cs      Presents...
Other Creations



Occasionally, I take a hiatus from Scale Models and Sculpture, to indulge
other passions.   One of these, which relates to my scientific work, is Robotics
I am particularly interested in walking robots which use the principles of animal
walking in their design. My latest work in this area can be seen on my

  BIO-ROBOTICS PAGE

Scroll Down to see two other areas of interest:
Automata
and Rolling-Ball Machines (Kinetic Sculpture
)


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The "Franken-Hand" Automaton:             

Several years ago, when I was studying figurative clay sculpture, I sculpted a life-size series
using terracotta clay, and my own hand as the subject.

hands 1

Then, this Automaton project took my "Hands" sculpture series to the next level by including a "robotic" look,
in a Victorian/Steampunk (brass and copper) style, and simulated human movement.
 

I sculpted a life-size hand, in a relaxed pose, and then I added "robotic" joints at the knuckles.

hand         hand2

The next step was to add brass joints, hinges, support bands, and guides for the cables which would
operate this hand. Some of the metal pieces have a hammered texture, nuts and bolts, and other
hardware, to make them look suitably "Steam-Punk-ish".


hand3hand7


Below is a video of the Franken-Hand in action...




Rolling-Ball  Machine #1, a Kinetic Sculpture    
(completed 9/1/13)

For my next project, I bought a "MM-1 Marble Machine" kit (now out of production) from
Michael Henriksen. Of course, I couldn't just build the kit as-purchased; I had to add my
own motor/chain drive, embellish it with added movements, and add a few of my tiny
gnomes, doing their own wacky thing. I mounted the whole machine on an "Irish Tea" box.

    rbm1b   


There are two videos of this machine.

         

The FIRST is an overall view, the SECOND is a close-up.



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Rolling-Ball Machine #2, another Kinetic Sculpture 
(Begun 9/13 , Finished  10/19)

My next project was a more complex rolling-ball machine, much larger than #1.
This one
uses steel balls, was designed entirely by me, and built from scratch.
Here is a video of the "spiral ball-lifter" part of the machine, taken 9/11/13.



I did eventually "finish" the entire machine, and it now runs flawlessly. In fact, it ran
all day at the Southern Maine Maker Faire, in December 2019. Now I also have
completed a Rolling Ball Machine #3. Videos of both machines coming soon.


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