STEAM 4 Legged Robot

This is an easy, DIY, and homemade STEAM project. You can do it anywhere. This can teach you how to make robots and most importantly, teaches you patience to create what you want.

Caution!

This project consists of sticky and somewhat hot and sharp materials. Must have adult supervision when creating this project. Handle at your own risk!

Supplies

You'll need the following items to do this simple, movable, and fun STEAM project.

2 cardboard boxes

1 ruler

1 pair of scissors

1 pack of skewers

1 switch with pins

1 DC electric motor

Some electric wires

9-volt battery connector

1 hot glue gun with hot glue

1 knife

A pack of rubber bands

Step 1: Cut the Sides Off of the Cardboard Box

To make our frame, you need to cut your 1st cardboard box. We will walk you through the dimensions. With your knife, cut the sides off of the cardboard box.

Step 2: Cut Vertically

Now we get the dimensions! Cut the middle piece vertically in the dimensions shown in the picture above. You might need help from an adult to cut it to the exact same width.

Step 3: Cut Horizontally

Now cut on the dimension shown in the picture above.

Step 4: Collect the Base

Now get the piece that is in red.

This will be your base of the robot.

Step 5: Cut the Flap

Now we will cut the sides to finish off the frame of the robot. We will first cut off the left and right sides in this step and then the front and back of the robot.

Get your knife and 1 side of your cardboard and cut the flap of the cardboard.

Step 6: Make the Sides of the Robot

So we cut the base of our robot. Our robot is about 100 millimeters, or 10.0 centimeters long. So we need to make our robot 10 cm long, from right to left or left to right.

Step 7: Finish the Sides

Now we will finish cutting the sides of our robot. but, we want to make the sides as perfect as we can. Let's cut the side in half so we can get our sides of the robot.

Step 8: Cut Vertically

I know. I am sorry for cutting a step, but cut about 7 millimeters from the right side to make the piece of cardboard 100 millimeters or 10.0 centimeters.

Step 9: GLUE!!!

Now, use your hot glue gun to hot-glue ONE SIDE piece on the LEFT SIDE.

Step 10: Attach Components

Now we attach our motors! But first off, let's understand our circuit. You can learn more through this PDF document. You can skip this step because it's optional.

PDF:

file:///C:/Users/YAN/Downloads/EDL%20Robot%20Circuit.pdf

WE ARE SORRY IF YOUR SWITCH CIRCUIT DOESN'T WORK IF YOU DID THE PDF

First, get one of the pieces that we had when we made the base.

Step 11: Making a Stand for Your Motor and Making a Pulley

These steps are pretty simple. You need to get your DC motor. Your DC motor should look like the one I have shown above without the gear.

Now use the gear and make a circle-like shape. Make another circle. This will be our pulley to drive the robot.

Get 1 piece of unused cardboard, perhaps the flap of one. Get a ruler and make a square 1 cm x 1 cm. Make 2 1 cm x 1 cm squares and hot-glue them together.

Step 12: Connect Some Jumper Wires

My jumper wires are from an old arduino electronic kit. If you do want to know more about my jumper wires, it is basically a colored wire. One tip of the wire is like a socket to connect other wires or the pins on our switch. The other tip of the wire is the pin. We could use this "pin" tip to connect to the "socket". You can buy the wires here:

(Female) https://www.amazon.com/Premium-Breadboard-Jumper-1...

(Male) https://www.bananarobotics.com/shop/Male-to-Male-...

To connect the motor, grab the pin tip and put it in one of two large holes. Do this with another wire.

Step 13: Making a Stand for Your Motor

Cut 2 1x1 cm squares (dimensions listed above) from the cardboard flap you just got, and hot glue the 2 squares.

Step 14: Making a Stand for Your Motor

Now hot glue your motor to the stand.

Step 15: Attach Components

Now take your 9-volt battery with snap-on clip or your 1.5 volt battery box. Connect 1 wire from one end of your 1.5 volt battery box or put the wire on one end of the snap-on clip in the configuration above.

Step 16: Attach Switch

Now attach the other terminal of your battery box to the left pin of a switch with a wire. Attach the center pin to the other part of the motor.

Step 17: Put Legs

Grab a piece of cardboard and make yourself a strip of one.

Hot-Glue one end to a skewer.

Now pierce a hole on one end of the mainframe of the robot. Do the same for another leg, but put it on the other end.

Step 18: Making a Pulley

Now make some circles for your robot. Make sure that they are perfect circles.

Step 19: Attach Wheels

Put 1 pulley wheel on 1 leg axle of the robot. Do the same for the other one.

Step 20: Attach Circuit

Now put 2 circles on the shaft of the motor and connect a rubber band that runs from the motor to one leg. The do the same for the other one.

Attach 1 rubber band from the motor to one leg and do the same for the other one.

Step 21: Battery Box

Cut a flap of the leftover cardboard you have in the dimensions above.

Step 22: Drill a Hole

Now drill a hole so that your wires can fit through.

Step 23: Glue Battery Box

Now glue your battery box.

Step 24: Finish the Body

Now you will finish the body. Cut 1 piece of cardboard in the dimensions that are on steps:

#4

#21

You should end up with something that looks like mine from the picture above.

Step 25: Finish Legs

Now you should be about 6/8 finished with the robot with the motor and stuff. We have made 2 cranks so far, or legs. We need to make 2 more to make our robot actually stand.

Step 26: Finish Legs

Do the same for the other side.

Step 27: Make Legs

Now grab some of your skewers and cut it into a toothpick-long skewer, or grab a few toothpicks.

Puncture them into the legs.

Step 28: Make the Legs

Now you are going to make the legs. Puncture a piece of cardboard into each toothpick. Make sure that they are long and wide.

GREAT! YOU ARE ALMOST FINISHED! NOW TO CREATE THE TOP TO FINISH IT ALL UP!

Step 29: Finish!

Now you go back to Steps 1,2,3,4, and you make the top. Get your knife and cut a marking to fold the cardboard. We need people to see their errors, right?

Glue the short end.

Step 30: NOW YOU ARE DONE

Congrats! You've just made a robot!

Behind the scenes:

I have spent literally 2 months on this because I am a pretty busy guy who gets distracted every now and then.

This is my best work so far.

The contest begun on June 17, and when I knew that they were giving out $100 amazon gift cards, I knew I had to join. So I came up with "Why don't I teach people how to create a working robot and use TinkerCAD to make the pictures?" and the race was on. I saw that other people had submitted their entries, and I worked faster. The faster I went, the more I became stressed and defeated, let down by thinking to myself "I can't finish." I prayed to God (I am a Christian) every now and then and look where it got me! I am finished with my project! So %80 of the credit goes to him. Thank you guys for motivating me and encouraging me to do this. Thank you judges!