Project: 'Leave me alone' box

**razerdave** · 17th May 2010, 20:24

Hi guys

I wanted to try a little electronics and mechanical test thats become quite popular on the internet, a useless little device known as a 'Leave me Alone' box:

http://www.leavemealonebox.com/

The thing is, I don't have a chip programmer, nor any experience in writing codes and such, but I have heard you can make a purely mechanical and electrical one, but I wanted to run the theory pass you guys.

I was planning to have the switch on the outside(operated by whoever) turning on the motor that controls the arm, arm comes up and flicks the switch to reverse the voltage going to the motor (the voltage from the battery wired in a X across the 4 poles), and when the arm goes down it hits a microswitch to turn the power off to the motor, and so it should remain stationary until the external switch puts the power back the other way to bring the arm out again.

So what do you think ?

**typhoon_driver** · 17th May 2010, 23:13

AHAHAHAHAAHA That thing is genious! I know what I'm building when I have a spare hour or so

Actually quite a good little project to get me into pic programming.

From what you've said you're logic sounds like it will work and technically it will be superior to the box shown on the video as the power will only be on when the motor is running. Just need to find a small enough motor and gearbox combo.

**anukhet** · 18th May 2010, 01:05

David - have words with Mike Lambert next time you see him. He does loads of pic programming using Picaxe.
Here's their website for you to take a look at....
http://www.rev-ed.co.uk/picaxe/

**razerdave** · 18th May 2010, 18:31

Finding a motor and gearbox assemby is easy enough, you can just use a large servo with no guts in it.

I'll give this a go, and hopefully a few others might give it a go.

I was kinda inspired by other useless but funny things I've seen, for example Ray Tates dancing table lamp that was demonstrated at Burgess Hill, very entertaining toy

I told him he should lend it to Pixar because it is very similar in actions to their mascot.

**mightymouse** · 18th May 2010, 19:07

dead simple picaxe programme dave - switch operates power to picaxe chip, lid servo operates, time delay, second servo operates, lid servo shuts. No more than 5 lines.

I built a 2 legged walker with 6 servo's all controlled by 1 18x picaxe chip. It was a real eye-opener, I expected it to be so much more complicated.