Challenge
Design and build a robot that imitates the movement patterns of a biological creature.
Primary Components
- PIC microcontroller
- Programmable logic devices (PLDs)
- Servo motors
S.C.O.R.P.I.O.N. stands for “Servo-Controlled Octopedal Robotic Predator Imitating Organic Nature.” This robot mimics its namesake creature’s unique style of locomotion through a series of PLDs that receive input from the robot’s microcontroller. A special circuit reads the position of each of the robot’s eight legs, then processes that data into a set of instructions that moves each leg into one of six servo positions. As a result, all eight legs are synchronized to move in a manner uncannily similar to an actual scorpion.