Buddy Jr.

Build a tiny robot arm and learn how to control it with a Raspberry Pi and Python.


 6 April 2024   |     13 minute read   |   By Kevin McAleer   |   Share this article on

Video

For every project I create, I often make a corresponding YouTube video. Sometimes, there might be more than one video for a single project. You can find these videos in this section.

Explore more through this this dedicated video.

Buddy Jr.

I created Buddy Jr as a troubleshooting step with a larger Robot arm project I’m working on called Buddy (Buddy is the name of one of the robot arms Tony Stark uses in the movie Ironman). I wanted something that is really quick to print so I can test out different methods of moving the arm. The larger robot arm Buddy takes around 8 - 10 hours to print each individual part (with an arm peice being around 4 parts each), Buddys arm takes around 40 minutes to print.


Design goals

When designing Buddy Jr, I wanted to create a robot arm that was:

  • Conceptually simple
  • Quick to print
  • Easy to assemble
  • Fun to play with
  • Asthetically pleasing to look at
  • Cheap to build
  • Functional
  • Educational
  • Able to hold a Raspberry Pi camera module

Design

I used Fusion 360 to design Buddy Jr. The design is simple and consists of 4 servos, a base, a shoulder, an elbow, and a camera holder. The servos are controlled by a PCA9685 servo driver board, which is connected to a Raspberry Pi 5 (though any Pi with header pins will do).

Base

Base

Pivot

Arm

Camera Holder


Assembly

The assembly of Buddy Jr is straightforward. The servos are screwed into the base, shoulder, and elbow, and the camera holder is attached to the elbow. The servos are then connected to the PCA9685 board, which is connected to the Raspberry Pi.

Assembly


Bill of Materials

Item Description Quantity Price Total
Servos SG90 servos 4 $2.50 $10.00
Servo Driver PCA9685 1 $14.00 $14.00
Camera Raspberry Pi Camera Module 1 $25.00 $25.00
Raspberry Pi Raspberry Pi 5 1 $80.00 $80.00

Note: You can use any Raspberry Pi with header pins, and any Raspberry Pi camera module compatible with that model of Raspberry Pi.


Python code

The latest version of the Python coe for Buddy Jr can be found on GitHub. The code uses the adafruit-circuitpython-servokit library to control the servos.

For now I’m not using the camera in the Python code, but I plan to add this in the future.

You can watch the output of the camera using the rpicam-hello -t 0 command in the terminal.

import board
import busio
from adafruit_servokit import ServoKit
from time import sleep
import asyncio
from math import atan2, sqrt, pi, acos, degrees

# import time

class Arm():

    # Set the servo channels for each part of the arm
    BASE = 0
    SHOULDER = 1
    ELBOW = 2
    CAMERA = 3

    # Base is the 0,0 origin
    SHOLDER_LENGTH = 80
    ELBOW_LENGTH = 80

    def __init__(self):
        self.kit = ServoKit(channels=16)

        self.base = self.kit.servo[self.BASE]
        self.shoulder = self.kit.servo[self.SHOULDER]
        self.elbow = self.kit.servo[self.ELBOW]
        self.camera = self.kit.servo[self.CAMERA]

        # Set initial angles
        self.base.angle = 90
        self.shoulder.angle = 90
        self.elbow.angle = 90
        self.camera = 90

    async def calibrate(self):
        """ Moves all the servos to the middle position """
        print('Calibrating\n')

        print('setting base')
        await self.move_to(channel = self.BASE, duration=2, target_angle=90)
        print('setting shoulder')
        await self.move_to(self.SHOULDER, 2, 90)
        print('setting elbow')
        await self.move_to(self.ELBOW, 2, 90)
        print('setting camera')
        await self.move_to(self.CAMERA, 2, 90)
   
    async def move_to(self, channel: int, duration: float, target_angle: int):
        """ Move the servo to a target angle over a duration """
        
        print(f"Channel is {channel}")
        
        if channel > 15:
            raise ValueError(f'The servo channel was greater than 1 - it was {channel}')
        
        if (target_angle) > 180 or (target_angle < 0):
            # raise ValueError(f'The angle value was outside the valid range or 0 to 180 - was {target_angle}')
            target_angle = 0
        
        print(f'self.kit.servo[{channel}].angle is {self.kit.servo[channel].angle}')
        current_angle = round(self.kit.servo[channel].angle,0)

        if current_angle is None:
            current_angle = 0  # or any other value you deem appropriate

