This week on Maker Update, our robot overlords get a new, terrifying mouth, the Pi camera goes deluxe, Maker Faire goes virtual, mirror inspiration, and singing toilet paper.

++Show Notes [Maker Update #175]++

-=Project of the Week=-

Animatronic Mouth Using 3D Printing, Arduino and Python By Will Cogley
https://www.instructables.com/id/Simple-Animatronic-Mouth-Using-3D-Printing-Arduino/

-=News=-

Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/new-product-raspberry-pi-high-quality-camera-on-sale-now-at-50/

RetroPie 4.6 Released With Raspberry Pi 4 Support
https://blog.adafruit.com/2020/05/01/retropie-4-6-released-with-raspberry-pi-4-support-its-amazing-piday-raspberrypi-raspberry_pi-gaming-emulator/

Virtually Maker Faire, May 23
https://makerfaire.com/

-=More Projects=-

Create an electronic affirmation mirror By Becky Stern
https://hackspace.raspberrypi.org/articles/create-an-electronic-affirmation-mirror

Code available from resources download
https://hackspace.raspberrypi.org/issues/30

Toilet Paper Roll Choir by Max Björverud
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/these-loo-rolls-formed-a-choir/

Cycloidal Gear Clock By EammonL
https://www.instructables.com/id/Cycloidal-Gear-Clock/

-=Tips & Tools=-

Adam Savage’s Favorite Tools: Wearable Magnifiers!
https://www.tested.com/art/makers/906623-adam-savages-favorite-tools-wearable-magnifiers/

New version out of Open Source Medical Supply Guide (v2.0)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-71FJTmI1Q1kjSDLP0EegMERjg_0kk_7UfaRE4r66Mg/preview?fbclid=IwAR2cHvsJFwB1BBOLnSdQGMLUBPS2odjiU2GsPQmcW1uLLlV-Lq82IOUOEjo

Servo Robotic Claw by cynahsy
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4249843

Oiler Pen Review
https://youtu.be/jfg_EUCFMvU

Maker Update #174 *Adafruit Edition*
https://youtu.be/ynL6NJ074F0

-=Digi-Key Spotlight=-

Energy Harvesting – Tech Basics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZuUbkDKbBc

Transcript

This week on Maker Update, our robot overlords get a new, terrifying mouth, the Pi camera goes deluxe, Maker Faire goes virtual, mirror inspiration, and singing toilet paper.

Hey, I’m Donald Bell, and welcome back to another Maker Update. Today, I showered and combed my hair, just for you. But don’t worry, I’m not here to judge. I’m here to show you some cool projects. So let’s get started with the project of the week.

Will Cogley and his menagerie of mechanical creatures have captured my attention again. This time, it’s this animatronic monster mouth that he’s been perfecting over the past few months.

If you thought his eye mechanisms were incredible, this is a whole new level of complexity. Not only does the jaw open and shut, but they also adjust forward and backward for a more natural movement. Plus, he has articulating lips, and even a tongue.

This is way more than a halloween prop mouth. Will went to the extreme to create a mechanism that could replicate the mouth shape of each distinct phoneme of human speech. 

On his Instructable, you can find the files for 3D printing the teeth, the linkages, and all the fittings for the servos. There are 9 servos involved in this design, which all connect up to an Arduino with an Adafruit 16-channel servo shield. 

But to really make use of this design, you have to have a way to program realistic speech movement. Will outlines two methods he’s used. One will let you type in a phrase, and converts it into a series of phonemes which are communicated to the Arduino over a serial connection. It works, but Will says it’s not very realistic.

His preferred method is a Python program he wrote that uses the Natural Language Toolkit to process each word you type and sends it to the Arduino over serial. Neither option seem to be linked in the Instructable, but maybe you can email Will if it’s something you want to play with.

Now for some news. The Raspberry Pi Foundation released a new $50 camera module called the High Quality Camera. It uses a 12-megapixel Sony camera sensor. You can fit it with C or CS-type camera lenses. There’s an adjustable focus ring on it, plus an integrated tripod mount. 

If you’ve been looking to do a Pi photography project, or a security camera, a wildlife camera, computer vision, stop-motion animation — this looks like a great option. 

