For a school project that asked us to make something interactive with an Arduino Uno, I decided to go with a simple little animatronic that could be great as a prop of sorts! This short guide will tell you just how to make one of your own. This tutorial can be adapted into many other creatures, of course - a horse, a lizard, a snail, you name it - without the risk of getting scorched by this dragon's fire-y breath of redemption.

Step 1: Assemble the Materials

To make your own defensive little creature, you'll need:

(1x) Arduino Uno

(1x) Breadboard

(2x) Red LED

(1x) 220 ohm Resistors

(20x) Jumper wires

(1x) Light Sensor

(1x) Servo Motor

Collect these materials and get ready for the next step!

Step 2: Arduino Setup

This image shows the setup of this project. It's a bit of a jumbled mess but hey, it works!

Once you're done, get your coding program ready...

Step 3: Code It!

#include 

Servo myservo;  
int threshold(700);

void setup() {
Serial.begin(9600);   
myservo.attach(9);   
pinMode(A0, INPUT);   
pinMode(7, OUTPUT); 
}
void loop() {   
if (analogRead(A0) > threshold) {     
myservo.write(5);     
digitalWrite(7, LOW);   
} 
else{   
myservo.write(175);   
digitalWrite(7, HIGH); 
} 
delay(500); 
Serial.println(analogRead(A0)); 
}

Time to code this baby!

The code I used is fairly simple, but I've set the light detection threshold at 700, you might need to tweak it a bit depending on your wants and situation regarding lighting. Other than that, you're good to go!

Now grab your craft materials...

Step 4: Ready, Steady... Craft!

Now you've got the inside all figured out, it's time for you to make the outside of your creature. Let your creativity take the lead! Use light materials for the moving bits, that way you'll be sure the servo can handle carrying whatever you're putting on it. I mainly used thick craft foam (scavenged from an old yoga mat - yay, recycling) for my baby dragon, but you can use whatever you can get your grubby nerd hands on!

But most of all, have fun creating!