Programmable Animatronic Eyeball Mechanism Demo by @JimScuba2386

Jim Leemhuis, AKA JimScubba2386 posted a video series on how to make a programmable animatronic eyeball mechanism using 3D printed parts, micro-controllers and servos. He also posted his 3D files along with a parts list and notes on his Thingiverse page.

This project allows you to build a pair of animatronic eyes that can be programmed via puppetry and played back to you as much as you want. Here is a quick demo of how it works: https://twitter.com/JimScuba2386/status/965712794925633536

Jim put together 6 videos that covers the project and breakdowns the assembly, construction and code. Jim used an Adafruit Feather and Feather Servo Wing as the brains.

It seems like a very ambitious project (and it is) but Jim thoroughly explains how to build it. If you’re a Disney fan and interested in building Animatronics, check out Jim’s video series. This is a great example of how to capture movements, play them back and puppeteer several servos.

Here are the parts used:

Feather Terminal Block: https://www.adafruit.com/product/2926
Feather 32U4: https://www.adafruit.com/product/2771
Feather Servo Wing: https://www.adafruit.com/product/2928
Right Angle Headers: https://www.adafruit.com/product/816
Feather Stacking Header: https://www.adafruit.com/product/2830
I2C Fram: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1895
DC Female Barrel Jack: https://www.adafruit.com/product/368
5V 2A Power Supply: https://www.adafruit.com/product/276

To see how to assemble everything watch Jim’s video series. You can also subscribe to Jim on YouTube for future videos.

Part 1 – The Brains: https://youtu.be/8oh_uvJ9mG4

Part 2 – The Input Controls!: https://youtu.be/Cm8dbQKGaRU

Part 3 – Joints, Toggles, and Pinning…oh my: https://youtu.be/XwMmuf30uH0

Part 4 – Assembling the Input Devices:https://youtu.be/Ihe13GyIyLg

Part 5 – Building the Eye Mechanism: https://youtu.be/eF9NeQPDaAU

Part 6 – The Code: https://youtu.be/ggKNXxkOOKU


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