Trooper_trent's R2-D2 build

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build (Finished Dome video on Page 2)

Whew, I feel like I'm finally accomplishing something. Tonight was a beast, but I got him up on his feet, free rolling on all "threes"
Here's an update to my blog.
Trent's R2-D2 Build
and here's a quick video.
My r2 is standing up - YouTube

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build (Finished Dome video on Page 2)

After taking him into the living room last night to put his legs on, I later realized that the door to my office is at a weird angle and too small for him to go through. lol
I guess he'll just have to live in the main room. We'll see what my wife thinks about that.

 

[roblenzz]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build (Finished Dome video on Page 2)

Nice work man, I'm subscribed to this thread and I am notified on every post and it has been awesome to watch. What a great piece to have greet all your guests that enter your livingroom. Your wife should be thrilled Now just make the butler tray for his head and you can say, "Look honey, an end table!!"

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

Today, I spent some time removing the front foot and reworking the casters so that they were more level and also stuck out a bit further. They were originally just too far in, which was causing the back feet to sit at an angle. the frame also looked like it was leaning a bit too far forward so adjusting the front casters seemed like the best bet. I think he sits much better now and all three feet are parallel to the floor.

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

While I'm waiting to be able to afford the next phase of parts, I've been trying to think of things I could go ahead and get done. One of the things I really wanted to add with my R2 is an extra level of character and interactivity. By being able to control the sound with my iphone, I'm free to pretty much do anything I want. I spent some time editing some kids songs with R2 sounds mixed in like he's singing along. That way, when I'm at an outing where there are kids, I can get him to play and dance with them.
Here's an example of one I did.

This is the Mahna Mahna song from the Muppets. I think the kids are really going to love stuff like this. My son keeps asking me to play it, and laughs every time if he's any indication.
R2 Singing "Mahna Mahna" - YouTube

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I added a few more ankle, leg, foot, and shoulder pieces last night, as well as spend some time securing the foot shells better. I also had to do some adjustments on one of the foot drives. My turn buckle was too tight, causing the drive frame to bow inward rubbing the wheel a bit.
There is still TONS of cleanup that needs to be done, but I'd rather get it all on, then spend the time cleaning up the whole thing, rather than one piece at a time. So please excuse the messy spots.

Next step, is the wireless blutooth/iphone controlled sound system.

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I started weathering his left leg and foot tonight. I've got poor lighting in the office at night for photos, but he looks more uniform now after adding some dirt to the footsies.

 

[pinder91]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

Purely awesome, my friend! Some day I'll have the time/funding to start working on one as well.

 

[MechMechanic]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

Dude that is seriously awesome.

 

[familyman]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

Awesome work my friends, I love this build. Very inspiring.

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I started working on the sound system for R2. On the Astromech forums, there's a discussion about a simpler option for adding sound to a droid via a wireless bluetooth speaker system. There are several brands available. Originally I was going to get a Logitech one, but I mentioned this option to DarthMiller over the weekend and he ran to target and snagged something similar for an R2 he's building, and said it worked great so I figured I'd try it.

The Target nearest me said they had the Logitech z515 in stock ($80) which is the one I wanted, but when I got there I didn't see any. There was a Logitech blutooth boombox that sounded really great but I was afraid it was going to be too big and oddly shaped, making it hard to secure inside the fram. It was $129 so I skipped it.

They also had one for $99 from SOUNDFREAQ. I've never heard of this brand, but this is the one DarthMiller grabbed and said it worked great so I snagged on. It's called a Sound Kick. It's a great size, black, and rectangular so it should be fairly easy to build a harness for.

It took about 20 seconds to pair it to my phone (just turn it on, hit the pair button, then go to the bluetooth settings on the phone and select the sound kick)
It sounds great. Seems to work really well.
One slight drawback is that the volume doesn't get quite as loud when it's running on the rechargeable battery. I still think it's plenty loud, but it does get louder when you plug it in.
Anyway, here's a sample video of it inside my R2. The slight echo you hear is just the sound bouncing around the room because it's so loud.
R2-D2 Bluetooth sound system - YouTube

 

[Fuzzual]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

this just rocks man, really really rocks!!!

My father lives in Lubbock, but travels to Dallas often for work. He would love to bring his 2/3 build and get a picture with your full size. Would that be something you would consider? PM me if so, would love to get together for some photos!

 

[Fuzzual]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

this just rocks man, really really rocks!!!

My father lives in Lubbock, but travels to Dallas often for work. He would love to bring his 2/3 build and get a picture with your full size. Would that be something you would consider? PM me if so, would love to get together for some photos!

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

this just rocks man, really really rocks!!!

My father lives in Lubbock, but travels to Dallas often for work. He would love to bring his 2/3 build and get a picture with your full size. Would that be something you would consider? PM me if so, would love to get together for some photos!

