Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

hey, i need help building a mechanical arm to pick up a pencil a meter away. i got sum ideas but i dont know if they will work please give me some ideas!!!!




thank you very much,
~matty~

snoopyflipz wrote:hey, i need help building a mechanical arm to pick up a pencil a meter away. i got sum ideas but i dont know if they will work please give me some ideas!!!!
~matty~

Matty, building this kind of "mechanical" or "robotic" arm is fun! What kind of ideas do you have?

Couple of points to consider:
(1) the "end effector," that is, how will the arm pick up the pencil?
with a hook? or a shovel? or a grasping finger-like device? or with some gluey stuff? See, the possibilities are MANY! What interests you? I'm sure you can think of more too.

(2) controlling the motion, that is, how will the arm move itself and will it be controlled from afar or will it work by itself?
You could use a lever, or a series of levers... a gear system or a pulley or ... many more!!


Check out
howstuffworks.com

Have you ever looked at Macaulay's book on "how stuff works"; lots of ideas in that book as well. Moving a mammoth can be challenging!