Making Monsters: 10 Servo Articulating Mask Kit

thingiverse

Project Premise/ The Idea This project has been a dream of mine for Halloween that I've been wanting to bring to life for a long time. Building upon the Chewbacca mask, this project takes it to a whole new level with actuators that move a silicon mask to add realism. My goal is to either buy a basic mask and create a monster or purchase one pre-made from my local pop-up shop and attach the actuator connections to specific points on the mask. With 10 servos moving certain connections, the mask will stretch and squash to make it look like it's alive. The actuators or linear sliders are controlled by high-tension fishing line that travels through some tubing I bought in excess years ago. The tubes run over my head and down my back to a backpack containing a bank of 10 servos controlled by an Arduino Mega 2560 for storage. My project is centered around creating a dynamic mask that moves and changes shape, giving the illusion of life. Design Process My design process has been focused on creating a functioning actuator system that can move the silicon mask in various ways. I've experimented with different designs, including a rotary actuator, to achieve the desired movement. However, each iteration has presented its own set of challenges, from friction issues with the fishing line to mechanical failures. Failure Log Here are some notable failures throughout my design process: * September 17th, 2016: Slider at 100% scale did not fit, becoming lodged in track. Reprinted at 94.5%. * September 20th, 2016: Rotor in rotating actuator is far too loose to function. Slim design is probably best. * Thingiverse Failure: There seems to be some kind of compiler error going on with the Thingiverse upload system. Print Settings My printer settings are as follows: * Printer: Frankenprinter * Resolution: 0.05-0.2 * Infill: 20-25% * Notes: Support is only necessary on a few pieces where tubing connections jut out at 90 degrees