Hello,
I am new to the arduino world and have a, probably, very easy answer. I am trying to make a toy that pop's up and retracts down. To be exact, it's a bunny that is in a hat, pops up, and then retracts down into the hat.
I've researched linear actuators but can't seem to find one that is either quick enough for the "pop" action or they are too big to be put into a little top hat.
Any help would be appreciated and I apologize in advance for this ignorance.
Hi there!
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Just banging down some words is not giving You the best help.
Pneumatic cylinders come in many different sizes, you could certainly get one small enough to fit inside a top hat. Control with a solenoid valve and power with regulated CO2
What is the size of your top hat? 2 inches? 2 meters? How heavy is the Rabbit? A servo motor with a concentric cam would do the job.
No dimensions for the top hat as I haven't gotten it. I was planning everything prior to obtaining materials. It would be a standard top hat you can put on your head and the bunny would probably just be a hand puppet.
I was even looking at push pull solenoids but would need to attach something to the web vs I make it a little longer to attach to the bunny but both responses are both appreciated.
I have some research to do! Thank you so much!
I think you will find a servo - with a crank, not a cam - will be the most practical.
Your "pop" is a big ask. That is always going to be difficult as it requires a lot of force to move that fast. That would require a really big solenoid and a lot of power. A servo is slower but has the advantage of a geared motor.
Perhaps you need a servo, a spring and a catch which slips when the spring has been compressed to maximum extent. Even then you may require a fairly powerful servo.
Looked up the crank and send to be a logical solution. As you said the pop will be difficult and although the pneumatic device would essentially give that pop the fact that it requires a co2 hookup would have me stay away from that option.
I appreciate all the efforts. As I'm fairly new, all of your experienced answers led me to new things I wasn't aware of and would help in future projects.
Thanks again!
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