before walking and talking robots, we perceived robots as a single-limb mechanical contraption, possibly putting a specific part of a car in a Toyota assembly line. needless to say, we were awed by this human-replacing, union-less and tireless mechanical slaves and at one point, we did ever dream of having one of those to flip a sunny side up, or fry some bacons. we are not sure if the uArm Miniature Industrial Robot Arm could do those, but anyhow, owning one such robotic arm is attainable now, albeit at a much smaller size. the uArm is essentially a 4-axis parallel-mechanism robot modeled after the fame ABB industrial PalletPack robot.
it is Arduino-powered, which means, its application is virtually boundless, limited only by your imagination, technical expertise and of course, the size of the machine. for the geeks, mucking around Arduino is probably the way to go to maximize uArm’s potential, but for the less code-inclined folks, there will be Android and iOS apps that allows you to control the uArm over Bluetooth. mechanically speaking, the uArm has 4 degrees of freedom with movement made possible using standard RC hobby servos and an Arduino-compatible board being the ‘brain’ of the system. it is one of those rare authentic robotic kit that can actually replicates real life robot arm applications and as mentioned, what it can do is limited by your imagination.
made of laser cut black acrylic or wood, the uArm Miniature Industrial Robot Arm is available as a kit or assembled and with a choice end-effectors (gripper or suction cup). you can pre-order yours via Kickstarter for $185 and up, or if you prefer the barebone way, there is a mechanical kit that comes without any electronics and servos, going for just $69. projected shipping date is expected to be sometime in May 2014. have a look at the pitch video below to learn more.
p.s. a huge thanks to Eric of uFactory for sending us the awesome images.
