Industrial Robot Arm Becomes Giant Catapult

wintersynth brings us a story about a group of enthusiasts who made a catapult out of a 2,800lb industrial robot arm. They used it to launch bowling balls, fireballs, and cans of beer toward a stationary target, and they controlled the catapult's aim with a graphical UI on a laptop. "I wanted to be able to control the rotation of the robot so we could aim the robot from the laptop, but I quickly realized that since the desert is so flat, we could do some basic ranging on the target too. I also wanted the targeting to be overlaid in 3d over a photograph of the target area. The software needed to control the robot like an MMO or RTS game. I suspect that video games, in general, have some of the most optimal control interfaces. I wanted to try a control scheme similar to the area effect spell targeting in World of Warcraft."

double entendre

[User 956]

wintersynth brings us a story about a group of enthusiasts who made a catapult out of a 2,800lb industrial robot arm.

And it's all thanks to the second amendment.

Re:I for one...

[scottrocket]

...and the next time the mongols attack our shitty walls in their motorhomes, we'll be ready!

Let me be the first

[Psychotria]

to offer my services as a target for this thing. Catapult a beer my way every 15 minutes. Thanks.

I can see the future now, and you DON'T want to be

[davidsyes]

on the WRONG arm of the LAW

Graphical UI

[iminplaya]

gorilla.bas?

Calculon proves even robot arms can move up

[4d4m]

As we can see from Calculon, you aren't just stuck as a robot arm. Thespomat, David Duchovny - the sky is the limit.

Catapult?

[Teufelsmuhle]

It's not a real catapult unless it's flinging cows or pianos.

Re:HD Camera

[plover]

Let me get this straight... they "Rented" the camera by buying it at Fry's and returning it?

I'm sure some people will defend this tactic, but its stuff like this that causes awesome return policies at stores to be restricted, and prices to go up. (as recently happened at CostCo)

Yeah, I was pissed at them when I read this too. I hope that when Fry institutes a 20% open-box charge on returns, that everybody look this guy up and send him a thank you note. Wrapped around a bowling ball.

Re:It's not a catapult.

[JustOK]

aren't ballistas the people who go to college for four years in order to serve drinks at starbucks?

Re:double entendre

[e4g4]

The right to bare arms does not give you the right to have nuclear warheads

No, but it does give people the right to wear hideous hawaiian shirts, which is almost as bad.

Re:Let me be the first

[Anonymous Coward]

Let's hope you prefer light beer.

Re:It's not a catapult.

[Ours]

Indeed, source code for the robot states that correctly.