Star Wars - Potential Projects - Utility Droid

 Looking for a more interactive Star Wars Project, I went for the next most popular Star Wars element that could be box shaped after space craft and other vehicles (Given that lightsabres and weapons are the wrong shape) and that was Droids.

The problem is that there is no much purpose for a droid the shape and size of our box.

Many droids are round or fiddly and not a suitable shape to make. It’s too small and flat to have much purpose and little room for gadgets.
 
I then thought a droid that could be multiple stacked boxes could sort of work and looked at the B3EMO delipidated maintenance droid from the Andor Series.

This could be constructed with repeated layers and have room for various gadgets and a rotating head.

A smoke machine inside could add various effects along with various Lego Mindstorms mechanical features, drive motors and remote or phone control. I looked at light up T-shirt panel as eyes.

This went on for a fortnight as I started to construct parts and purchased a smoke machine, but was no panicking about the deadlines with help from parent, purchased a mitre saw to try and speed things up.
 
I looked at how the layers could be supported in terms of an internal structure and connected and designed and developed connecting blocks that I 3D printed.
 
Also started to try and build floors and layers from MDF, but as:

• Only thick layers were available this was proving difficult
• It was becoming increasingly overweight
• Using huge amounts of the college supplies,
• Was difficult to cut with tools due to size to machine
• The final that killed the project was that I could not get a Lego technic and Mindstorms chassis that could fit together strongly enough and have enough power to move the droid.
  

Star Wars - Potential Projects

Rebel Ambush Droid Using Actual Pyrotechics

I then saw ‘Rogue One a Star Wars Story’ again, and was watching the Jeda Ambush Scene and thought that gives me an idea.

The one thing a tiny flat droid can feature is its ability not to be noticed, seen and hide under things.

It would be thus ideal to start an ambush by sneaking out from under cover, slipping under an imperial transporter vehicle, lift and attach a tracking beacon or more so a magnetic shaped charge limpet mine onto the underside and then sneak out unnoticed so the mine could be detonated.

Lego Mindstorms enables mechanical robots to be made that can be remote or phone app controlled, Do a pre-programmed task or be semi-autonomous operating in response to sensors being tipped.

I also have had experience using nitrocellulose explosives such as magician’s flash cotton and paper n both a fireman strip act to the tune of “Goodness Gracious Great Balls of Fire” to try and win the dating and spend £100,000 in a week like Brewster Millions game show. “The Boys and Girls Show” . I had then used this tech to rig a Godzilla puppet to breathe fire balls. This is fairly safe and can explode over hands harmlessly only singeing hairs. I had done this many times before and seemed safe as long as the explosive flash cotton was not contained.

This seems much simpler especially as the base would be existing Lego Mindstorms robots that could be pre-programmed or remote controlled. This was the approximate size and shape of the box and could have the mine attaching mechanics being a simple scissor life mechanism on a drive chassis device. The box could contain the computer block and motors and the outside decorated and kit bashed parts. This could include using a camera lens being the eye. I then could use rack and pinion Lego Technical parts to form a scissor lift to attach the limpet mine. This seems and easier solution but required a raised wheel base.

Sounded simple in theory. The problem is that Lego tech does not fit together well in a solid structure and any little error or misalignment jams the gear system. For a week I was solidly going around in circles trying every iteration I could think of.

Nothing seemed to work or more commonly fit. When I did get something that appeared to work by hand power, there was no power or speed so this too got abandoned. The pictures below only show a small fraction of the attention to form the Lego Mindstorms structure with a variety of interlocking for strength and axle systems.
 
In addition to this the course heads and admin were somewhat weary of a student building what was in effect low yield power IED Improvised Explosive device laying ground drone, that could be remote control and thus open to interference or autonomous and go out of control with a pyrotechnic explosive payload, even though it was just a pyrotechnic special effect.

I had no solid training to measure the volume of materials, just experience with own experiments and advice.

Flash cotton is also very unstable and can easily be set off with any spark or heat accidently.

I was to use a magician’s flash cotton cannon consisting of a metal tube with a battery-operated spark plug for more control. There was a danger could get some sort of hard debris like gravel in it turning it to a gun or get blocked or overly stuffed which would increase the blast and possibly result in it exploding outwards like a pipe bomb, or just be a dud and then issues of disarming etc. Plus was meant to fair down which could finger the floor so the risk assessment ruled it out.

 This was a disappointment as it would have been great fun for myself and several of the students to try and say this was our project. Words like get put on a government watchlist also came to mind.

The below is a tiny fraction of the Logo prototyping and mechanics experimentation.