My Motor

Supplies

• 6 volt battery
• L brackets (4 big and 2 small)
• 14 gauge single strand wire (50-100ft)
• Iron rod
• Cork
• Spool of thread
• Heavy duty duck tape
• Wood (for base)
• Masking tape
• Hacksaw
• 24 gauge magnet wire
• Scrap wood
• Drill + nails
• 2 Penny Nails
• 16 gauge lamp wire
• 2 wide L brackets
• Boxcutter

Not all of the supplies used are pictures above.

Steps

How to Build Each Part

Base

For the base I used a 1'x1' piece of wood. Then I set up two of my big L brackets in the middle of opposite sides and used tape to stabilize them while I drilled them in place. To the base I attached all of the parts (stator and brush bases) using heavy duty duck tape.

Armature

For the armature I connected to penny nails with tape and marked the middle, and then put the iron rod through the space between them. Using a hole i drilled in some scrap wood I positioned the rod upright in order to assist me in the wrapping of the wire. To hold the armature in place I wrapped masking tape around the rod on both sides of the armature. I removed one side of tape (from when I taped the nails together) and began wrapping the 24 gauge magnet wire around leaving extra wire when I started and when i ended. Following this, I scraped off the enamel from the two ends of the wire. To test my magnetic field, I attached the two ends of the wire to the battery (the small sparks were a good sign) and checked to see if a paper clip would stick well to the armature.

Commutator

For this, I attached a cork on my rod by pushing the rod through the cork (with some help from Achilles because I am very weak). Then I held both end of the magnet wire on the cork and place a piece of foil of both wires and taped the foil to the cork to hold it in place.

Stator

In order to make this I used the 14 gauge single strand wire and wrapped it around the other two L brackets, which were taped together. I wrapped the wire five times with a layer of duct tape in between each layer of wire.

Brushes

For the brushes I used 16 gauge lamp wire. I drilled each of the wide L brackets onto a base made of three layers of wood in order for it to line up nicely with the commutator. I did my best to put the brushes in a straight line along the edge of the commutator and made sure that they were touching to prevent any breaks in the circuit.

Connecting It All Together

After everything was on the base/rod correctly, I attached the wires to their proper places. One end of the 14 gauge single strand wire connected to one of the wide metal L brackets of the brushes and the the other end connected to the battery. Then a piece of 24 gauge magnet wire connected from the battery to the other brush.

Complications with My Motor

I was unaware we were given a sheet with directions in class (thanks Achilles) so at first I had trouble understanding the logistics of the motor and how I was suppose to build it. After some research and a lot of trial and error I was able to successfully figure out the process. A few problems that arose included the stator and how it was built. When building my base, I did not account for the extra height the wire would add to the the initial L brackets of the stator so once it was built it was too high for my rod. This was easily fixed by attaching the small L brackets (with a screw and duck tape) to the ends of the L brackets that held my rod. This put the everything on the same level. Another problem I discovered later on was that there was too much distance between my armature and the L brackets of the stator. I tried to fix this by adding a few super magnets to the ends of both sides of the L brackets. But then I decided to just rebuild my stator. Aside from my stator, I, at first, had trouble with the height of my wide L brackets (used for the brushes) as well as the length of my iron rod. To solve these two problems my brother and I bought a hacksaw. It was a mini hacksaw for four dollars, but it was easily the best investment of the project. I used the hacksaw to cut the iron rod into a size fit for my motor. Then, I used it to cut multiple pieces of scrap wood (with I still thankfully kept from the mousetrap project) which was used to make a base for the brushes.

Overall, I do not think the motor was a hard project. It merely took understanding and precision.

Before I remembered I have scrap wood from a previous project, Achilles and I got creative with our bases. (pictured: Achilles using a book as a make shift base)

Here we see our trusty hacksaw cutting our iron rod into a more desired length.

Once again we see the hacksaw cutting scrap wood into pieces to be used.

UPDATE: Based on my motor's performance yesterday there seemed to be more complications that I did not account for.

History of Motors

The First Motors

Principles of Operation

An electric motor is a device that uses electricity to create mechanical force. Operation is based on simple electromagnetism. As seen with ordinary magnets, opposite (North and South) polarities attract. A DC (direct current) motor is designed to harness the magnetic interaction between a current-carrying conductor and an external magnetic field to generate rotational motion.

If the direction of the current is reversed, the direction of rotation also reverses. When magnetic field and electric field interact they produce a mechanical force, and based on that the working principle of DC motor was established. The direction of the rotation of a motor is given by Fleming's hand rule, which states that if the index finger, middle finger and thumb of your left hand are extended mutually perpendicular to each other and if the index finger represents the direction of magnetic field, middle finger represents the direction of the current, then the thumb represents the direction in which force is experienced by the shaft of the DC motor. This can be used to find the direction of the magnetic field, current, or force if two of them are known.

Important People

The basic principle of electro magnetic induction were discovered in the early 1800's and by 1820, it had been discovered that an electric current produces a magnetic field. In the following years, we successfully invented a simple DC motor. The invention involved the work of many men, so proper credit for the invention varies depending on how you choose the word 'motor.'

Michael Faraday (UK)

Michael Faraday demonstrated the conversion of electrical energy into motion. For this Faraday is often credited with the invention of the first electric motor, however, his motor is merely a lab demonstration and cannot be harnessed for useful work.

Joseph Henry (US)

By 1831, Joseph Henry had built a simple device that he considered to be a 'philosophical toy.' Despite it being more useful than Faraday's motor and being the first real use of electromagnets in a motor, it was still deemed an experiment. Nevertheless it was still considered important in the evolution and invention of motors.  

