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3RD PLACE WINNER IN THE OPEN COMPETITION - ROBOT RALLY 2000- ATLANTA, GA!

This is the Scarlet Scarab, built using Mark Tilden's Unicore or Beamant circuit. It sports BG Micro gearmotors and 1 inch RC plane tail wheels. The castor wheel is homemade as I couldn't find one small enough. The body is uniframe construction, consisting of jumbo paper clips and a custom PCB. A wheely castor is used to negate the tendency of these tricycle designs to get into trouble if they fall backwards. Scarlet measures 3 1/4" wide by 3 1/4"long (including the spring part of the tactile sensors)by 2"tall.The circuit runs off of a single, 6V battery commonly used in the receiver of pet radio containment fences. This robot on a chip is very versatile. It can move forward, backward, and turn on a dime (which is fascinating to watch as the bot reverses one wheel while the other continues forward, making the bot spin on it's own axis). The most interesting aspect of this circuit is it's ability to change behavior according to light levels. It ranges from a cute little waggle in low light to continuous movement in bright light. The chaos aspect of this bot is quite pronounced and I have seen it get out of several sticky situations by executing a completely unexpected move.  A very interesting little robot circuit. Look for more of these as I have a couple of configurations in mind.

Scarlet has hinged and removable body panels to provide access to it's interior. The battery case has a custom hood which hinges on the right side and has a latch and small handle on the left side. The rear panel can be removed completely, providing access to the motor and power leads as well as the power switch. The two forward/side panels are hinged on the inside edge and open up like gull wing doors. These panels perform two functions. They allow access and are used like "eyelids". The panels are located over the bots "eyes" and if opened incrementally, can alter the behavior of the bot in low light conditions. Closing them completely in bright light can lessen the dazzle effect. Different positions also effect the bots ability to keep the light in view allowing a certain control of roaming behavior. You could say they are body panels that work like trim pots. It is an excellent way to show the versatility of this amazing circuit.

Click HERE for more pics of Scarlet.

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