Hey, I was born and raised in Lubbock! (well, Levelland) :lol

I'm actually in North Fort Worth, close to Texas Motor Speedway, but yeah, absolutely!

 

[darthwhitey]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I started working on the sound system for R2. On the Astromech forums, there's a discussion about a simpler option for adding sound to a droid via a wireless bluetooth speaker system. There are several brands available. Originally I was going to get a Logitech one, but I mentioned this option to DarthMiller over the weekend and he ran to target and snagged something similar for an R2 he's building, and said it worked great so I figured I'd try it.

The Target nearest me said they had the Logitech z515 in stock ($80) which is the one I wanted, but when I got there I didn't see any. There was a Logitech blutooth boombox that sounded really great but I was afraid it was going to be too big and oddly shaped, making it hard to secure inside the fram. It was $129 so I skipped it.

They also had one for $99 from SOUNDFREAQ. I've never heard of this brand, but this is the one DarthMiller grabbed and said it worked great so I snagged on. It's called a Sound Kick. It's a great size, black, and rectangular so it should be fairly easy to build a harness for.

It took about 20 seconds to pair it to my phone (just turn it on, hit the pair button, then go to the bluetooth settings on the phone and select the sound kick)
It sounds great. Seems to work really well.
One slight drawback is that the volume doesn't get quite as loud when it's running on the rechargeable battery. I still think it's plenty loud, but it does get louder when you plug it in.
Anyway, here's a sample video of it inside my R2. The slight echo you hear is just the sound bouncing around the room because it's so loud.
R2-D2 Bluetooth sound system - YouTube

Hey Trent,

Thanks to you...I just went to Target and bought this $99 SOUNDFREAQ unit.

This sure seems like an easy way to get sound! :thumbsup Did you just load some R2 sounds on your phone? If so, where did you get them?

Can you post a pic of how you (or others) have mounted this in the R2?

thanks!

brad

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

This sure seems like an easy way to get sound! :thumbsup Did you just load some R2 sounds on your phone? If so, where did you get them?

Can you post a pic of how you (or others) have mounted this in the R2?

thanks!

brad

The sound files can be found on the astromech site. I used Adobe Premiere to string them together with somewhat of a natural flow, spaced out at random intervals to make a long loop that I can just play and forget. I then took about 30 or so of my favorite signature sounds, and labeled them so that I'd know what each one was.
The livetrax app simply pulls your play lists so I just created a playlist called "Artoo Sounds" and put the files in the playlist in an organized list. Then just sync your phone.

Securing the speaker will probably vary depending on each builder's setup. My frame had some extra holes in some of the internal ribs that just so happened to line up with the width of the speakers. So I just used some large zip ties through those holes to hold it in place.

I mounted the speaker long ways with the power button and charge port toward the bottom of the droid frame for easy access. You have to have that back section pulled all the way out until you see the white stripe marker before it will turn on. I think it's like a resonating chamber for the speakers. Anyway, with that pulled out and it facing long ways, I strapped it to the inside of the frame by having two long zip ties going vertically down each side next to the box that pops out of the back. I'll try to take pictures but I don't know if it will explain what I mean. Maybe a diagram would be better.

Edited for Adding Diagram:
Hopefully you can see here how I attached the speaker to the inside of the frame.

 

[shenphong]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I love the extra work to the PSI that you've done, its one of the largest differences I spot right away when viewing other people's builds compared to what's on screen. Heading out to home depot today to get some standoffs for my frame and will have to see if they carry that material for the lighting fixtures.

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

Thanks, I'm still not 100% happy with it. I'm going to replace them with a more accurate honeycomb pattern. And I still need to tweak my code to more correctly emulate the PSI behavior on ANH.

But for now, I'm okay with it.

 

[Trooper_trent]

Re: Trooper_trent's R2 build

I did some more work on some audio tracks for events.
I need to come up with more songs and sound snips to play at appropriate times while at an even if anyone has any ideas. I can also make these available for download for anyone else who might want to use them with their R2. So if you have something you'd want, let me know!

R2-D2 Being Silly - YouTube

 

[Trooper_trent]

I got a pair of aluminum leg to body hubs in the mail today and just had to install them on my lunch break. I was using the black plastic ones from my A&A kit for the time being.
Here he is before.

Here are the new hubs!!

First, I propped him up between two folding chairs so I could get his legs off without falling over.

Then I removed all of the shoulder and leg pieces so I could get to the bolts.

I then pulled the legs off, swapped out the hubs and put them back in. I ended up not using the brass spacers shown here, as they cause the legs to stick out too far, showing too much of a gap between the leg and body. Instead, I ended up using a couple of lock washers.

And here he is with brand new body hubs. I think he looks a million times better already.