Embedded Files
Project Ideation
Project Ideation
1- Tell us about the idea of your project. Why do you care about this? What were you inspired by? Include images and videos of similar projects
1- Tell us about the idea of your project. Why do you care about this? What were you inspired by? Include images and videos of similar projects
The project idea is about the Jansen mechanism and was inspired by how Theo Jansen spent most of his life creating it. Although it is difficult and involves many tricks, he wanted to create something that would keep his name alive, like his creatures.
Project Construction
Project Construction
2- Explain the CAD process of your project. How did you use the software to design your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)
2- Explain the CAD process of your project. How did you use the software to design your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)
First, I started designing the mechanism itself using the following reference and scaled it to half so that it would better fit my project. Then, I moved on to the body, creating the different parts, which were:
Base part: to hold the components and serve as the foundation of the project.
Big side: the sides of the main box.
Small side: the sides of the motor section.
Big front: the front of the main box.
Small front: the front of the motor section.
Back side: the rear part of the robot.
Top: the cover for both the motor section and the main box.
Side B sketch
Side B extruded
Top sketch
Top extruded
Back extruded
Back
3d connector
Big front extruded
Base extruded
Base
Small top sketch
Small top extruded
Small box side extruded
Small box side sketch
Jansen joint
Jansen joint extruded
2 nail jansen leg sketch
2 leg jansen leg extruded
Jansen leg sketch
Jansen leg extruded
Side A extruded
Back side
Front side extruded
Front side
Jansen mechanism extruded
Fully assembled design
Assembled design with components
3- Explain the fabrication process of your project. How did you use the machine to fabricate your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)
3- Explain the fabrication process of your project. How did you use the machine to fabricate your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)
I used Ultimaker Cura to slice the design for the 3D-printed parts, making them suitable for the machine I’ll be using, which was the Prusa MK3. I also used SolidWorks to design the wooden parts and set up the cutting parameters (Power: 30, Speed: 50) for the Elmalky laser cutting machine.
First, I started fabricating the legs for the mechanism, beginning with a single leg made entirely from wooden parts, just for testing.
When it seemed to be working, I 3D-printed the parts. However, the dimensions were too tight on the DC motor, so I printed another pair with the correct measurements.
After that, I fabricated the entire robot body parts using the laser cutting machine.
Project Electronics & Power Management
Project Electronics & Power Management
4- Describe your electronic circuit. What are the input and action components? What is the function of each? How do the components integrate together to form your smart system? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)
4- Describe your electronic circuit. What are the input and action components? What is the function of each? How do the components integrate together to form your smart system? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)
I used the following components in my circuit:
Arduino Uno → the brain of the system
DC motor → provides motion (action component)
Motor driver → sends signals to the motor
Switch → turns the circuit on and off
Bluetooth module → controls the signal (input component)
2 lithium batteries → power source
For the circuit wiring, I followed this sequence:
+ve battery → 12V pin of the motor driver
–ve battery → switch → GND of the motor driver
GND of Arduino → GND of the motor driver
5V from motor driver → VIN of Arduino
DC motor → outputs A and B of the motor driver
EN1, EN2 of motor driver → Arduino digital pins 2 and 3
Bluetooth module:
GND → Arduino GND
VCC → Arduino 5V
RX → Arduino TX
TX → Arduino RX
5- What is your power source? How did you select the suitable power source for your project? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)
5- What is your power source? How did you select the suitable power source for your project? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)
I used two lithium batteries, which I selected because they provide enough power to work with the motor driver which are approximatly 7.4 volts.
Project Programming
Project Programming
6- Describe the code of your project. How did you program each function of the project?
6- Describe the code of your project. How did you program each function of the project?
I started in the void setup() function by defining my output digital pins (the motor pins).
In the void loop() function, I started by defining an integer to store the Bluetooth signal.
Then, I checked if there was any incoming signal using if (Serial.available() > 0).
If a signal was available, I read it with Incoming_value = Serial.read();.
If the received value is 1, the motor moves forward.
If the value is 2, the motor moves backward.
If the value is 3, the motor stops.
Project Integration & Testing
Project Integration & Testing
7- Demonstrate with text and visuals how did you integrate the project’s modules together? What are the testing results? (Include a Demo video separately, showing a proof of functionality)
7- Demonstrate with text and visuals how did you integrate the project’s modules together? What are the testing results? (Include a Demo video separately, showing a proof of functionality)
In this demo, I was testing the mechanism itself to make sure everything was working.
Once it worked, I moved forward and added it to the full body.
WhatsApp Video 2025-09-24 at 6.32.01 PM.mp4I started the project by assembling the parts together using 3 mm nails. I faced a problem where the nuts kept falling off whenever the motor moved. To solve this, I used two nuts for each nail instead of just one.
While designing, I also took the components into consideration. The motor had its own housing, and for the Arduino and motor driver, I included holes in the design so I could attach them securely to the base using nails and nuts.
WhatsApp Video 2025-09-24 at 5.09.01 PM.mp4For the assembly, I started by putting the mechanism parts together first.
Then I added the components to the base, attached the connector to the motor, and fixed the Jansen parts to the connector from the other side.
After that, I continued building by adding the sides and fitting the nails into the T-slots to hold them in place.
I then attached the two wheels to support the robot and finished the last step by closing the top.
Sharing & Collaboration
Sharing & Collaboration
8- Did you ask for feedback? What are the ideas that others have contributed or suggested? What was someone else’s idea that you built upon? How did you help your peers? How did your peers help you?
8- Did you ask for feedback? What are the ideas that others have contributed or suggested? What was someone else’s idea that you built upon? How did you help your peers? How did your peers help you?
My friend, Habiba, suggested attaching erasers to the bottom of the legs to increase friction and give the robot more stability.
Overcoming Challenges
Overcoming Challenges
9- When you got stuck, what/who did you turn to? At what point did you have to pause to research or learn more before moving on? What are some mistakes, pitfalls, or challenges that others can avoid if they were doing this project?
9- When you got stuck, what/who did you turn to? At what point did you have to pause to research or learn more before moving on? What are some mistakes, pitfalls, or challenges that others can avoid if they were doing this project?
At first, the distance between the nail and the edge was 1.5 mm. I thought this was too small, so I decided to make it larger. However, when implementing the bigger version, the large triangle kept colliding with the other Jansen parts. To solve this, I decided to keep using the larger parts except for the triangle, where I used the first version. This way, the mechanism was able to move freely.
Future Work
Future Work
10- If you had more time, what is one thing you would change/ Do next in your project?
10- If you had more time, what is one thing you would change/ Do next in your project?
In the future, I would like to add a small carriage to the robot so that it looks more like a “عربية كارو” .
Final Project Design Files
Final Project Design Files
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