[Coco] Robotic Arm from the MegaHoby store...

[Rob Rosenbrock]

It’s funny that you should mention the FB conversation...

I was half of that conversation, and this has had me thinking about that. I’ve remembered reading about that series of articles and was very interested in hearing her memories of that project.

Sent from my iPad

> On Oct 28, 2021, at 6:40 AM, Andrew <keeper63 at cox.net> wrote:
> 
> That's a very interesting series, John - thanks for posting that.
> 
> I wanted to note that the link you provided doesn't allow you to view much; it's one of those documents that you have to have an account, and "check out" the magazine like you would a book from a library.
> 
> Instead, here are the magazine scans (clearscan version) from the CoCo archive:
> 
> Part 1 - https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Hot%20CoCo%20(Clearscan)/Hot%20Coco%20Vol.%202%20No.%202%20-%20July%201984.pdf
> 
> Part 2 - https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Hot%20CoCo%20(Clearscan)/Hot%20Coco%20Vol.%202%20No.%203%20-%20August%201984.pdf
> 
> Part 3 - https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Hot%20CoCo%20(Clearscan)/Hot%20Coco%20Vol.%202%20No.%205%20-%20October%201984.pdf
> 
> Apparently, the author broke his wrist, and the other parts of the project were delayed as a result. It picks up again in January 1985, where he shows how to interface the original "fixed base" Armatron toy robot arm to the CoCo via the interface:
> 
> Part 4 - https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Hot%20CoCo%20(Clearscan)/Hot%20Coco%20Vol.%202%20No.%208%20-%20January%201985.pdf
> 
> Part 5 - https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Hot%20CoCo%20(Clearscan)/Hot%20Coco%20Vol.%202%20No.%209%20-%20February%201985.pdf
> 
> The above is yet another version of "Armatron Robot Arm" interfacing I'll need to add to my archive. Curiously, for the author of the series, James Barbarello, it's like his fourth article that I've found or heard of regarding interfacing an Armatron to a computer - though I believe this is the only one for the "fixed base" Armatron (his other articles are for the newer "mobile armatron" that used individual motors, instead of the single motor and complex gear train of the "fixed base" version).
> 
> I should also mention that over on the FB forum last month in September, Catherine Trudel posted about the conversion of an Armatron she did, with some pictures she had taken after finding the old project in her pile-o-stuff. Apparently, it was a project she had done as a young girl. She mentions the Hot CoCo series, but didn't recall the date - and I never looked it up. But from the two pictures she posted, you could definitely tell it was the same or a similar interface.
> 
> I have a project on my back burner to take all the stuff I have on interfacing the Armatron to a computer, and archive it for others to download and use. There is quite a bit out there, and as I've noted serveral other times, it seems like every time I turn around, up pops another article, book, or something else about doing it.
> 
> Anyhow - thanks again for the update; it was really helpful.
> 
> Andrew L. Ayers
> Glendale, Arizona
> phoenixgarage.org
> github.com/andrew-ayers
> 
>> On 10/27/21 10:19 PM, coco-request at maltedmedia.com wrote:
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Wed, 27 Oct 2021 14:46:29 +0000
>> From: John Guin<johnguin at hotmail.com>
>> To: CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts<coco at maltedmedia.com>
>> Subject: Re: [Coco] Robotic Arm from the MegaHoby store...
>> Message-ID:
>>    <MWHPR14MB13574F9034678868DC4153C0D9859 at MWHPR14MB1357.namprd14.prod.outlook.com>
>>    
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>> Aha - the interface I was thinking of was from James Barbarello starting in the July 84 Hot Coco:
>> https://archive.org/details/sim_hot-coco_1984-07_2_2/mode/2up?view=theater
>> Hope this helps!
> 
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