William Sturgeon (UK)

One year after Henry, William Sturgeon invented the commutator, which involved the first rotary electric motor. His motor, while simple, was the first to provide continuous rotary motion and contain essentially all of the elements in a modern DC motor.

Thomas Davenport (US)

Thomas Davenport invented the first direct current electric motor in North America in 1834. However, his model involved a high battery power cost which lead to Davenport's bankruptcy.

Robots

A robot is an automatic mechanical device often resembling a human or animal. They are machines that assist humans in everyday tasks.

The History of Robots

c. 270 BC: Ctesibius, a Greek physicist and inventor made organs and water clocks with movable figures.

            1495:  The anthrobot, a mechanical man, is designed by Leonardo da Vinci.

            1890's:  Nikola Tesla designs the first remote control vehicles. He is also known for his invention of the radio, induction motors, Tesla coils.

The Industrial Revolution allowed for the use of complex mechanics and the subsequent introduction of electricity. Digitally controlled industrial robots and robots making use of artificial intelligence have been built since the 1960s.

            1961: The first industrial robot was online in a General Motors automobile factory in New Jersey. It was Devol and Engelberger's Unimate.

            1963: The first artificial robotic arm to be controlled by a computer was designed. The Rancho Arm was designed as a tool for the handicapped and its six joints gave it the flexibility of a human arm.

            1964: Artificial intelligence research laboratories are opened at M.I.T., Stanford Research Institute (SRI), Stanford University, and the University of Edinburgh.

            1969: The Stanford Arm was the first electrically powered, computer-controlled robot arm.

            1980: The robot industry starts its rapid growth, with a new robot or company entering the market every month.

1997: NASA’s PathFinder lands on Mars and the Sojourner rover robot captures images.

            2004: The humanoid, Robosapien is created by US robotics physicist and BEAM expert, Dr. Mark W Tilden.

Types of Robots

Industrial

Industrial Robots are used in workplaces such as factories. Industrial robots have made work in places such as car factories a lot easier and faster, making the industries boom.

Agricultural

Agricultural robots complete a farmer’s job of cutting grass. They can navigate themselves using GPS, cameras, and sensors to find any weeds that maybe nearby.

Robotic Arms

       Robotic arms are usually used in assembly lines. The Robotic arm is a very useful in factories.

Domestic

Domestic Robots are robots that are used in the home. These types of robots mostly perform repetitive tasks on a daily basis.

Vacuum Robots

 These robots clean the floors on a daily basis, just like a human would do with a regular vacuum. It has motion sensors so it can avoid running into any objects.

Auto-lawnmower

This robot is similar to a vacuum robot, except it mows the lawn instead.

Entertainment

These types of robots are basic robots that can be used around the home for entertainment.

iDog

The iDog is a robotic dog that can connect with any Mp3 Player, including the iPod (hence its name). It plays music while its connected and has flashing lights on its head.

*I own this and it is indeed very entertaining.*

Robosapien

·    The Robosapien is a remote controlled robot that can do many different things, like walking, dancing and throwing.
*I also had this robot. It's not as fun (probably because i broke it).*

The Purpose of Robots

Repetitive Tasks

A robotic arm in a car manufacturer does repetitive tasks, mainly welding car parts together. A robot arm may be expensive, but it does its job quicker and more efficiently than a person.

Dangerous Tasks

A bomb disposal robot is one with a dangerous task to do. It is programmed to dispose of bombs and make them harmless to anyone. This robot is very useful in case of a terrorist threat ever occurred. Bomb disposal robots are equipped with a video camera and are remote controlled, so the operator knows what is occurring.

Maintenance and Repair 

The Dextre Robot. It is a giant, repair robot that has used to repair the International space station with fewer risks. It can manipulate objects of any size.

Use of Robots

These technologies deal with automated machines that can take the place of humans in dangerous environments or manufacturing processes, or resemble humans in appearance, behavior, and/or cognition.

Robots in Society

As robots have become more advanced and sophisticated, experts and academics have increasingly explored the questions of what ethics might govern robots' behavior.

The social impact of intelligent robots is subject of a 2010 documentary film called Plug & Pray.

Vernor Vinge has suggested that a moment may come when computers and robots are smarter than humans a.k.a. The Technological Singularity (refer to old post).

Vernor Vinge

Robotics

Robotics deals with the design, construction, operation, and application of robots as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback, and information processing.

Robots in Literature

In 1818, Mary Shelley writes "Frankenstein" about a frightening artificial life form created by Dr. Frankenstein.

            In 1921, the first reference to the word robot appears in a play opening in London, entitled Rossum's Universal Robots. The word robot comes from the Czech word, robota, which means drudgery or slave-like labor. Czech playwright Karel Capek first used this term when describing robots that helped people with simple, repetitive tasks. Unfortunately, when the robots in the story were used in battle, they turn against their human owners and take over the world.

            In 1941, science fiction writer Isaac Asimov first uses the word "robotics" to describe the technology of robots and predicts the rise of a powerful robot industry. Then a year later, Asimov writes a story about robots, Runaround, which contains the "Three laws of robotics". The three laws are:

1) A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2) A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3) A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

            In 1948, Wiener, a professor at M.I.T., publishes his book, Cybernetics, which describes the concept of communications and control in electronic, mechanical, and biological systems.

Works Cited

http://arnoldzwicky.org/2013/06/10/rosenbergs-laws-of-robotics/

http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/robotics.aspx

http://robotics.megagiant.com/history.html

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/technology/historyofrobotics.html