" ZOBOT ADLOL " STOP MOTION ANIMATION ROBOT PUPPET HAND MADE FROM FOUND OBJECTS

Screen Shot 2021-11-15 at 11.50.46 PM.png

The puppets I build are for use in animation so I must strive to get the perfect amount of friction between any articulated parts - this I need to make sure the robot holds its form for photographing as I animate, my robot needs to defy gravity in a freeze frame. This particular robot, or zobot as I like to call them was requested in September by an old friend who likes my animations. When I was passed the Instructables site and competition by another friend, I thought I should enter him, having documented its build as I went. I shot a little animation with it to show how it moves and holds its poses.

Supplies

laundry detergent bottle top

asthma inhaler piece

beer can widget

plastic, rubber and metal tubes

wooden dowels, beads and discs

electronic wires (red and white)

paper lollypop sticks

black and silver spray paint

coloured metal eyelets

Find Interesting Junk That Would Otherwise Be Tossed Away

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 11.54.26 AM.png

The first pieces I saw that inspired me were the top of an asthma inhaler (the see through part) - I thought this could be a chest plate or thorax. I then thought I could create a skirt or abdomen out of a mouth wash bottle top and a laundry detergent bottle top.

Separate Pieces of Asthma Inhaler.

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.36.41 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.36.54 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.34.40 AM.png

I prized the see-through part of the asthma inhaler away from the rest of it and sanded a wooden base for its bottom.

Plan Skeleton (how Long Are It’s Forearms? How Big Are It’s Hands, How Long Are It’s Fingers? Etc.)

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 11.57.39 AM.png

I laid out all my potential pieces to make decisions on the robots proportions, and clipped the dowel and lollypop sticks accordingly.

Use Wooden Balls and Dowel to Create the Arms, Elbows and Shoulders

I used wooden balls, drilled with fine holes to make the shoulders; and wooden dowel and lolly pop sticks for the arms, making sure everything was tight enough to give me the friction needed to animate the puppet.

Making Hands: Drill Spheres to Create Housings for Wooden Dowel Fingers.

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.35.45 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.34.04 AM.png

I used a very fine drill to make housings in the wooden spheres for the fingers and thumbs (made from the broken ends of incense sticks). I superglued these in and then made 'finger tips' and 'knuckles' by sliding on some thin rubber tubing which I also made permanent with superglue.

Epoxy Shoulders to Top of Torso

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 11.55.47 AM.png

As this would take a lot of action in animation I used epoxy to give me a strong hold between the top of the torso and the shoulders. The torso top was a sawn off piece of a wooden sphere.

Stack Thorax, Abdomen and Head on Central Spine.

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.36.26 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.34.54 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 11.57.10 AM.png

By now I have replaced the mouth wash bottle top with a thinner plastic piece as I thought it looked cooler! I also wanted to make better ribs...

Attach to Head

The head was a widget ball from a can of beer, I drilled a hole for some dowel and and slipped on some rubber tubing for the nose.

Make Rib Cage From Wooden Discs, Glue Them Together and Drill Through the Center.

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 10.34.28 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 11.56.15 AM.png

Screen Shot 2021-11-16 at 12.01.09 PM.png

Different sized wooden discs were stacked and glued then drilled through the middle and sides. These made great 'ribs'. The holes on the sides were for electronic wires which I intended to glue in to the ribs, red wires on one side and white on the other, blending eventually into the pink of the zobots irises.