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Star Wars Episode Vii : The Force Awakens

Decent Essays

Have you seen Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens? My project is based on a character within that movie, and how it works. Meet an adorable droid in the galaxy far, far away: BB-8. The one droid the evil First Order is looking for, with the map that leads to the last Jedi Master, who can bring a victory.
However, if you’ve never heard of Star Wars, you are missing out on a great adventure story! George Lucas created the first Star Wars movie in 1977 featuring two heroes and a heroine battling an evil empire, which became a great success. By 1983 the first trilogy was completed, followed by another set of three prequels between 1999 and 2005. After ten years of “retirement” Star Wars debuted once again with a seventh movie last year. …show more content…

The axis of a gyroscope is capable of maintaining balance due to an equilibrium of a spinning wheel that resists change in direction.
Inside BB-8’s spherical body is a circular, weighed “base plate” with omniwheels (omni means multi). This base plate, which I will call segway, houses a gyroscope which constantly spins with motor and rechargeable battery, to control the movement of BB-8 during its lifetime. As BB-8 rolls along the ground, the gyroscope attempts to maintain alignment, specifically to keep its head towards the top of the body.
From the center of the segway we have a rod as BB-8’s “neck” going up, with a servo in the middle, continuing to the top with a magnet that keeps BB-8’s head at the top. The head can tilt because the inner “neck” can bend. The neck’s tilting action is controlled by a servo. A servo is a small device that looks like a mechanized box with a bendable “arm”, much like a remote control joystick. The servo receives an electrical input signal that changes the angle of the arm. This angle is called the output. Normally the servo arm is set stationary at 90° (straight up), with a range of 0° to 180°. The angle of the arm would change based on the input. Because of this, we now know how BB-8’s head tilts. That’s why when BB-8’s body rolls, the head can tilt yet remains securely on the top of BB-8’s body.
How does its head turn? BB-8’s head turns left and right using a rotation motor

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