The SDMB Gadget Challenge

[DocCathode]

There have been many threads in which Dopers have asked for advice in building or repairing various odd devices. I'd very much like to see what the inventors, electrical engineers, machinists, and mad scientists of the SDMB can do.

I propose a contest.

First, we need to agree on a project.

It should be something that doesn't focus too much on one skill ( theremins, for example, would require electrical knowledge and not much else).

It should be something that doesn't require a PhD, and is within the ability of the average hobbyist tinker after they spend a few days with the right books.

The necessary materials must be inexpensive and readily available.

After the project is agreed upon, a deadline can be set depending on the complexity. Then, we all post pictures and descriptions of our work. The Dopers vote (mentioning only whose device they like and why- no trashing of the contestants or their work). The winner shall be crowned Grand Master Of The Gadget.

[TJdude825]

Perhaps this should be incorporated into an upcoming Dopefest. Ever seen Battle Bots on TV? I think that'd be a lot more interesting than just posting pictures.

[DocCathode]

First I was thinking more of a science fair in which everyone is given the same goal rather than the machines literally fighting each other.

Second IIRC the average battling robot costs about twenty thousand dollars.

I was thinking more along the lines of

LED Tron suits

Remote control Godzillas (actually, now that I think of it, I really like this one)

Sound activated dancing Cecil statues

Working Dali style clocks with hands that change shape as they move

or of course- the most impressive 1920's style death ray

[Boyo Jim]

First of all let me point out that there is no such thing as a task that requires a PhD.

Second of all, WTF is a theremin? Some kind of angel? :confused:

Third, it sounds like one might need a machine shop to play. Personally I would be much better at conceptualizing an object than building it.

[Gorsnak]

First of all let me point out that there is no such thing as a task that requires a PhD.
Sure there is. It's called "post-doc". :)

[Ale]

Oh goodie, this sounds like fun (this coming from a guy that´s been pondering all day about building a miniature metal lathe from scratch)

One idea that´s quite funny was the design challenge at the industrial design school over here, you have an unboiled egg that has to be dropped from a height of 10 meters, the challenge is to build a gadget that makes it land undamaged, no bungee cords allowed. ;)

Anything else goes, from a retro-rocket pack to a jelly pool on the ground.

[dnooman]

Second of all, WTF is a theremin? Some kind of angel? :confused:

I'm sure you're joking, but if not:



OOOOOOOOOOOOWWEeeeeeeeeoooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It's the "musical instrument" invented by that Russian guy named Theremin, that was used excessively in 1950's sci-fi movies.

[Hal Briston]

Remote control Godzillas (actually, now that I think of it, I really like this one)
Ooooo....can we go life-size with this one? I've got a little score to settle with Tokyo.

[Q.E.D.]

I like this idea. I love designing and building stuff.

*fires up his temperature-controlled soldering station*

:D

[AskNott]

Boyo Jim, here's a little more on the Therimin. It's an electronic instrument with 2 sensors, one operated with each hand. One is for volume; get your hand closer, and it gets louder. The other is for pitch; the tone gets higher and lower as you move your hand. There were a few classical artists who got very good at playing it. Another inventor (can't remember who, dangit) added a note scale on the pitch side so that anybody can play it without two years of study. That's the version you hear on the Beach Boys' Good Vibrations in the signature lick.

Many years ago, there was a plan for a theremin in the You Can Build Your Own Gee-Whiz Stuff section of Electronics Illustrated. I didn't build one, but I built a ticking box when I was at the U. of Evansville, and I mailed it to myself. The folks at the front desk freaked out. :eek: The clerk handed it to me very carefully, and quickly backed away.

[DocCathode]

Boyo Jim I want to avoid any project that requires too much equipment. Nor do I think any of the above projects require a lot of equipment. Besides several soldering irons, I own only one other tool that plugs in.

