /* ROBOT BOM */

2021-03-21T17:43:03Z

‎ROBOT BOM

Vorpalwiki: /* Electrical Connections: Robot */

2021-03-19T21:04:01Z

‎Electrical Connections: Robot

Vorpalwiki: /* STEP 4B: Insert Servos in Legs */

2021-03-19T15:22:51Z

‎STEP 4B: Insert Servos in Legs

Vorpalwiki: /* STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel */

2021-03-19T15:21:28Z

‎STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel

Vorpalwiki: /* STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel */

2021-03-19T15:12:27Z

‎STEP 4A: Assemble Boot and Wheel

@@ Line 297: / Line 297: @@
 ====STEP 13: Insert Servo Screws====
-Now that the legs are adjusted, you can insert the M3x12 screws (with M3 lock washers) into the servo horns to lock them in place. Note that you will NOT be using the screws that were in the little bag the servos came in, you'll be using the separate pack of screws, which are longer than the ones in the servo bag. Do not overtighten these screws, as you could possibly crack the servo brackets. Just turn the screws until you start to feel resistance, then turn a quarter turn more and stop.
+Now that the legs are adjusted, you can insert the M3x20 screws (with M3 lock washers) into the servo horns to lock them in place. Note that you will NOT be using the screws that were in the little bag the servos came in, you'll be using the separate pack of screws, which are longer than the ones in the servo bag. Do not overtighten these screws, as you could possibly crack the servo brackets. Just turn the screws until you start to feel resistance, then turn a quarter turn more and stop.
 ====STEP 14: Test the Servos====

@@ Line 38: / Line 38: @@
 * Our kits cut 4 to 5 hours off the build time, bringing it to typically 2 to 3 or so hours. The kits have all soldering done, programs are already loaded on the Nanos, Bluetooth modules are properly configured, most electrical wiring already connected properly and tested in our workshop. And, you know you have all the right parts to work together. About half the people who self-source parts end up buying parts that are incorrect or are so cheap that they will quickly fail (and they end up spending more money and far more time than if they had simply bought a kit to start with!)
-=== ROBOT BOM ===
+=== ROBOT BILL OF MATERIALS (BOM) ===
 [[File:Choking-Hazard-Image.jpg|right|350px]]
 [[File:PinchPoint-Warning.JPG|right|350px]]
@@ Line 81: / Line 81: @@
 * ''Miscellaneous Mechanical Parts:''
 ** 12 x 6202ZZ Double Metal Seal Bearings 15x35x11mm for leg hinges
 * ''Tools Required (Not included in kit)''
 ** Hex drivers for the various sized bolts and screws.

@@ Line 51: / Line 51: @@
 ** 1 x Power distribution wiring harness with DPST on/off switch, Fuse, XT60 battery connector, 3A 5V BEC, and servo extension connectors. If you are self-sourcing see our wiring instructions: [[Max The Megapod Battery/Switch Construction|Circuit Diagrams]]. (The battery/switch circuit for the Gigapod is identical to that of the Megapod except it uses an XT60 connector for the large battery and it uses a 30 amp fuse instead of a 15 amp fuse.)
 * ''3D Printed Parts:''
-All STL files are available from our [[http://tinyurl.com/VORPALFILES Vorpal Public Files Dropbox]] under the STL sub-folder.
+** NOTE: All STL files are available from our [[http://tinyurl.com/VORPALFILES Vorpal Public Files Dropbox]] under the STL sub-folder.
 ** 6 Robot Base Parts and bottom plate to hold the parts together.
 ** 4 Cap parts which screw together to form the cap of the robot.
@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 ** 1 x Electronics Caddy to hold the Servo Driver
 ** 2 x Eye/glasses Decoration
-** 8 x 1 inch diameter hook-and-loop self stick circles to attach of eyes and other decorations
+**Gamepad Parts: Base, Button-holder, Top, drawer, exactly the same gamepad as our smaller hexapods use.
 * ''Screws and Fasteners''
 ** 12 x Nylon bolts 1/4-20 x 2" long. These can be partially threaded. Note that it is important for these to be made of nylon for weight savings. These are used to secure servos in place using the servo stopper part.
@@ Line 78: / Line 78: @@
 ** 6 x #6-32 cap screws plus nylox locking nuts for holding the LEG HINGES together. Note that the smaller versions of the robot depend on a snap-together system to hold the hinges together, but the larger Gigapod requires a screw through the center hole to ensure the hinges remain together.
 ** If you are self-sourcing and building your own electrical system, you will also need 10 x #6-32 x 1/2" screws to hold the power distribution plastic covers together. If you buy our kit, these are already installed on the wiring harness.
 * ''Miscellaneous Mechanical Parts:''
 ** 12 x 6202ZZ Double Metal Seal Bearings 15x35x11mm for leg hinges
@@ Line 88: / Line 89: @@
 ** The Gigapod uses a 4200 mAH (a little more is okay but don't go too high due to weight considerations) 7-cell NIMH battery (8.4 Volts) with male XT60 connector and compatible charger, such as: [https://www.batteryspace.com/nimhbatterypack84v4200mahhumpbatterypacksforrctraxxasandlosietc.aspx BatterySpace 42000 mAH 8.4 V NIMH] (We use that one for demos with the 14 gauge wire option, and we solder on an XT60 male connector in-house. You get about 30 minutes of run time with this battery.)
 **The Gigapod also requires one 9v battery, we recommend NIMH or LI-ON rechargeable with compatible charger.
-** The gamepad takes any kind of standard 9v rectangular batter, either rechargeable or disposable work fine. These are commonly available from many sources. We recommend rechargeable NIMH or LI-ON 9v batteries with compatible charger.
+** The gamepad takes any kind of standard 9v rectangular batter, either rechargeable or disposable work fine. These are commonly available from many sources. We recommend rechargeable NIMH or LI-ON 9v batteries with appropriate compatible charger.
 ** Note that we do not provide batteries or chargers with our kits due to licenses required to ship batteries.
-NOTE ON BATTERY SAFETY: Never leave batteries in the Gigapod or gamepad after use. If either one gets turned on accidentally, overdraining the battery may damage or destroy it. As soon as the Gigapod has trouble moving or sags under its own weight, immediately stop and replace with fresh batteries.
+NOTE ON BATTERY SAFETY: Never leave batteries in the Gigapod or gamepad after use. If either one gets turned on accidentally, overdraining the battery may damage or destroy it. As soon as the Gigapod has trouble moving or sags under its own weight, immediately stop and replace with fresh batteries. When done using it, disconnect all batteries. Never charge LI-ON batteries unattended even with a smart charger (all electronic equipment will eventually fail to work properly, and leaving LI-ON batteries in a charger unattended is asking for trouble in the long run).
 === GAMEPAD BOM AND ASSEMBLY ===

