By Oliver Van Moon, Park Day School, 7th Grade
This crazy machine is an Eggbot, a robotic artist that can draw on ball or egg shaped objects like ping pong balls, eggs, golf balls, and lightbulbs. It uses several motors and a pen to draw a picture from a computer.
The Eggbot started in 1990 when Bruce Shapiro created the first one, just in time for Easter. He was interested in controlling stepper motors from his computer, and this led to the creation of this drawing robot.
The Eggbot has been used as a tool to teach about electronics and robotics. In 2009, Bruce, with some help, turned the Eggbot into a kit for “home assembly”. Now Eggbot will be at the Mini Maker Faire!
Check them out at the Mini Maker Faire
See the Eggbot in action at their booth—and if you’re completely impressed, you can buy your own eggbot kit for $195.