Building The B9 Robot Torso

	This is my Torso. I can't tell you where I got it because I don't want to sick the dogs on this person. Let's just say, he's a nice guy doing a favor for those of us that have this need to build the B9. It's a copy of the original robot torso. I am very pleased with the torso but have yet to start the sanding that it requires. I'm working my way "up" to the torso. This is one of the few parts that you absolutely have to get right, or the whole robot looks wrong.
	These are the Chest Buttons (also known as the "teeth lights"). They are made from acrylic. They look great and are just waiting for me to tackle the torso so I have someplace to put them.
	Here are the small chest lamp bases. I ordered them from Newark Electronics. You'll need 12 of them for the torso and 1 additional for the programming unit below. I ordered a variety of clear colored lenses plus a solid yellow lens for the programming unit.
	I made the programming unit myself. I finally found the correct switch for the hole on the right side. Now all I have to make are the round labels. The unit was rather simple to create. I used a piece of 1/4 in. thick white plastic styrene, which was real easy to work with. I cut the rectangle with my scroll saw. The holes were done on my drill press. For the tape reel, I centered a ceramic type fuse in the hole of the tape reel and filled the hole with resin. Once it hardened, I snapped it into the fuse holder.
	Here's a view of the original programming unit.
	3/12/01 - So, they were throwing out some old test equipment at work and I was checking it over when I came across this old 1960's vintage Dielectric Withstand Tester. The knob had this familiar look to it so I grabbed a screw driver and backed out the set screw and popped it off. I got it home and compared it to pictures of the real knob and it looks like I got a match. Cool! My cheapest part so far.
	Here's the real knob.
	4/1/01 - I cut the holes for my 12 small chest lights. It came out pretty good. It was difficult to get them spaced exactly level (left to right). I found out that the bottom ring around the torso is not even. I had measured "up" from the ring and after I drilled the holes, I realized that it was not level. I sanded and filled a few of the holes to get them to look right. 4/7/01 - I cut the hole for the chest buttons (really faux buttons). I put the buttons in with the colored inserts behind them. They look great. Lots of sanding and filling left to do. Boy it's tough to sand in all the nooks and crannies.
	7/4/01 - It's been a while since I posted an update. That's because I have been sanding and sanding. My torso needed (needs) some major body work. Tons of spots to fill and trim to correct. I'm still working on it and will be for some time. I have only been spending a hour on it here and there. With summer here, I have found many other "projects" to spend my time on. I found that if I spray a little primer on my torso in between sanding, I can see the uneven spots much better.
	7/16/01 - More sanding, What can I say. I see another few weeks (I hope!) to get it right. I can only Bondo so much at a time before having to wait for it to set up. My neighbor (Hi Bruce!) snuck up on me this last weekend and caught me working on the torso in the garage. Now the cat's out of the bag. He recognized what I was working on, so I didn't have to go into some lengthy explanation.
	8/16/01 - Still sanding. I'm getting close. Maybe I'm being too picky since I'm going to texture the surface. I took time out to drill three holes for the power pack. Here it is set into place. I used 1/8" phono jacks and set them in fiberglass resin. You might say, the robot got fitted for his heart tonight. Cool. I can't wait to wire him up and plug in the power pack and watch him come alive. Thinking of that gives me goose bumps.
	9/4/01 - Well, I am about done sanding. I finally cut the arm holes and I am working on the arms. My arms are fixed. Eventually I want to have movable arms, but that will be at a later time. The B9 will always be a work in progress and there will always be something else I can add or update.
	Here's my daughter modeling the torso. I didn't even try to put it on as I didn't want to get stuck. I can only imagine what Bob May must have felt like in the original B9.
	9/23/01 - Before I sprayed on the texture, I gave the torso a bath. I wanted to get off all the dust and fingerprints. I'm the one on the right with the sponge.
	9/23/01 - FINALLY! Today I textured the torso. I really like how it came out. I used a Plasti-Kote Truck Bed Liner paint. It goes on nice and even and gives an orange-peal look. The original was textured after the first few episodes so that the bright lights didn't reflect off of it into the cameras. I want it textured but still shiny! The best of both worlds.
	9/30/01 - Fall came early here in upstate NY but I caught a real nice weekend and was able to prime, sand, give it another bath and then get a few top coats on the torso. I am hoping to get another warm day and add a few more coats. I used Rustoleum High Heat Silver. 10/10/01 - Well, I didn't like how the paint from the can was going on, so I went out and bought a paint sprayer for my compressor. I had an auto paint store mix up some Alfa Romeo Metallic Silver in enamel. I only have one coat on here but I like it a whole lot better. I'm hoping to catch some warmer weather this weekend and add a few more coats. I plan on sanding a bit between coats to take down any high pints that the paint may bring up. The picture is of the Alfa Romeo Metallic Silver.
	10/10/01 - Here's a close-up of the texturing. From about 5 feet away you don't see it. This is the look I was shooting for.