@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 **If you are sourcing your own Arduino Nano modules, you will need to flash the robot and gamepad code on them. You can find the latest stable release of code at the [https://tinyurl.com/VORPALFILES Vorpal Hexapod Public Dropbox folder]. The source code tree is posted in our github repository, but the top of that tree may not be stable. Note: there is currently no difference in software between the large and small versions of the hexapod other than a single #define called HEXSIZE. For the gigapod, this should be set to 2.
 * Please be very careful about substitutions. You might think you can substitute cheaper parts for the ones specified here. Don't bet on it. Walking robots are extremely difficult to design, and we've chosen each part for a good reason. For example, if you try to substitute cheaper servos you are very likely to find that they don't provide enough torque for the robot to stand up, or they burn out within minutes due to being over-stressed. If you substitute a different battery voltage, you'll either fry the servos or they won't have enough torque. It took 1,000 hours of work to design the smaller hexapod on which this one is based, then another 500 hours of redesign, testing, and tuning to get the big version working well. If you want to try substitutions, okay, but please don't expect it to work without many hours of adjustments and testing.
-* Full kits of parts as well as individual parts will be available on [http://store.vorpalrobotics.com The Vorpal Robotics Store]. If you are new to Arduino and robotics we strongly recommend you purchase a kit instead of trying to self-source parts (and truthfully, if you're not experienced with this kind of project you really should build the smaller [[Vorpal The Hexapod]] kit first. NOTE: kits will not be available until approximately Fall 2020 due to delays in getting parts from China due to the virus pandemic.
+* Full kits of parts as well as individual parts are available on [http://store.vorpalrobotics.com The Vorpal Robotics Store]. If you are new to Arduino and robotics we strongly recommend you purchase a kit instead of trying to self-source parts (and truthfully, if you're not experienced with this kind of project you really should build the smaller [[Vorpal The Hexapod]] kit first. The Gigapod kit is a special order item and may not ship for up to 2 full weeks after ordering (plus shipping time which is typically a few days for USA orders and 2 to 4 weeks for non-USA orders).
-* Our kits cut 4 to 5 hours off the build time, bringing it to typically 2 to 3 or so hours. The kits have all soldering done, programs are already loaded on the Nanos, Bluetooth modules are properly configured, and you know you have all the right parts to work together. About half the people who self-source parts end up buying parts that are incorrect or are so cheap that they will quickly fail (and they end up spending more money and far more time than if they had simply bought a kit to start with!)
+* Our kits cut 4 to 5 hours off the build time, bringing it to typically 2 to 3 or so hours. The kits have all soldering done, programs are already loaded on the Nanos, Bluetooth modules are properly configured, most electrical wiring already connected properly and tested in our workshop. And, you know you have all the right parts to work together. About half the people who self-source parts end up buying parts that are incorrect or are so cheap that they will quickly fail (and they end up spending more money and far more time than if they had simply bought a kit to start with!)
 === ROBOT BOM ===