Yes, some Dopers will be able to carve housings out of fine wood using programmed lathes. Others will fashion molds and cast them out of metal. And some folks will be able to make fine looking exteriors with empty milk jugs, scissors, glue, and spraypaint.

Theremins-

Several of the Simpsons halloween episodes feature a theremin. (OTTOMH 'Don't blame me! I voted for Kodos!' then cut to credits with the theme played on a theremin.). You also hear one in the episode where Artie Ziff goes to jail (Homer-That's it! Nobody plays my theremin!).

[harmless]

Second of all, WTF is a theremin? Some kind of angel? :confused:
Those things rock!
We use to have one of these (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/search/detail/base_pid/709302/sourceid=qDQ4QLzxEzD8AJfbYkXO/befree_site_id=0009952098) in our music store.
That one is made by Moog (pronounced Mogue, like rogue with a long o) same as ours, but ours model was a little different.
It was a Mooger Fooger. :D


It should be something that doesn't focus too much on one skill.

It should be something that doesn't require a PhD.

The necessary materials must be inexpensive and readily available.
Sounds to me like a bong building contest. :dubious:
I'm in! :p

[DocCathode]

Harmless

Only if the resulting bongs are motorized, studded with flashing LEDs, or programmed for sound effects.

I'd also prefer a project which isn't in such a murky legal area. But, you really do seem to see what I'm getting at- a project which is accessible to everyone and whose primary requirements are ingenuity and imagination.

Re Theremins

Actually, considering some of the electronics wizards we have on the board, I'd like to see a Let's Build A Theremin Thread in which they find a simple schematic and help guide all interested Dopers (from 'Should I use a phaser cutting mosfet npn transistor here or a reciprocating opamp logic gate?' to those who are eager to learn but have to ask 'what's an ohm?') in building that theremin.

[Ale]

Ok, how about some sort of Junk War, where everyone has to build a gadget that does a specific work/action/whatever out of junk; nothing big, there should be a size limit, for example build an XYZ that fits inside a box of 10x10x5 inches.

So?

[harmless]

Harmless

Only if the resulting bongs are motorized, studded with flashing LEDs, or programmed for sound effects.
Well, that would be cool. Just the sort of thing to trip stoners out. :p

I'd also prefer a project which isn't in such a murky legal area.
Dang. :D

[VunderBob]

Second IIRC the average battling robot costs about twenty thousand dollars.



For a BattleBot class robot, that's true. However, there are other kinds. You can get started in sumo bots for about $500 (I have one that's half built)

[danceswithcats]

What about a theremin meets trebuchet device where the sound created is a function of the load, throwing velocity, etc.?

[DocCathode]

DancesWithCats I know that you know you're way around a toolbox. I'd like to see some serious suggestions from you. Surely your experiences as an EMT and firefighter have given you some gadget ideas.

Something that requires a home made siren perhaps?

[VunderBob]

Here's a semi-serious suggestion: What about a siege-engine contest, where the goal is to hurl a relatively small object, say a grapefruit, the furthest? Piano flinging is fun, but a trebuchet needed to do that is a permanent structure and has a 75' beam.

The idea is to do something smaller and relatively portable. There would be a restriction, like a 6' beam on a trebuchet. A manganel would have to be of similar size. All devices would have to be able to be delivered in any form to the contest location in a vehicle no larger than a single 1/4 ton pickup truck.

The reason for the size limit is to keep things affordable. We could also do the actual contest online, such as a report-in contest. Actual rules to follow.

Feel free to laud my idea anytime now.

[Ale]

The reason for the size limit is to keep things affordable. We could also do the actual contest online, such as a report-in contest. Actual rules to follow.

Feel free to laud my idea anytime now.

I cast a vote for the on-line contest.

I like the siege machine idea, but I think it lacks the gadget appeal, too medieval ;)

How about something along this lines? (http://www.rube-goldberg.com/html/contest.htm)

Limited in size and should perform some other action...

[Phnord Prephect]

Why not combine all the above ideas?