	10/20/01 - I built a light box to mount behind the 10 Chest Buttons. I started with an Aluminum "project box" cover and bent the sides so that they we a little more than the original 90 deg. I cut 1/4 inch PVC for the top and bottom of the box. I was able to cut these pieces and shape them to fit the radius inside the torso.
	I installed two lamp sockets in from the back of the light box. This will allow me to change the lamps without removing the entire box.
	11/3/01 - I mounted the light box onto two sets of bolts which were anchored in 1/4 inch PVC strips on each side of where the box mounts. These mounts were glued to the inside of the torso with fiberglass resin. I also installed the belly lights and belly lights micro controller circuit board on two custom PC board mounts. I made these mounts from PVC which I cut to fit the inside contour of the arm wells. I cut a slot on the inside of the mounts and slid the circuit board into place.
	Here's a picture showing the lights turned on . The belly lights are blinking randomly at this point. It's really tough to get a good picture, not using the flash. With the flash, you don't see the lights.
	12/6/01 - I received my two large Chest Light Lenses this week. They are the exact lenses used on the original.
	1/4/02 - Here's what I did with the Dialight lamp sockets, so that I could use the standard T-3 1/4 Miniature Bayonet Base lights. I removed the black plastic portion of the socket. The black plastic was press fit and could be nudged (lightly with a wood dowel and hammer) out the back of the socket. So I am left with the metal portion of the socket with a large hole where the lamp goes. I then took a 3/4 x 1/2 in. PVC Reducing Bushing ($0.17 @ Home Depot plumbing section) and hot glued a T-3 1/4 lamp socket in the middle. This bushing slides nicely inside the metal socket.
	1/5/02 - I installed the voice speaker today along with an 80 watt audio amplifier. I plan on using one of the stereo channels for the voice and the other for the mechanical sounds. I connected a portable CD player and popped in a audio CD I wrote with some assorted robot sayings. It was pretty neat hearing the robots voice coming out of my torso.
	1/22/02 - I've been working on the torso drive system. This is the motor that will rotate the torso. I mounted a surplus electric auto window motor (plenty of torque) under the metal plate that the torso mounts to. I wanted a system that would "self adjust" and maintain a constant pressure on the underside of the torso mount. I mounted the motor to a platform that has one end on a hinge and the other end of the platform is spring loaded. The idea is that it presses up against the torso mounting plate and the friction provides the movement. I had to add a third spring (two pushing and the third pulling). It rotated fine in one direction but skipped a little in the opposite direction.
	It seems that driving in one direction causes the motor to work with the springs and in the other directions it is fighting the springs. Here's the torso mounting plate and the stacked shelves with the speaker and amplifier in place.
	2/11/02 - Well, I think I have a blown Oopic micro controller. Not sure what I did wrong. The Oopic was going to control the direction and speed of the torso motor. One minute, it was working and the next it wasn't. I'm looking into what I can do to replace it. I have communicated with both the Oopic tech folks and the Magnevation people who make the motor controller board. I need to find out why it failed and if there is something I overlooked when hooking the two together.
	4-1-02 - I purchased a second Oopic chip to replace the blown one and I'm back in business. I also got a different torso drive motor from MECI. It is a surplus windshield wiper motor and only draws about 1 Amp in run mode. I have not measured the startup current but it runs nicely with the Magnevation Dual PWM Driver Board. I now need to modify the motor mount to accommodate the new motor. Additionally, I have to find a way to mount the drive wheel as this motor has a threaded drive shaft.

	4-7-02 - I created a new motor mount for the new motor. This one out of 1/2 inch acrylic. Acrylic is great stuff to work with. I cut the pieces on my scroll saw and shape them on the rotary sander. A little liquid acrylic weld and they fuse together in no time.
	Here's another shot of the motor mount. MECI says that the motor has a 3/8 inch threaded shaft, but don't believe them. It's a metric 8 mm threaded shaft. I had to order some metric threaded rod and coupling nuts from McMaster-Carr.
	4-17-02 - I'm using another of these motors for moving the bubble up and down. I created a motor mount just below the collar. I mounted a cam on the shaft which raises and lowers a PVC pipe that is supporting the bubble. The switch detects when the cam is at the bottom so that I can monitor its position.
	Here's another picture from a different angle.
	It's alive! It's alive! Click the picture for a short video of the Torso Rotation (500K) 6/26/02 - I'm on my third torso motor. The previous two motors just didn't cut it. I think this one will do. Click on the picture to see it in action. The torso rotation is controlled by the Oopic controller. There is no radio control needed, so it will be able to move while unattended. Shown here is just a test program moving the torso between several of the positional sensors I installed. If I come up with more server space, I'll add a larger video. The second picture is of the new, more robust, motor.