@@ Line 201: / Line 201: @@
 Because of the large size of the Gigapod, the leg is assembled using several parts (whereas it is a single part with the smaller hexapod designs). The extra part that is attached at the tip of the main leg piece is called the boot. Each boot is tipped by a TPU wheel. This reduces friction when the robot needs to stand, but provides traction when legs move laterally to walk. The TPU wheel is secured by a #6-32 x 1 inch screw, lock washer, and nut as shown in the diagram below. The entire boot/wheel assembly is attached to the main leg using two bushings, one of which has a hex-shaped indentation to retain a #6-32 nut.
 <gallery mode=packed heights=350>
-File:Gigapod-Leg-Assembly-Wheel-Boot.PNG|Parts for Boot and Wheel. The boot goes over the main leg and is secured with two leg bushings and a #6-32 1" screw, nut, and lock washer. The wheel is attached between two wheel bushings and is secured with a #6-32 x 1" screw, lock washer, and nut.
+File:Gigapod-Leg-Assembly-Wheel-Boot.PNG|Parts for Boot and Wheel. The boot goes over the main leg and is secured with two leg bushings and a #6-32 1.75" screw, nut, and lock washer. The wheel is attached between two wheel bushings and is secured with a #6-32 x 1" screw, lock washer, and nut.
 File:Gigapod-Leg-Assembly-Bearing-Peg.PNG|Insert Bearing Peg (red). The servo will lock it in place, there are no screws required.
 </gallery>

@@ Line 51: / Line 51: @@
 ** 1 x Power distribution wiring harness with DPST on/off switch, Fuse, XT60 battery connector, 3A 5V BEC, and servo extension connectors. If you are self-sourcing see our wiring instructions: [[Max The Megapod Battery/Switch Construction|Circuit Diagrams]]. (The battery/switch circuit for the Gigapod is identical to that of the Megapod except it uses an XT60 connector for the large battery and it uses a 30 amp fuse instead of a 15 amp fuse.)
 * ''3D Printed Parts:''
 ** 6 Robot Base Parts and bottom plate to hold the parts together.
 ** 4 Cap parts which screw together to form the cap of the robot.
 ** 6 x Legs
-** 6 x Feet that will be assembled with wheels.
+** 6 x Boots that will be assembled with wheels.
-** 6 x TPU Boots to provide better traction. These should be printed in TPU or other flexible plastics so they absorb some impact during walking.
+** 6 x Boot Bushings, cap side, to hold boots onto main legs (the screw goes in this side)
 ** 12 x Servo Stops. These parts hold the servos in their compartments both in the base and the legs.
 ** 12 x Servo Bearing Pegs. These insert into the servo compartments and provide a secure place for the bearings to sit.

@@ Line 342: / Line 342: @@
 ==Electrical Connections: Robot==
+Please note that our Gigapod kit comes prewired using our QuickBuild system. The notes in this section are for makers who self-source.
 ===NOTES ON JUMPER WIRES===
@@ Line 434: / Line 434: @@
 ==Electrical Connectons: Gamepad==
-Note: These connections are for the Kickstarter Release 1 product. If you have an older prototype (the gamepad does not have an SD card reader in the prototype) then please see [[Vorpal Combat Hexapod Prototype Electrical Connections]].
+Please note that our kits come prewired using our QuickBuild system. This section is only for makers who are self-sourcing parts.
 === GAMEPAD NANO PIN CONNECTIONS ===

@@ Line 205: / Line 205: @@
 *Secure the servo in place with a servo stopper and one 2 inch nylong bolt as you did with the hip servos in the base.
 *The servos in the legs are called the "knee" servos. Each leg has a higher number on it, this is the knee number, they run from 6 to 11. Again, write this number on the black connector at the end of the servo wire. PRO TIP: For 6 and 9, underline the number so you don't read them upside down!
-*Cut a 12 inch length of braided wire covering. Seal the threads at the end using a lighter for a couple seconds to melt them. Be careful not to set on fire. Thread the knee servo wires through the braided wire covering. This will help protect the servo wires, and also makes the robot look better. You may need to use electrical tape to secure the end of the braided covering to one end of the servo wire.
+*Cut a 12 inch length of braided wire covering. Seal the threads at the end using a lighter for a couple seconds to melt them. Be careful not to set on fire. Thread the knee servo wires through the braided wire covering. This will help protect the servo wires, and also makes the robot look better. You may need to use electrical tape or a zip tie to secure the end of the braided covering to the end of the servo wire where it comes out of the servo.
 <gallery mode=packed heights=200>
 File:Servo-Insert-Leg-v2.png|Insert Servos in Legs