Feb.8, 2014
Spanish Hacker Jose Julio has built an awesome air hockey playing robot out of 3D printer parts and a PS3 camera.
Julio has a 3D printer and thought of making something for his daughter who loves the Air Hockey game. So he decided to construct an air hockey playing robot using cheap and easily available RepRap 3D printer parts, such as NEMA17 stepper motors, drivers, Arduino Mega, RAMPS, belts , bearings, rods, printed pieces. The bracketry, puck, and paddle came out of the 3D printer.
The air hockey table itself was built from scratch using off the shelf wood. The final dimensions are 100x60cm.
The PS3 camera was mounted above the table and used to predict the trajectory of the puck. The robot then moves the paddle to the appropriate position to block and return the puck. It is also adjustable so you can decide the robot's speed, acceleration, and strategy algorithms such as when to attack, defend & defend+attack.
Check out Julio's blog below to learn more about his air hockey robot. If you are interested in building an air hockey playing robot yourself, you can find a detailed build manual here, and the relevant code, 3D designs and additional documentation on Github here.
Posted in 3D Printers
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You need to build a Robot vs Robot on the air hockey table.