	6/11/03 - It has been a while since I've been able to put up any new info, so I'm playing catch up. Here's a shot of the rotational position sensors. They are infrared and detect the torso's position from 90 deg right to 90 degrees left and every 30 degrees in between. For more info on how I configured the robot for rotation. Check out my Torso Rotation Sensors page.
	6/15/03 - I am using a car stereo for the audio inside my B9. This CD player has a few neat options. It can play MP3's so I can put 10 hours worth of audio on a single CD. Also, it can be operated by an IR remote. Just above the radio you can see the fuse panel. All my low voltage is distributed through these fuses.
	6-15-03- Here's the whole internal stack. Not all the wiring is in place in this shot. The second layer down contains the two Oopic microcontroller and the two motor controller boards.
	4/12/04 - I've mounted my side vents. Click on the picture to see an animated "gif" file showing the vent sliding (it's 330k) from the inside . Of course the front vent MUST slide, as it did in the show. But I want all of the vents to be able to be opened so that I can access the inside for various reasons. The rear vent will allow access to my CD player which will play the robot's voice CD. It will also allow me to pop in a music CD if I wish the robot to act as a juke box.
	9/16/04 - Started working on my claw mechanism. I cut out a circle disc in acrylic which will be the center of the wrist. It is where the claws will mount and pivot. I cut more acrylic plastic and used it for the upright walls. I used two 5 mm x 50 mm smooth shaft bolts as the pivots.
	Here are the claws mounted to the wrist insert. The springs on the top and bottom keep the claws closed and provide the spring action.
	Two pictures showing the claws open. The first holding a quarter and the second one fully open. The spring tension is just right to hold small objects while also providing enough force for a realistic grip. Now I need to sand, prime and finish the claws. .......
	10/11/04 - Started painting the claws. I am using Rustoleum Regal Red. It has a very deep red color which I like.
	These are the painted wrist inserts. They are the same color as the center chest area, Dupli-Color T 177 - Gunmetal. It's a darker rich metallic silver.
	I have two sets of arms. The first ones, shown here, are a solid version made of fiberglass. I also acquired a set of real rubber arms. I will go with the fiberglass ones first go around. I need to make some wrists for the rubber ones before I can work on those.
	10/25/04 - I've painted the arms and wrists. I chose the same color silver (Dupli-color Gunmetal Grey T177) for the wrists as I used on the chest area. The arms are painted a Semi-flat black. Gloss black would have been way too shiny as these are suppose to look like rubber.
	I need to tweak the claws some as they don't line up exactly right. I have to adjust the number of flat washers on each side of the claw where they mount to the inside of the wrist. I also realized that I cannot assemble the claws to the wrist inserts outside of the arms. I can't insert them into the arms as the claws are wider than the wrist opening. I have to assemble one claw onto the wrist insert, put the assembly inside and then put on the second claw. What a pain it was to have to put together the second claw from inside the arm. The tough part was connecting the springs. Also, the fiberglass arms are rough on the inside and it does not feel too good rubbing up against your arm..
	10/27/04 - Started wiring up the neon and all the associated parts. I've put this off as long as I can. Being made of glass and fragile, I didn't want to breaking it by playing with it. I'm attaching the neon transformer and the music interface to the back side of the neon backplate. The neon is mounted to the front side. I want to keep the high voltage wires as short as possible.
	I am wiring one of the switches on the programming unit panel (behind the front lower vents) to the neon transformer. It will allow me to switch between "Voice Activated" neon and "Always On" neon. The "Always On" mode is good for taking photographs as it is hard to time a picture to when the neon is lit. This was suggested by another B9 builder and seems like a good idea. Another of the switches in the programming unit will be the switch that turns on the torso rotations and bubble motor controller power.
	10/30/04 - Reminiscent of a scene from Lost in Space, I had my robot spread out on a table (pool table that is) while I wired two of the programming bay switches. I didn't have the pleasure of either Jonathan Harris or Warren Oats to assist me though.
	10/31/04 -I'm not completely happy with the alignment of my neon. It is a two piece neon and the front piece sits a little low and creates a gap at the bend. Also, the top sections seems to sit too far forward. I'll need to do some adjusting after it's Halloween debut. For now it will have to do.
	11/20/04 - I constructed my own torso microphone from a chrome drawer knob (32mm) found at Home Depot. Search on item #164400 or 164401.
	I drilled a 1/2 inch hole in the top of the knob and widened it by placing it flat against my disc sander. I had an old non-functioning microphone that I stole the screen from and put it in from the back side. I purchased a Dynamic Microphone from Radio Shack and took it apart. I put the microphone element inside the drilled out knob.
	I set a screw in the back and filled it with plastic resin to hold it all in place. Some folks make the microphone so that it can be pulled out while still attached by a cable. Since it was never used this way in the show, I opted to make it stationary. I'm not sure how I'm going to make use of it, but I wanted it to be functional, just in case.
	It's a real shame I'll have to paint it.
	Paint it, I did. And it looks pretty good.

Building the Torso