Robotic Stuffed Animal - Videos and Pictures below

During my Junior year at Cornell, I made the robotic stuffed animal as a project for MAE 4630 Advanced Product Design. The product was called the "Long Distance Teddy Bear" and it was designed to help people separated from their loved ones interact in a novel way. Product development included designing, manufacturing, and testing the stuffed animal along with conducting market research. The robotic stuffed animal has a 3D printed skeleton whose parts are optimized for injection molding. The skeleton is actuated by servo motors, which are controlled by an Arduino. The stuffed animals arms move, so it can give a hug, wave hello, and dance. The elbows include a spring-cable mechanism, allowing one servo to actuate both the shoulder and the elbow. Although the product is called the "Long Distance Teddy Bear" a lion stuffed animal was used for the prototype.

Robotic Stuffed Animal Final Report (pdf)Download

Robotic Stuffed Animal - Videos

Proof of Concept for Elbow Spring-Cable Mechanism

The stuffed animals elbows have a torsion spring, which keeps the arm straight. However, as the upper arm rotates inward, a cable pulls on the forearm and rotates it inward as well. This mechanism allows the elbow to be actuated without placing a cumbersome servo on the arm.

First Actuated Prototype

The first actuated prototype moved very poorly, as I temporarily used 3D printed gears instead of COTS. The video shows the arm waving hello and giving a hug, This prototype also had assembly issues which were fixed in later prototypes.

Second Actuated Prototype

The second prototype had much smoother motion than before. The video shows the arm waving hello and giving a hug.

Final Prototype

The final prototype incorporated the entire mechatronic skeleton in the stuffed animals body. This prototype could wave hello, give a hug, and dance. The parts in this prototype were optimized for injection molding.

Robotic Stuffed Animal - Videos and Pictures below