Fireflies, Bundles, and Motors

Dave Hrynkiw
November 17, 2011

Technically, winter starts with the Winter Solstice that occurs on December 21st. But we're pretty sure that whoever decided that is wrong, because it's starting to feel pretty darn cold out there. And to keep things warm, what do you need? Movement. And how do you make movement? Motors. So today we have range of servos and gearmotors to help your projects beat the cold. But first, some other stuff.

Open-Source Firefly Project

Firefly ProjectOver the summer, we worked with Claudia Bustos and Vlad Amiot for their project "Calgary's Illuminated Landscapes" for AwesomeFoundationCalgary, to make a blinking LED kit based on the Jar of Fireflies Instructables Project. We were able to help them with PCB design and production for the project, and the event turned out to be a huge success (check out some video and two newsposts). Now we'd like to release that design as open-source, so anyone can reproduce or modify it for themselves. We have Gerber files, schematics and code. You can get even more info at our project page here.

New Releases!

Little Yellow Drum Machine Little Yellow Drum Machine - $185
We were smitten by the Little Yellow Drum Machine the first time we saw it. Let's face it, this lil' guy has a ton of character and an awesome sense of rhythm to boot. You should go check out the video if you haven't already to see him in action. We've worked with its creator to put together a bundle, so that you can get your hands on all the electronic parts in one place if you want to make your own.
Pocket Marquee Bundle Pocket Marquee Bundle - $42.00 USD / $44.10 CAD
Sometimes, you have 126 lights. And sometimes, you want to put those lights in a box. And if this is one of those times, we have you covered. We're offering a bundle that includes a LoLShield and red SAFE (with a clear lid and some other helpful parts), so all you need is your Arduino board of choice to set up your very own display-in-a-box. Save about $10 from buying the parts individually.

VS-9 Pico Servo

VS-9 Micro Servo, Coreless Motor - $9.85 USD / $10.34 CAD
This pico sized servo is great for tiny robots, hobby airplanes, and cars. Use them for manipulating legs, blinking eyes, or just use them for steering. It produces 0.5 kg.cm ( 6.94 oz.in ) of tourque at 4.8V.

VS-19 Pico Linear Servo

VS-19 Pico Linear Servo - $9.85 USD / $10.34 CAD
After all these years of waiting we are now finally blessed with the gift of linear actuation. The only limits to this servo signal driven actuator is your imagination! Use it to turn 'on' and 'off' light switches, raise and lower legs, trigger a latch, and/or bring up the periscope.
Gear Motor 23 - 1:192 Offset Shaft - $5.00 USD / $5.25 CAD
This 1:192 Tiny Geared Pager Motor has an offset shaft much like the GM2, but is roughly half the size in every dimension. It'll be handy for crazy things like wall climbing robots, automatic tooth-brushing, or fancy marble mahcines.
Gear Motor 24 - 1:192 90 Degree Shaft - $5.00 USD / $5.25 CAD
Borrowing the form factor of our popular GM3 gearbox, the GM24 is a pager-motor powered relative that is great for tight spaced applications. Make a robot so small that it can fit inside another robot!

Sales

That's right. We're marching straight on in an effort to add more cool stuff to our clearance category. Check it out, and if you find something you like, act quick - these and all the other clearance items have limited quantities.
PhidgetAdvancedServo 1-Motor Phidget Advanced Servo 1-Motor - $25.86 USD / $27.16 CAD (20% off)
Allows you to control the position, velocity, and acceleration of one RC servo motor. It also has a high resolution of 125 steps per degree; it measures the power consumption of the servo, and powers servo motors of up to 450mA. Best of all, it's powered solely by the USB cable.
PhidgetServo Kit 1-Motor PhidgetServo Kit 1-Motor - $36.57 USD / $38.40 CAD (20% off)
A simple little bundle for controlling a singler servo motor. The kit includes everything you'll need to get started, including the PhidgetServo 1-Motor, a servo, and a USB cable.
PhidgetAdvancedServo 8-Motor PhidgetAdvancedServo 8-Motor - $70.16 USD / $73.67 CAD (20% off)
This wonderful contraption allows you to control the position, velocity, and acceleration of up to 8 RC servo motors. It requires a 6-15VDC external power supply; its switching power supply allows efficient operation from 6 to 15 VDC and can be used with a wide range of batteries.
PhidgetServo Kit 4-Motor w/ US Power Supply PhidgetServo Kit 4-Motor - $114.29 USD / $120.00 CAD (20% off)
This handy kit sets you up with everything you need to control 4 servo motors from your PC, with the ability to add another 4 RC servos of your choosing. It includes the PhidgetServo 4-Motor, 4 servos, a USB cable and a 12VDC 2.0Amp North American power supply.

So there you go. Get yourself a schwack-load of motors, wire 'em up, and put them together like a shirt. You'll be stylish and might look like a bit of a weirdo. But that's okay, because above all else, you'll be warm. Now if you'll excuse us, we need to go dig up our Seasonal Servo Cartigans.

MORE POSTS

April 29, 2005
ScoutWalker III Workshop

Space is Limited! RSVP as soon as possible! -- Solarbotics will be hosting another workshop to get you prepared for this year's annual Western Canadian Robot Games. The main attraction will be our almost-in-production ScoutWalker III Robot. The ScoutWalker III is an agile two-motor walking BEAM robot platform designed to take advantage of microprocessor-based brainboards, […]

January 23, 2013
Wednesday Cool Links: Now With More Hex

50 73 73 74 2e 2e 2e 20 41 72 65 20 79 6f 75 20 72 65 61 64 69 6e 67 20 74 68 69 73 3f 20 57 68 65 77 2c 20 49 27 6d 20 67 6c 61 64 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 67 69 76 65 […]

December 23, 2015
Solarbotics Holiday Hours

Once a year we make sure to give our minions a little bit of time off. Christmas Hours Thursday, December 24 - Closed Friday, December 25 - Closed Shipping will resume Monday, December 28. New Years Hours Thursday, December 31 - Open until 1pm MST Friday, January 1 - Closed Shipping will resume Monday, January […]

May 13, 2009
Arduino Duemilanove, USB Cable

WHAT'S ALL THIS, WHAT'S ALL THIS?! Step in Time! That's right - we're following up our special edition Evening News Post with a special edition Mid-Week News Post. We gotta keep you folks on your toes somehow. Actually, the real reason we're coming to you on this dusty Wednesday afternoon is that we have a […]

Solarbotics Ltd Logo
Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!

Solarbotics, Ltd. is not responsible for misprints or errors on product prices or information. For more information, please see our Terms and Conditions.

Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.