Construction
Construction began with the shaping of the foam hull. The foam was shaped using a hot wire cutter to carve the cavities and lid "teeth". (See below images). The hull sections were joined together using a waterproof wood glue.
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| The hull shown with lid attached |
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| Wheel cavities shown. Front cavity is elongated to allow turning motion |
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| Front view of hull |
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| side view with lid removed |
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Electronic and Mechanical Construction
My portion of the TOV construction included the electronic and mechanical construction. I began by soldering the wire and switch connections, providing one switch for forward motor motion and one switch for reverse. These switches are arranged in a foam control box, which has an internal cavity to accommodate the wires (see images below). This control box will be connected to the TOV by a long tether, contained within a tube of flexible plastic to protect the wires from water.
The arm of the TOV was constructed from layered Popsicle sticks to give it strength, and reinforced with waterproof electrical tape. Angular reinforcements were added to the joints to provide additional strength.
All motors are powered by a series of batteries, which are oriented within the TOV to provide ballast and balance. The central batteries are contained within a cavity to allow room overhead for the steering mechanism. Additional batteries are placed in the rear of the TOV to offset the weight of the arm.
The steering mechanism (see image below) is constructed from wooden dowels. These dowels are connected with hinges formed from plastic drinking straw segments and smaller dowel sections.
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| Soldering wire connections for the motor control switches |
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| Motors and other components during soldering process |
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| Control box in progress |
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| hull and unfinished control box |
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TOV with arm completed and wiring partially complete |
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| TOV arm completed with pulley. Spool at the end of the pulley is put in place to act as a test weight. |
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| Close-up of the TOV's interior with motors and wiring visible |
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| Completed/tethered control box shown with TOV. The TOV's lid is removed to expose wiring connections |
