MATERIALS
See makeprojects.com/v/27 for recommended
suppliers, prices, and other sourcing information.
MAKE Spazzi Electronics Bundle item #MSSPZ from the
Maker Shed and Jameco ( makershed.com/spazzi), includes:
» Arduino Uno microcontroller, Maker Shed #MKSP4
» MakerShield, Maker Shed #MSMS01
» Mini breadboard, Maker Shed #MKKN1
» Jumper wires, Maker Shed #MKEL1
» Transistors, TIP102 ( 3) Jameco #32977
» Resistors, 1kΩ ( 3) Jameco #690865
» Diodes, 1N4004 ( 3)
A
B
TOOLS
Soldering iron and solder
Hobby knife
Diagonal cutters
MakerBot Thing-O-Matic or other 3D printer (optional)
You can also send the 3D part files out to a service to have
them printed for you (see above).
C
Solenoids are binary: assuming they can
draw sufficient power, they are either fully
compressed or fully extended. A transistor
connected to a digital pin on the Arduino
drives each solenoid by supplying 12V from
the power supply when its pin is set HIGH. The
front solenoid makes the head nod up and
down, and the 2 rear solenoids make it lean
back to the left or right.
With its 3 solenoids, Spazzi can move to
just 8 different positions. But this limited repertoire produces surprisingly rich and varied
movement when the activation and frequency
of the solenoids are varied over time. This is
performed by Max/MSP or Pure Data (PD)
software on a computer, which sends on/off
commands to the Arduino over a USB/serial
port in response to music or other inputs.
1. Assemble the MakerShield according to the
instructions at makezine.com/go/makershield.
Stick the mini breadboard to the center. Install
the MakerShield on the Arduino Uno.
Marek Michalowski
Make Spazzi dance with the parts and
code listed here, and then after that, you can
choreograph his moves however you want!
2. Insert the 3 transistors into the breadboard
in a row, making sure that they don’t touch.
Looking at the printed face, the leads from left
to right are Base-Collector-Emitter.
58 Make: makezine.com/27
