Want to add some robots to your Halloween party plans? Even better, how about some robot “bugs” dancing around the candy bowl? Then Boo, the light-loving bug bot, might be for you.
Derived from Randy Sargent’s LM386-based Herbie “photovore” robot, with some circuit enhancements supplied by Dave Hrynkiw and Mark Tilden, this bug robot can be easily built for less than ten bucks (or free if you have some spare parts in your workshop).
Self-contained within a discarded DB-9 serial hood, Boo waits passively until some bright light catches its eye. Then it’s showtime. The illumination triggers a tiny vibrating motor embedded in this bot’s abdomen, and it’s off to the races. If the jig the bug dances is not your cup of tea, slip a rubber grommet over the hub of the motor’s spinning weight to give Boo some cockroach speed..
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