Animate Your Pet with the Hummingbird Kit!

A Hummingbird Bit sits, connected to the power pack, with the micro:bit displaying a happy face on its LED array. A servo motor is plugged into the Bit controller. The Bit is connected to a cutout of a plump orange tabby cat.

Turn your beloved furry (or feathered!) friend into an interactive robot with the Hummingbird Robotics Kit!

The Hummingbird Robotics Kit is so versatile, it can animate anything… even your beloved pet. This project can range from a beginner to an advanced level, depending on what you choose to include in your robot and program.

 


Here’s what you’ll need: 

  • Hummingbird Robotics Kit (the Position Servo that I used can be found in the Base Kit or Premium Kit)
  • Cardboard, posterboard, or other backing material
  • Large photo of pet
  • Hot glue

 

Let’s build:

  • Start by printing out your favorite picture of your pet. That fabulous fuzzy belly in our sample project is Brian the cat, who belongs to our Learning and Community Manager, Sarah. Believe it or not, no photoshop was required – that’s his favorite pose!
  • Next, decide what portion of your pet you would like to be the animated part that moves. As you cut out your picture, cut that part separate from the rest of the body. In our sample, we used Brian’s tail. You can animate as many parts as you’d like!
  • Cut a piece of cardboard or backing material and hot glue to the back of the two parts of your picture.
  • Plan where the animated part of your robot will attach to the rest of the body. Then, hot glue a servo horn to the back of the moving piece. Repeat with each piece you would like to move. Then, push the servo horn onto the shaft of the position servo. (New to servos and servo horns? This Hummingbird Hack might help.)
  • Get creative! If you’d like, you can add brackets or supports to make your robot stand, cut a large piece of cardboard to be a base or prop the body to an appropriate height, make your robot fly… whatever you’d like!

 

Bring it to life:

Now you’re ready to program! Need help getting started? We’ve got a tutorial for that! Just head to this page, select your device and programming language, and dive in.

 

Show off your creation!

We love seeing and celebrating your robotic projects and creations! Post and tag us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. (And while you’re on Facebook, consider joining our Educators’ Community!)