[Zombie-F]

Tomorrow, I'll probably be starting to play around with my first Prop-1 project... converting one of those Wal-Mart singing deer heads into an Evil Dead 2 laughing deer head!

I'll be posting a bit of an "in-progress diary" to this thread as I make headway with the prop. This should be a good project to introduce me to the inner-workings of the Prop-1 controller and AP-8 sound board as it requires the use of a PIR, 3 servos to control and a series of sounds to play.

I know Jon at Parallax had done this project too a while back, but I can't seem to find his thread on it over at the Parallax forums.

 

[gmacted]

I'm thinking about using a Prop-1 controller also. I'm interested in the sound quality of the AP-8 sound player.

 

[Zombie-F]

I'm interested in the sound quality of the AP-8 sound player.

As am I. I imagine it will be on par with the ISD Chipcorders. I simply couldn't justify buying an uMP3 for a project such as this. Perhaps for my talking skeletons project, but certainly not for a deer head that I'm only making laugh.

 

[Torgen]

As you "make headway."

*snicker*

 

[Zombie-F]

As you "make headway."

*snicker*

Didn't take long for one of you guys to pick up on that bad pun.

"Bad pun..." that's a redundant phrase.

 

[gmacted]

Zombi-F,

Where do you find all the time for your projects and keep up with the forum? You must never sleep. I'm lucky to find a few hours a week for my projects. I usually like to try and keep them simple, but this year I'm starting semi-early in hopes of one very good project (MitB).

 

[Zombie-F]

This year, I haven't been very active with propbuilding. The deer head is the first real project for the year. I made a tombstone and started an obelisk earlier, but I need to get access to my workshop back before I can finish that.

And no, I don't sleep very well.

 

[gmacted]

I usually just have lots of nightmares. Too bad they don't give me ideas for new props.

 

[bourno]

Zombie,

Here is the deer hack from Parallax http://forums.parallax.com/forums/default.aspx?f=22&m=125681

Curiously, the search did not find the topic by searching for deer, but was sure it was under the EFX folder.

 

[Zombie-F]

Thanks for the link bourno. Not too much info about what they did in that thread, but at least I know I hadn't been hallucinating. I'll have to query them a little bit as to what they did to get things to happen.

Anyhow, I did (barely) start in on this today. I only managed to open the back and remove some of the unnecessary electronics from the unit. I still have to figure out which wires do what with the motors and decide where to hook them up to the Prop-1. That's where some Parallax help comes in handy.

Here's a link to my photobucket for this one:
Deer Head pictures by Zombie-F - Photobucket

 

[Vlad]

Hey Z, check out this while you're at it. It's cheap enough that even I, the anti-tech poster boy am thinking of getting one.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=910-28823

 

[Zombie-F]

Hey Z, check out this while you're at it. It's cheap enough that even I, the anti-tech poster boy am thinking of getting one.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=910-28823

I think the catch with those is you have to have it hooked up to a PC to make it do it's thing. If I had an old PC lying around, I may have used that to control the whole Skeleton Comedy Club!

 

[krough]

I think you could use a basic stamp to control it instead of a PC

From the manual
"Once the sequence has been written, debugged, and honed to work as desired, one may wish to not be
limited to having a PC execute the sequence. If this is the case, the download button is for you. By
clicking the download button, you invoke the PSCI to send its commands, delays included, to the BASIC
Stamp® instead of the PSCusb.
This is achieved with an augmented header that the PSCusb ignores thereby passing these serial
messages to the stamp. The stamp is connected via a three pin cable to the PSCusb. Once downloaded,
the stamp executes your sequences just as the PSCI software did."

 

[Zombie-F]

In that case, I wonder if a Prop-1 could run it too then, since it is a scaled-down basic stamp. Hmmmm....

I think you could use a basic stamp to control it instead of a PC

From the manual
"Once the sequence has been written, debugged, and honed to work as desired, one may wish to not be
limited to having a PC execute the sequence. If this is the case, the download button is for you. By
clicking the download button, you invoke the PSCI to send its commands, delays included, to the BASIC
Stamp® instead of the PSCusb.
This is achieved with an augmented header that the PSCusb ignores thereby passing these serial
messages to the stamp. The stamp is connected via a three pin cable to the PSCusb. Once downloaded,
the stamp executes your sequences just as the PSCI software did."

 

[krough]

I believe it can, We posted that question on the EFX forum and Vern responded that the Prop-1 can indeed do so.

 

[Dr Morbius]

I just ordered that parralax board! You cant beat 2 free servos! Plus, since I have 15 old PCs laying around, I could use those, and the ability to run it with a stamp makes this a no brainer.

I am wondering the best way to sync sound with the servos using that board. There must be a way.

 

[krough]

I just ordered that parralax board! You cant beat 2 free servos! Plus, since I have 15 old PCs laying around, I could use those, and the ability to run it with a stamp makes this a no brainer.

I ordered one as well. And I ordered a UMP3 from Rogue Robotics.

 

[Dr Morbius]

WIll that Ump3 sync sound using that paralax board?

 

[krough]

Hmm, dont know. All this electronical stuff is confusing.
I planned on using the UMP3 to play my audio track, One channel for the voice and plugged into the Cowlacious board, and the other with the music going to a set of powered speakers. I do know the UMP3 can be triggered by the Prop-1. The reasons I went with the UMP3 is that it can hold a ton of audio, and the sample rate is much higher than an ISD chipcoder

 

[Dr Morbius]

I guess l'll have to go that route too..Souldn't be too difficult, since Im using a PC anyway, I'll just hook up the sound out to the Cowlacious board...LOTsa MP3s on CD!!! Hehe..I hope the PC can sync the jaw motion/sound with the rest of the show, or I'll have to copy your setup, Krough.