Let's make the contest: To Design a Musical Instrument or Siege Weapon of Not More than A Certain Size.

My reasoning is as follows:

Everybody can participate, as materials are so common as to be everwhere.
Most if not all of us have, at some point in childhood, made an instrument and/or siege engine. Whether it's an oatmeal-can bongo drum or a slingshot out of your mom's pantyhose, I suspest we will all have at least some sort of experience here.

Musical instruments are fun. Siege weaponry is fun. Sharing pictures, video, and mp3s of the results could also be fun.

These can be made of just about anything you have. If you want to make a pair of rocks to bang together and call it an instrument, fine. If you want to patch together a bunch of circuits and invent the new theremin, fine. If you want to put fins on a boombox and launch it into orbit, fine. Anything goes... as long as it either plays music or launches a projectile, and is of a certain size

If your instrument can hurl a projectile, that's cool. If your projectile-hurler plays music, that's even cooler. If you're not even sure which it does, well, that's amazingly cool!

Whatcha think? q;}

[Tuckerfan]

Oh goodie, this sounds like fun (this coming from a guy that´s been pondering all day about building a miniature metal lathe from scratch)You might want to check out these books (http://lindsaybks.com/dgjp/djgbk/series/index.html) then, since they deal with that. Not minature, but not so large that the only practical application for it is making the barrel of a howitzer. ;)

Hey Doc, how about we start with a small, simple project, and then progressively get larger? Ideally the skills acquired and elements of each project could be built upon for the next successive project.

[Ale]

You might want to check out these books (http://lindsaybks.com/dgjp/djgbk/series/index.html) then, since they deal with that. Not minature, but not so large that the only practical application for it is making the barrel of a howitzer. ;)

Thanks for the link, Tuckerfan though to be honest the lathe I have in mind would be half the size of that one, something that would fit insde a shoe-box. And though the books certainly look very informative I enjoy the challenge of designing the thing myself, wrestling the engineering problems untill I find a workable solution. :D

[Tuckerfan]

Thanks for the link, Tuckerfan though to be honest the lathe I have in mind would be half the size of that one, something that would fit insde a shoe-box. And though the books certainly look very informative I enjoy the challenge of designing the thing myself, wrestling the engineering problems untill I find a workable solution. :D
You're a braver man, than I am, Ale.

[DocCathode]

Hey Doc, how about we start with a small, simple project, and then progressively get larger? Ideally the skills acquired and elements of each project could be built upon for the next successive project.

I love this idea. Hmm, first project an old fashioned car horn. Final project, a Tucker?

[Tuckerfan]

I love this idea. Hmm, first project an old fashioned car horn. Final project, a Tucker?
Heh. Be kind of hard to do that since none of the original blueprints have survived. (Otherwise, I'd be hard at work on such a project as we speak! ;) )

[Tuckerfan]

Oh, Ale, if you ever decide to throw in the towel on making your own lathe, these babies (http://www.lathes.co.uk/manson/) show up on eBay quite often, I'm told, and they're small enough to fit in a shoebox.

[Ale]

Oh, Ale, if you ever decide to throw in the towel on making your own lathe, these babies (http://www.lathes.co.uk/manson/) show up on eBay quite often, I'm told, and they're small enough to fit in a shoebox.

Drooling

It´s just sooo cute :p Thanks for the link.

[Balance]

Why not combine all the above ideas?

Let's make the contest: To Design a Musical Instrument or Siege Weapon of Not More than A Certain Size.

<snip>

If your instrument can hurl a projectile, that's cool. If your projectile-hurler plays music, that's even cooler. If you're not even sure which it does, well, that's amazingly cool!

Whatcha think? q;}

I think we're gonna build the Krang!

So, are we going to have judges, or are we just going to vote?

-Balance, who has built siege engines (trebuchet), musical instruments (flutes, saxes, etc), and musical instruments that fling projectiles (hoopak).