The TeleCrafsMan

CrafsMan creates YouTube videos on a variety of topics and techniques, Crafting and entertainment mixed with generous heapings of genuine positivity. (If you've never heard of him PLEASE check out his channel, its sooo good!)

CrafsMan is kinda shy, he likes to keep his identity a secret. We wanted to figure out a way to get CrafsMan "out there in the world" while maintaining his anonymity . We brainstormed for a spell and conjured up a solution - a telepresence robot. We tinkered in TinkerCAD and 3D printed the innards, and, with the help of Grandma ("The Seamstress" ), we conjured up the "TeleCrafsMan".

The Robot's torso is controlled by a small handheld remote control. His neck moves randomly - small movements are done using the picotalk , and the mouth servo is controlled by an audio source. We connect it to an iPhone and CrafsMan calls us. (So when CrafsMan speaks, the robot opens his mouth.). a separate Audio out (to speakers) allows folks to hear the CrafsMan.

• 5 servos
• 3D Printed skeleton
• Magnets
• CrafsMan bits ‘n pieces
• picotalk microcontroller
• speakers
• iPhone (as an audio source)

The CrafsMan sent us the flannel and fur, and we sourced the eyes, shirt, buttons, and other materials. We created a pattern using pictures he sent us and trimmed the flannel and fur. Grandma sewed him together. We made a few and then picked put the "best" of the bunch.

We used TinkerCAD to design the skeleton. Printed it out. Added the servos. At first, we tried using a few different microcontrollers, but they all were a bit "laggy". Found an existing product which fit the bill - the "picoTalk". Assembled the bot and then attached the puppet to it.

The "TeleCrafsMan Mark 1" prototype made his successful debut at MakerFaire Long island on June 11, 2022. Things went well, but there were a few 'behind-the-scenes' technical hiccups. Moments prior to his unveiling, we noticed an issue with one of his servos, so we decided to unplug two of them, just to be on the safe side. That limited his "upper torso mojo" We also limited his mouth travel so as not to put too much of a strain on his jaw mechanism. But the remote control worked great- we were able to make him look at specific audience members so he would address them directly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wenfkF8srqs

In the video above, he is far less "active" than he will be in the future. The sound system also wasn't ideal... But he still entertained the crowd, and made for a great day.

In this video, watch the looks on the kids' faces when they realize that he can SEE them. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNKSxCamcFY

We knew the TeleCrafsMan concept "worked" when we observed that those who interacted with him looked at the puppet when addressing him, and not at the camera next to him. We can't wait to update this design and bring him to more events!