- Roller-bot
Roller-Bot is a non-intelligent
light activatedrobot built upon a smallpaint roller . The rollerbot is a design that exemplifies the concept of minimal-engineering andis a copyrighted design developed in1999 , byPaul L. Discher , Directorof Engineering Science Laboratories, Department of Electrical Engineering,Washington University inSt. Louis, Missouri .The Roller-bot project employed 10 mechanical and electrical components to createa powered non-intelligent robot vehicle activated by a
flashlight or othera non-visible light source. Beside requiring no tools for final assembly thisproject only used 10 discrete components.The project employed a
rubber band drive belt that transferred rotation tothe body of a paint roller cover. This unique propulsion method did not requireany gears, or pulleys and employed a bare motor shaft and conventional geometry of thepaint roller cover. Controlling and powering the motor was a photodiode and a single transistor acting as a light activatedswitch which applied DC electrical power from an on-board 9v battery.[http://roller-bot.com/botpics/rollerbot.pdf Roller-Bot I] was the first generation of the project followed by design improvements realized in the [http://roller-bot.com/botpics2/rollerbot2.pdf Roller-Bot II] project deployed 5 months later. Both projects wereadministrated in "make-and-take" publicity projects in which the "kits"were given away free to student participants on the campus of Washington University.The Washington University RECORD covered the promotionalgiveway of roller-bots during engineers week March 1999 with this photo and caption: [http://www.roller-bot.com/record.jpgclipping courtesy: WU RECORD, March 25, 1999 (vol. 23 No.22)]
[http://roller-bot.com/botpics3/rollerbot_abstract.pdf Roller-Bot III,] a new deployment of the classical Roller-Bot project was presented by Paul Discher in a paper and talkFebruary 9, 2008, Kirkwood High School, for member teachers of the [http://www.slapt.org/ AAPT affiliate: The St. Louis Area Physics Teachers]
References
* [http://roller-bot.com Roller-bot Home Page]
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