In addition to the module, Raspberry Pi also sells a 6mm lens for an additional $25 and a 16mm lens for an extra $50. 

On a related note, version 4.6 of the popular RetroPie video game software is now available. The big new feature is support for the latest Pi 4 board, which unlocks a lot of performance improvements for the more processing-heavy game emulators. Dreamcast, PSP, N64, all seem to run smoother than ever.

This week, Make Community (formerly Maker Media) have announced that they’ll be hosting a virtual Maker Faire on May 23rd. 

This is usually around the time of the Bay Area Maker Faire, which remains cancelled for a number of reasons. The virtual Maker Faire is described as offering 24 Hours of Presentations, Workshops, Demos, and Exhibits Across All Time Zones. The main feature is makers responding to COVID-19.

At makerfaire.com you can apply to participate, or sign-up for updates.

Now for more projects! In the latest issue of Hackspace magazine and on the Hackspace website, Becky Stern has a guide on creating an electronic affirmation mirror. 

You can build this with an Arduino and populate it with a set script of affirmations, or use a NodeMCU board to be able to add and modify your list over the internet. Becky shows you both ways. 

You’ll need a see-through mirror and frame, both of which Becky sourced on Amazon. You’ll also need to use some black paper tape to mask out everything but the display.

And I have to say, I love the way this display looks. Also, having looked at the code, there’s some great quotes already in here to get you started.

Max Björverud created this playable toilet paper synthesizer. Each of the toilet paper holders has a hall effect sensor embedded into it using a 3D printed attachment. When the roll moves, it signals a Raspberry Pi to play a particular note defined in Pure Data software. 

In this case, the software is set up to sound like a church chorus. Considering how much toilet paper Max has access to, I’d say there’s a diven power at work here.

Eammon Littler made this mesmerizing, 3D printed, Cycloidal Gear Clock.

It uses an Arduino Pro Mini, a real-time clock module, a small stepper motor, and a stepper driver board. 

There are around a dozen pieces to print and assemble, but the end result looks like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I’m not sure if I want it to tell me the time, or just help me zone out.

Now for some tips and tools! Adam Savage continues to mine his workshop for tool recommendations during lockdown. One of his latest is this $20 wearable magnifier.

He also shows off all the other options he’s purchased along the way, including some high-end Carl Zeiss surgical magnifiers. For the money, though, this cheaper option offers the best all-around performance. Check it out.

From the Open Source Covid 19 Medical Supply Group, there’s a new guide on the current state and best practices for maker-made medical equipment. It’s a great resource that also includes resources for how you can help in your community.

On Thingiverse, Hong Seung il has this detailed guide on creating your own 3D printed, motorized claw machine gripper. A single continuous rotation servo drives the mechanism open and closed. 

It also got me thinking about how we might handout halloween candy if we’re still doing social distancing in October. I’m trying to jinx it, but it’s also kind of a fun problem to solve for.

On the Cool Tools channel, I talk with Jordan Bunker about a $5 oiler pen that’s great for precisely placing machine oil or PTFE grease right where you need it. If you’re sick of oil spilling everywhere from the built-in applicator, this looks like a great, cheap solution.

And in case you missed it, on Tuesday we put out the monthly Adafruit Edition of Maker Update. You can find it on the Adafruit YouTube channel or by checking out the link in the description.

For this week’s Digi-Key spotlight, check out their latest Tech Basics video on energy harvesting. 

If you’re designing a wearable, or a device that needs to live outside and disconnected, it’s useful to know about the various ways you can capture and store power.

The video includes a demo of an ST Microelectronics Energy Harvesting Evaluation Board as one example, but there are a lot of ideas here to explore.

And that does it for this week’s show. Be sure to subscribe, leave a thumbs-up, or leave a comment. You can get on the Maker Update email list so you never miss an episode. I want to give a big thanks to my Patrons on Patreon and also to Digi-Key Electronics for making this show possible and continuing to ship out orders during this difficult time. 

Next week, Sophy Wong is back as a guest host, giving me a little break.So look forward to that, thanks for watching, and I’ll see you soon.