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SPARK

DoggoBot

kill Mill NYC is the makerspace we manage in New

York City. We teach classes on 3D printing, laser

cutting, computer coding, robotics, and sewing. We

also offer design and production services for 3D

printing, laser cutting, and Arduino projects. When

I’m not teaching robotics or handling our laser cutting

orders, I keep myself busy tinkering with various Arduino projects.

The DoggoBot is one of those.

The DoggoBot is the result of months of tinkering and problem-

solving using the Arduino microcontroller. The DoggoBot uses an

Arduino Nano to control four servo motors and take input via either

a Bluetooth or serial connection. In its current version, the bot can

stand, sit, and walk. I plan to add more, so I wrote the code in such

a way that it would make adding more actions and movements

fairly easy.

There’s definitely some room for improvement with the

DoggoBot. One of them is to make it turn. It’s harder than it seems!

Other things are adding some sensors, running everything from one

battery, and creating a library for all the functions of the bot.

For right now, I’m just happy it can walk!

S

By Justin Kirk skillmillnyc.com