From the Editor’s Desk
Keith Hammond
News and tidbits from readers like you.Page 06
Make: Volume 90 — Animatronic Scares
It’s aliiiive! Bring characters to life for Halloween, movie making, and live shows with the mechanical wonders of animatronics!
In this issue of Make: follow along as FX designer Jesse Velez builds a custom haunted deer animatronic based on the Evil Dead series. Next, we show you how to make a set of 3D-printed ghosts dance to music using Bottango’s free animatronic software. Then add some personality to your next creature build with a pair of simple, lifelike mechatronic eyes, and take it a step further with a mechanism to simulate realistic breathing patterns.
Plus, 33+ projects. Check out the table of contents below.
On the cover: Will Cogley’s super-real animatronic peepers will enliven your humanoids and Halloween characters.Photos: Will Cogley, (eyes), Bill “Inflatabill” Kennedy (Sepia Lux)
Table of Contents
Columns
Welcome: Make Me Believe
Combining technical skill, imagination, and creative problem solving, animatronics are a great gateway to making.Page 07
Made on Earth
Marshall Piros, David J. Groom, and Caleb Kraft
Amazing builds from around the globe.Page 08
Features
Sepia Lux, the Illuminated Cuttlefish
Dale Dougherty
Designing the world’s first kinetic inflatable for a Burning Man art car was no simple task.Page 12
DIY Geoengineering
Luke Iseman
You can cool the Earth — one high-altitude, sulfur dioxide-filled balloon at a time.Page 20
Tornado Tech
Cabe Atwell
How twister chasers DIY their own storm vehicles and science gadgets.Page 25
Small Scale Solar Power
Kris de Decker
How to build off-grid, low-voltage DC photovoltaic systems to power your workbench, laptop, or almost anything.Page 26
Animatronica
Terrifying Taxidermy
Jesse Velez
Creating a haunted animatronic deer head for a horror-themed bar.Page 36
Animatronic Singing Spooks
Evan McMahon
Print, build, and animate your own glow-in-the-dark musical ghosts using Bottango’s free animatronic software.Page 44
Simple Animatronic Eyes
Will Cogley
Build a wonderfully lifelike eye mechanism for live joystick control or integration into your automated projects.Page 54
The Breath of Life
Katherine "Smalls" Connell
Simulate realistic breathing inside your animatronic creatures.Page 58
Projects
Projection Mapping
Kat Black and Jasper Cook
For Halloween or any time, here’s how to cast still and moving images using buildings as your screenPage 60
Electromagnetic Symphony
Darcy Neal
Make EMF radiation audible and listen in to the silent backbone of our electronic society.Page 70
Solar Plant Rotator
Andy T. Evans
Build a slow-motion spinner for hanging plants, based on simple, analog BEAM robotics.Page 76
Squishy Tech: Welcome to the Mirrordome
Lee Wilkins
Building a geodesic LED sculpture that transforms by night — and is much bigger on the inside.Page 86
Smart Plant
Jon García Aguado
Make this Wi-Fi plant monitor with e-paper display and learn what your leafy companions need.Page 91
DIY Tortilla Press
Brookelynn Morris
Build a traditional taco substrate squasher, for just a few centavos.Page 96
Guardians of the Cubicle
David Battino
Turn a toy into a status signal with this easy LED soldering project. Lasers optional!Page 100
Build a PC From Scratch
Carsten Frauenheim
The old-school tower PC is modular, sustainable, and cool looking. Our online guide shows how to plan your parts and build your dream machine.Page 103
Toy Inventor’s Notebook: Talking Zombie Doll Maker
Bob Knetzger
Needle-felt these mini zombie dolls — and make them yelp!Page 104
Skill Builder
Solving Design Problems With ChatGPT
Lydia Sloan Cline
Incorporate ChatGPT into your design process using Tinkercad to solve problems around the house.Page 110
Corrective Perspective
Tim Deagan
Capture perfectly aligned vector images from your skewed photos, for free.Page 114
Toolbox
Toolbox
Gear up with the latest tools and kits for makers.Page 120
Over the Top
Drinks Are on Me!
David J. Groom
Anouk Wipprecht’s latest tech-fashion outfits make the wearer the ultimate bartender.Page 128
