If you've ever need a digital servo but have balked at the price, the Open Servo Project should be an attractive option. The project seeks to develop software and hardware to replace the internals of standard servos like the Futaba S3003 and the Hitec-HS311.


The project uses a 8bit AVR microcontroller, MOSFET h-bridge, "feedback of servo position, speed, voltage and power consumption", and only costs about $10 extra per servo (so, about $20 for one complete servo).

Visit the OpenServo Forums for more information.



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I always like to point out great design when I see it, and Mike Smyth's Minimechadon is a prime example. Mike created the little guy to experiment with learning algorithms for walking. The robot weighs 12oz and has 4 degrees-of-freedom.


The mechanical structure is built from brass tubing (which all the wiring runs through, UHMW (a high density plastic material), and PCBs. Perhaps the most striking aspect of the robot is the use of PCBs to create a 3D structure and mount all of the circuits/electronics.

There are other pictures of the MiniMechadon on Mike's website , along with other projects. Be kind to his server though.



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To break our month of silence (Masters Thesis research, sorry) I thought I'd throw in some humor, via Engadget. Listen as a caller to the San Francisco Chronicle go berzerk over the phrase "pilotless drone". There's also some humorous remixes.

The moral of the story? Some folks need to learn to relax a bit.


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