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EXPERIMENT 1
DID YOU KNOW ?
Inside your cell phone,
there's a tiny motor
that is smaller than a
paper clip. It, too,
spins an unbalanced
weight. That's what
makes the cell
phone vibrate when
set to vibration
mode.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
The vibrations from the motor are passed along to the entire robot — all the
way down to his feet. Depending on the direction that the arm swings, the
robot will turn to the right or the left. The direction of the sole's treads or the
direction in which the arms point will also determine the direction of movement —
forwards, backwards, or in a circle.
What makes your
robot walk?
YOU WILL NEED
› The assembled vibrobot
› 3 x AAA batteries or 3 x AAA rechargeable batteries
HERE'S HOW
1. Start by following the assembly instructions for your
vibrobot. You will find the instructions on the following
pages.
2. Remove the vibrobot's legs and open the cover on the
underside of the vibrating motor. That's how you reach
the battery compartments.
3. Insert the batteries in the direction indicated in the
compartments. Then replace the cover and reattach the
legs.
4. Remove the soles from the bottoms of the vibrobot's
feet. Slide the switch on the underside of the vibrating
motor in one direction or the other.
5. Does the vibrobot start walking right away? What
happens when you slide the switch in the other
direction?
6. Now you can try different experiments. Switch off the
vibrating motor and mount the soles on the vibrobot's
feet. Start with the grips on the soles tilted to the rear.
7. Switch on the vibrating motor. In what direction does
the robot walk? Turn the soles around. What happens
now?
8. By changing the positions of the two arms, can you get
the robot to walk forward? Try it with one arm straight
up and the other arm straight out in front, for example.
Vibration Technology
5
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