We wanted to give Dangly Too a personality, and the most important part of this is a good looking face. We thought the decision should be based a number of factors:
We like cats, so a cat-inpired face would be nice
We've decided to use a camera for several of the challenges, so incorporating cameras in the face might be neat
Previoulsy illumination was an issue for some of the challenges, so some form of lights would be useful, and why not make this a feature
Since our design causes a lot of rocking, an active gimbol might be a useful addition for the camera to improve the captured images
So where do we go from here?
Face Design
Firstly, we needed a design of cat-like face. Having sketched a suitable outline , we decided to use a white face on a black background using our favorite design tool of OnShape. We create two images which can be 3D-printed, by tracing around our initial sketches and then making suitable holes for the lights and cameras. From this, we created two patterns that were printed using the different colours that can then be assembled later
Next, we put our WS2812 RGB LED rings in as eyes to the white front piece. This is starting to look promising
Assembling the Face
Next, we assemble the two face parts and add a couple of cameras and Raspberry Pi 5.
Wow, he's looking good now!
A couple of tests to see what we can do with the eyes, and I think we'll go with this design!
Next Steps
We now need to add a mount to attach it to the body of Dangly Too. Not sure how to do this at the moment, so might need a couple of trials. The gimbol can wait for the moment.
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