My project is not exactly a new one and I am not the first to do this, but my goal over the next few months is to complete my build of a full size working R2-D2 from Star Wars. My son who is 6 is a huge Star Wars fan and I bet you can’t guess where he gets it from.  Being a member of the International R2 Builders Group I have started down the path of constructing my little droid. Once complete, I hope to use my R2 for local charity and volunteer work. My goal is to have him complete by May of 2009 in time for a local small town parade. Being a member of the R2 Builders group has allowed me to access many drawings, parts and knowledge about how others have designed and built their droids. I will be using a wooded internal frame and legs, aluminum laser cut outer skins and dome. The details will be a combination of resin and aluminum. The electronics will be a combination of a Dell mini laptop running Microsoft Robotics Studio, a muti-channel remote and numerous servos. I plan to include features such as a periscope that raises and lowers from the dome.

Here is the periscope lifter I designed, it’s made using a lead screw and the aluminum is from a 1/8" thick ruler. It still has the numbers on the underside.

It will have doors that open and close, a smoke sprayer, full authentic lighting and sounds. As you can see from the photos, I am well on my way, but have much left to do. I am using Baltic Birch, MDF, PVC, Styrene, Steel and Aluminum for the build. I am very familiar with working with wood, but I am very new with working with metals. Being a .Net developer, I am hoping to use that experience in programming many of his abilities using MSRS. He will never be fully autonomous, because I am just not sure about how I feel about a 150lbs + droid running around without human control. But I do plan on using some motion and sound sensors to direct dome movement to interact with people. Wish me luck!