Forum >I'd like to make a robotic arm that can operate an Iphone - any suggestions?

I'd like to make a robotic arm that can operate an Iphone - any suggestions?

berto 2012-10-30 10:23:25 11585 Views8 Replies
Hi There Everyone,

I'm very new to robotics and would like to make a robotic arm that could operate an iphone. Ultimately i guess i only need 1 finger for operation but having a full hand would be nice. How would i start off doing this or does anyone know of a kit that would easily be modified and capable of being programmed for automated tasks?

Thanks!

Bert

2012-11-14 09:30:29 Hi there,

Thank you for the link but those pictures don't have the same rotating base that i have. none of the screws provided with the robotic arm would not fit the bracket and rotating base plate; i went through every screw. I did find these instructions in american that made the most sense but again the provided screws did not fit so i hade to make the holes bigger: http://www.lynxmotion.com/images/html/build40d.htm

Once i have the robotic arm built what do you recommend as a power supply, and I'm assuming a arduino controller to program it? and then what can i use in the mean time to manually test the movement of the arm?

Thanks,

Berto berto

2012-11-13 18:20:39 Check out the assembly instruction ( in chinese), but the picture tells the story better than any word. You don't need to drill holes, check the instruction, if you still have trouble, we are here to help.

http://wiki.dfrobot.com.cn/index.php?ti ... U:ROB0036)
R2D2C3PO

2012-11-13 10:56:59 So i had to drill out the holes to make the supplied machien screws work with this kit. berto

2012-11-10 16:21:27 Hi there Hector,

So i ordered the 6 DOF robotic Arm and have my capacitive stylus pen but assembling this thing with the video on youtube is driving me insane

???. I don't have any way to inventory my screws. Did great on labeling the major parts but i have no idea which screws go where. If i use the screws supplied in the bag that the base components came in i'll definitely break the base screw holes for the HS 442 Servo with size of those screws as well as the screws that screw down the bracket to the rotating base plate will puncture through and and into the actual base making it unable to rotate. i'm up for a challenge but with out knowing which screws go where i'm at a loss here. Can you or someone you know give me an inventory of the screws and which screws go where?

Thanks in advance,

Berto berto

2012-10-31 17:47:42 Berto,

It sounds like you are doing some good research. Definitely keep us updated.

As for the DFRobot 6DOF if you place the phone properly, it will definitely be able to reach all parts of the screen. Hector

2012-10-31 15:06:55 Yea that was the first thing i started looking into was how to make the screen work with which ever type of hand and capacitive material attached to the finger tips. From what i've found is that i need a capacitvie stylus pen as the capacitive gloves need the initial dielectric from human hands. gloves on wood or plastic will not work from what i've seen and heard on the net. What i'm trying to ultimately find out is if the reach on the DFRobot 6DOF is capable of reaching ideally past the iphone to provide all angles at all points of contact with the stylus pen on the touch screen. if it can reach past i should be good i'm assuming. The more i gain on this i'll definitely post the info. Some thing i did find out is taking the antistatic plastic bags that low level electric devices(memory, hard drives, processors) are sent in do have the ability to work with a capacitve touch screen but so far are not reliable in my tests. berto

2012-10-30 17:02:36 Hi Berto,

I'm not sure what the measurements for the DFRobot 6DOF are. Sorry we don't have one assembled here at the office.

if you need the hand to control an iPhone you will first need to figure out how to affect the iPhone's screen. Try using a piece of plastic or wood to touch an icon on the iphone. You will see that it does not react. I know they sell some special gloves to overcome this problem.

You can use an Arduino to control the servos of which ever arm you choose. Here is a list of servos we sell. The UpTech CDS series of servos offer a very high degree of precision, but they are a bit pricey.

As for automating a series of touches, that would be very difficult I think. You would need to do some image processing which is getting into some serious programming skills.

Here and here is an example of a 5 finger hand. You will need to get access to a 3D printer to make these.

Good luck with your project! Hector

2012-10-30 14:49:54 Does anyone know how big the 6 DOF Robotic Arm is ie span distance with pincher pointed down. Also does anyone know if it is possible to program automated functions in it or how a person would go about doing that? berto

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