        # Calculate the total distance to move
        angle_difference = target_angle - current_angle

        # Define the number of steps you want to use
        steps = 1000

        # Calculate the time to wait between steps to achieve the overall duration
        sleep_duration = duration / steps

        # Calculate the angle to move at each step
        angle_step = angle_difference / steps

        range_limit = self.kit.servo[channel].actuation_range
        for _ in range(steps):
            # Update the current angle
            current_angle += angle_step

            if current_angle > range_limit or current_angle < 0:
                continue
            self.kit.servo[channel].angle = current_angle
            # Async wait before the next step
            await asyncio.sleep(sleep_duration)

    import math

    def calculate_position(self, x, y):
        """ Returns Shoulder, Elbow and Camera angles to move to"""
        shoulder_length = self.SHOLDER_LENGTH
        elbow_length = self.ELBOW_LENGTH

        # Calculate distance to target point
        d = sqrt(x**2 + y**2)

        # Law of Cosines to find angles
        angle_to_target = atan2(y, x)
        cos_angle_shoulder = (shoulder_length**2 + d**2 - elbow_length**2) / (2 * shoulder_length * d)
        shoulder_angle = acos(cos_angle_shoulder) + angle_to_target

        cos_angle_elbow = (shoulder_length**2 + elbow_length**2 - d**2) / (2 * shoulder_length * elbow_length)
        elbow_angle = acos(cos_angle_elbow)

        # Assuming a simple scenario where the camera angle needs to compensate the shoulder and elbow movement
        # to stay level. This needs adjustment based on your setup.
        camera_angle = -(shoulder_angle + elbow_angle - pi/2) 
        print(f'Cam angle: {degrees(camera_angle)}')

        # Convert radians to degrees if necessary
        shoulder_angle_deg = degrees(shoulder_angle)
        elbow_angle_deg = degrees(elbow_angle)
        camera_angle_deg = degrees(camera_angle) + 90
        # camera_angle_deg = degrees(camera_angle)  

        return shoulder_angle_deg, elbow_angle_deg, camera_angle_deg

This code outlines a basic framework for a robotic arm controlled by a Raspberry Pi, utilizing the Adafruit CircuitPython ServoKit library. It’s designed to move parts of the arm (base, shoulder, elbow, and a camera) to specific angles smoothly over a period and calculate positions using inverse kinematics. Here’s a breakdown of how it works:


Setup and Initialization

  • The Arm class initializes the servo controller with 16 channels, assuming you’re using a PCA9685 PWM servo driver, which is common for such projects. This setup supports controlling up to 16 individual servo motors.
  • Four servos are defined for different parts of the arm, each assigned to a specific channel. Initial angles are set to 90 degrees, aiming to start the servos in a neutral position.

Calibration

  • The calibrate async method moves all servos (base, shoulder, elbow, camera) to a middle position (90 degrees). This method serves as a starting reference point to ensure all parts are aligned before any further operations.

Moving the Servos

  • The move_to method is designed to move a servo on a specified channel to a target angle smoothly over a given duration. It does so by calculating the steps needed based on the duration and gradually moving the servo to the target angle using these steps.
  • This method incorporates several checks, including ensuring the target angle is within a valid range (0 to 180 degrees) and the channel is within the expected range (0 to 15). If the target angle is outside the valid range, it defaults to 0 degrees as a safety measure.

