Hi all. It's coming up time for the annual Western Canadian Robot Games on May 13th, and as per usual, Solarbotics will be hosting our post-event wind-down. Interested in coming? Let us know here!
Iron Man & Solarbotics at Comic Exp...
Solar botics
June 30, 2016
We often work with people with very interesting projects. This time, it's an impressive Iron Man MkIII costume build, by Phillip Vatour of Calgary.
Phillip had come into our offices one day and said: "You might be interested in seeing what I've been building with the stuff I buy here...". He pulled out his phone and handed over his photo gallery. Flip..."Nice Iron Man gauntlet" ....flip..."Nice Arc reactor" ...flip... "HOLY CRAP - that's a video of a functional visor-flipping helmet!"
We were so impressed by his build, we invited Phillip and his family to the 2016 Calgary Comic Expo as a keynote display at the Solarbotics booth. He'd spend several hours each day, suiting up and posing for photos, while explaining his build. He's one of a handful of builders in the world with such a fully-featured Iron Man costume, so we were very happy to work with him at the show. We were very happy to arrange a photo-op with Stan Lee (creator of the "Iron Man" character), as this was to be Mr. Lee's last Comic Expo appearance. Mr. Lee was apparently quite impressed by the quality of the suit, as were his staff attending the photo op.
What's particularly notable about Phillip's efforts is that he doesn't rent out his time or make paid appearances. He volunteers for the Make-a-Wish foundation and the Calgary Children's Hospital, making appearances as Iron Man for the kids. We were happy to help out by promoting a donation bucket to help Phillip pay for ongoing costume upgrades and maintenance (apparently Iron Man costume molds aren't cheap!).
Phillip designed the costume to have quite an array of features, which are fairly independent of each other. A tech-costume of this complexity can often have some failures, so this design allows the majority of the suit to stay functional if a single element is damaged. Of course, this means there's a multitude of batteries to maintain, and Phillip has a full check-list to cover during suit-up and servicing.
We produced an informational flyer we gave out at the show, available here as a pdf (Ironman Phillip Vautour information sheet).
MORE POSTS
Ardweeny!
Here's the Ardweeny - the smallest breadboard-friendly Arduino-compatible kit! Sorry it took almost a month to get this ready. The GVS-Shield took priority, and it is the holiday season. Kinda crazy here. The Ardweeny has proven to be quite handy in the shop where we've got several projects on the go. Plug in a 'weeny […]
Wednesday Cool Links: Bioluminescence, F...
Keep warm! What else can I say... This is the season of thermosocks, spice chai, frozen windshields and many layers. For those who are not hibernating just yet, here's a weekly dose of entertainment: Bioluminescent Bacteria Lamp I want one! Hopefully no bacteria were hurt in this lighting experiment, and they were all paid accordingly […]
Small batteries!
We've come across a variety of small batteries that are splendid for the small types of robots we're used to building! A variety of 3.6V and 4.8V packs ranging from 50mA to 300mA capacity means we have something ideal for almost any battery-powered BEAM bot. Check them out in the "New Items" link under "Products", […]
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.