ScatterPlot
09-13-2004, 10:55 PM
OK... I'll start at the beginning.
So I got Xbox Live a while back, been putting off running a cable to my router in the other room. Finally I get a 100 ft cable (I could have used a 50 but I didn't know that) and am wondering how to run it. The room with the router in it backs up to the room with the xbox in it, but the Box is across the room from that wall. I can't run it under the carpet cause that would make a lump that would be bad. Cutting a channel in the carpet pad is also a no-no, since much furniture is in the way and unless I cut it perfect it would make a lump as well (or at least a spot that would catch dirt). So I think, "Hey, why not make a robot that would go through the vents and let me run the cord with it?" So I hack a little RC car, take apart one of those X10 cameras (those are crap by the way-I got it before the popunder things came about). I add a flashlight and try it out. It didn't go very far at all, since the tires would spin out and give me no traction. So I try it with a K'Nex set my brother has that was part of a robot or something that was RC. That didn't work out either, cause the way it was designed gave it no clearance or power or anything. So I sorta give up for a while, and end up running the carpet attached to the edge of the carpet pad and taped all around, and that has worked fine. So fast foreward to yesterday and today. Of course I'm a lazy sack so I'm thinking to myself, "Self, how can I make the whole Xbox experience a lot easier, without this whole walking to the TV crap?" I didn't want to settle for just a mod that would make the thing remote controlled, which I think I could find some plans for, or probably just figure it out. But there is still the issue of going to get the controllers and all. OK I know what you're thinking right now- Bert's a lazy sack. But hey, wouldn't you want to have an Xbox with couch-potato features :D Anyways, back to the story. I think to myself, Hey, what about the Vent idea? I bet I could do that! So today I grab a phone cord about 25 feet long or so, and build me a little car that has a camera and a flashlight, and use the phone cord to control the Robotix that I used to power the little car. So I'm driving it inside one of my ducts and I get to a little barrier about 10 feet (max). While trying to get it out, it got stuck. I pulled on the cord a LOT, tried to drive it backwards, yanked on the cord, tried to find where that obstruction was and to see if it was part of a duct. Couldn't find it. So now my robot is stuck down there. I have video feed for probably another hour or two, the light will stay on for longer but that won't help without video. The power source for the motors is in the control box, so I could drive it as much as I want. However all that and tugging gets me nowhere, so on to the point of this thread:
How do I get my robot out of the ventilation system? :D
I was thinking maybe another robot for a rescue mission but I dont have any good ideas...
Any of you got any suggestions?
So I got Xbox Live a while back, been putting off running a cable to my router in the other room. Finally I get a 100 ft cable (I could have used a 50 but I didn't know that) and am wondering how to run it. The room with the router in it backs up to the room with the xbox in it, but the Box is across the room from that wall. I can't run it under the carpet cause that would make a lump that would be bad. Cutting a channel in the carpet pad is also a no-no, since much furniture is in the way and unless I cut it perfect it would make a lump as well (or at least a spot that would catch dirt). So I think, "Hey, why not make a robot that would go through the vents and let me run the cord with it?" So I hack a little RC car, take apart one of those X10 cameras (those are crap by the way-I got it before the popunder things came about). I add a flashlight and try it out. It didn't go very far at all, since the tires would spin out and give me no traction. So I try it with a K'Nex set my brother has that was part of a robot or something that was RC. That didn't work out either, cause the way it was designed gave it no clearance or power or anything. So I sorta give up for a while, and end up running the carpet attached to the edge of the carpet pad and taped all around, and that has worked fine. So fast foreward to yesterday and today. Of course I'm a lazy sack so I'm thinking to myself, "Self, how can I make the whole Xbox experience a lot easier, without this whole walking to the TV crap?" I didn't want to settle for just a mod that would make the thing remote controlled, which I think I could find some plans for, or probably just figure it out. But there is still the issue of going to get the controllers and all. OK I know what you're thinking right now- Bert's a lazy sack. But hey, wouldn't you want to have an Xbox with couch-potato features :D Anyways, back to the story. I think to myself, Hey, what about the Vent idea? I bet I could do that! So today I grab a phone cord about 25 feet long or so, and build me a little car that has a camera and a flashlight, and use the phone cord to control the Robotix that I used to power the little car. So I'm driving it inside one of my ducts and I get to a little barrier about 10 feet (max). While trying to get it out, it got stuck. I pulled on the cord a LOT, tried to drive it backwards, yanked on the cord, tried to find where that obstruction was and to see if it was part of a duct. Couldn't find it. So now my robot is stuck down there. I have video feed for probably another hour or two, the light will stay on for longer but that won't help without video. The power source for the motors is in the control box, so I could drive it as much as I want. However all that and tugging gets me nowhere, so on to the point of this thread:
How do I get my robot out of the ventilation system? :D
I was thinking maybe another robot for a rescue mission but I dont have any good ideas...
Any of you got any suggestions?