Blog – Page 3 – Mechatronics Workshop

April 18, 2015

Your First Electronic Circuit!

So you want to learn about electronics! Good for you! The sky is the limit when it comes to this field, but let’s start with a very simple circuit.

Lighting up a light emitting diode (LED).

The entire circuit is very simple — it consists of an LED, a power source (batteries), and a resistor to limit the current through the LED.

Light emitting diodes will emit light when a voltage is applied to them and current flows through them. Different colors and types of LEDs may require different voltages and currents, but a standard red LED requires 1.7 volts and .02 amps (20 milliamps, or 20 mA).

Here is a how to build your circuit if you’re a very beginner without many tools yet.

I have two AA batteries (1.5 volts each) that are connected in series to make about 3 volts. (Click here to learn about series connections.)

They are in a little battery holder with alligator clips that I soldered on to make the connections easier.connected to the LED and a current-limiting resistor.

I used an extra alligator clip to connect the resistor to the LED. You could use a paper clip, or just wind them together.

Here is what the circuit looks like in a schematic diagram:

basic_circuit_schematic

Even this simple circuit needs a little forethought.

July 12, 2011

Make Animatronics for Halloween and Christmas

Make animatronics and mechatronics for hobbies, Halloween, Christmas, and more! It is so much fun to learn how to design, build and run simple machines and animatronics for Halloween and Christmas props! You can learn how to make arms swing, skeleton heads pop up, and much more. I’ve always loved Halloween and love playing with levers, motors, pulleys, and such. My first real interest came when I volunteered as an actor in a haunted house. Then I got interested in mechatronics and animatronics. Of course I love the really sophisticated ones you see in the professional haunted houses, but even the small ones you see in your neighbor’s front yard are very cool.

So how to get started in building those fun props for yourself? Well, I bought a bunch of little animated toys from the craft store and ripped them apart to see how they work. And now you can see how they work without ripping yours apart! I’ve put together an ebook, a bunch of vidoes, and a slew of photographs to show you how these things work. And what’s even better is that I’ve made it an instant download so you can be learning within minutes! Take a look at this fun DVD here. This information was not easy to find, and most of it was not laid out in a simple and straightforward way. So I think you are really going to be pleased with this kit!Check the items below at eBay for so much fun you won’t be able to stand it!

July 10, 2011

Animatronics Kits

I’ve always been fascinated by those in-store displays where the little muffin rotates around at the grocery store, or the coffin lid opens and the skull comes out at the Halloween prop store.

So I decided it was time I learned more about those little props and I’m going to tell you what I learned in this e-book and video kit on learning to make animatronics.

This information was not easy to find, and most of it was not laid out in a simple and straightforward way. So I think you are really going to be pleased with this book!

Getting Started
The first thing I did was search for books on the topic. Library, Amazon, eBay — there are not many! The best I could do was find some children’s books. They actually helped quite a bit!

Then I stopped at the local Michael’s craft store – that’s where I saw the chest with the skull coming out as the lid opens. That’s the one that really peaked my curiosity. So I just stood there and studied the mechanism each time the lid opened. You should do the same thing.

But wait! There’s more 🙂

Check the items below at eBay for so much fun you won’t be able to stand it!

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[nmspage:animatronics,siteId=0]
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[nmspage:animatronics,siteId=0]