Calculating Position with Inverse Kinematics

  • The calculate_position method applies inverse kinematics principles to calculate the necessary angles for the shoulder, elbow, and camera to reach a target point (x, y). This method is crucial for determining how the arm should move to position the end effector (in this case, a camera) at a specific location in space.
  • It calculates the distance to the target point and then uses the law of cosines to find the angles for the shoulder and elbow. The camera angle is adjusted to maintain a specific orientation, presumed to keep the camera facing forward by compensating for the movement of the other two joints.

Implementation Details and Considerations

  • The Adafruit CircuitPython ServoKit library is utilized to simplify interfacing with the PCA9685 module, providing an easy way to control multiple servos.
  • Asynchronous programming (asyncio) is used to allow the arm movements to be non-blocking, enabling the possibility of running other tasks concurrently or managing multiple arms simultaneously.
  • This code includes mechanisms to deal with potential issues, such as invalid angles or servo channels, by setting safe defaults or skipping adjustments that would exceed the servo’s capabilities.

Using on Raspberry Pi 5

  • To run this on a Raspberry Pi 5, ensure that the CircuitPython libraries are installed and that the I2C interface is enabled on the Pi. This can usually be done through the raspi-config tool or the Raspberry Pi Configuration tool in the desktop interface.
  • Make sure to connect the PCA9685 module correctly to the Pi’s I2C pins (SCL, SDA, VCC, and GND) and to supply adequate power to the servos, especially if they require more current than the Pi can provide directly.

Demo program

Here is a simple demo program that moves the arm around. Note how the asycio.gather is used to run the async methods in parallel.

from buddyjr.arm import Arm
import asyncio

arm = Arm()

async def main():
    # Reset all parts simultaneously
    speed = .05
    angle = 180
    await asyncio.gather(
        arm.move_to(Arm.CAMERA, speed, angle),
        arm.move_to(Arm.ELBOW, speed, angle),
        arm.move_to(Arm.BASE, speed, angle),
        arm.move_to(Arm.SHOULDER, speed, angle)
    )
    
    await asyncio.sleep(1)  # Use asyncio.sleep for async compatibility

    print('Testing IK')
    x, y = 10, 20
    shoulder_pos, elbow_pos, camera_pos = arm.calculate_position(x, y)
    
    # Move all parts based on IK calculations simultaneously
    await asyncio.gather(
        arm.move_to(Arm.SHOULDER, 1, shoulder_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.ELBOW, 1, elbow_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.CAMERA, 1, camera_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.BASE, 1, 90)
    )

    await asyncio.sleep(2)  # Use asyncio.sleep for async compatibility

    # Choose where the arm should move to
    x, y = 10, 90
    shoulder_pos, elbow_pos, camera_pos = arm.calculate_position(x, y)
    
    # Move all parts based on IK calculations simultaneously
    await asyncio.gather(
        arm.move_to(Arm.SHOULDER, 1, shoulder_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.ELBOW, 1, elbow_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.CAMERA, 1, camera_pos),
        arm.move_to(Arm.BASE, 1, 90)
    )

    await asyncio.sleep(2)  # Use asyncio.sleep for async compatibility


    # Reset all parts simultaneously again
    await asyncio.gather(
        arm.move_to(Arm.CAMERA, 1, 90),
        arm.move_to(Arm.ELBOW, 1, 90),
        arm.move_to(Arm.BASE, 1, 90),
        arm.move_to(Arm.SHOULDER, 1, 90)
    )

    await asyncio.sleep(1)  # Use asyncio.sleep for async compatibility

asyncio.run(main())

Powering the arm

I used a Pimoroni Yukon with the Bench Power supply module to provide power to the servos via the PCA9685 board. I could have used the Yukon to control the servos too, but I wanted to run the project from the Raspberry Pi as the camera is attached to the arm.



Code

View Code Repository on GitHub - https://www.github.com/kevinmcaleer/buddy_jr

3D Models

Here are the 3D printable STL files:

Base

The base of the robot arm, with space to mount the PCA9685 board

Arm

The elbow of the robot arm, print 2 of these

Camera Holder

The camera holder for the Raspberry Pi camera module