Alt-BEAM Archive
Message #09194
To: beam@sgiblab.sgi.com
From: "Phillip A. Ryals" Phillip@ryals.com
Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2000 13:16:20 -0600
Subject: [alt-beam] Re: BEAM LEGO was microcore experimentation kit
You could always use RJ-11 (telephone) or RJ-45 (Ethernet) plugs. RJ-11's can
have up to 6 wires and RJ-45's have 8. Those are light, not to mention the
cables for them are extremely common. I've been messing with these for power
on some of my robots. (Those that don't have the strength to hold heavy
batteries.) They work just fine. The only downside to RJ-45's are that the
part you plug them into are kinda pricey. RJ-11 plugs and receptacles can be
aquired pretty cheaply from WalMart, etc.
This seems like one of the more plausible ideas though, IMHO.
phillip
Dane Gardner wrote:
> That would weigh so freaking much, it wouldn't be worth the effort...or the
> motors that it would take to drive something with DB-9 connectors and cable
> all over it.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ben Hitchcock
> To:
> Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2000 6:39 PM
> Subject: Re: BEAM LEGO was microcore experimentation kit
>
> > Why not use cable with plugs and sockets - that is, make a whole heap of
> > little veroboard units, each with two cables coming out of it.
> >
> > One cable has a plug on it, the other cable has a socket. You could then
> > make whatever shape you liked - 2 neuron ring, 5 neuron ring, whatever. I
> > think solid units would be a bit too limited in the topology for true
> > experimentation.
> >
> > You could then have other optional units that could act as summing
> points -
> > so it would be a unit with one plug (output) and two sockets (input).
> > People could then design their own units based on this idea so that you
> > could do that tetrahedron idea someone was talking about, all based around
> > the same bus.
> >
> > A 9-pin serial connector seems to be pretty common, and very cheap. If
> you
> > don't want to shell out the money for heaps of backshells then you could
> > make your own - just drown the wire side in epoxy.
> >
> > In fact, you only need one side to be flexible - you could solder one
> > connector directly to the veroboard, and only have ONE cable coming out of
> > it.
> >
> > On the veroboard could be terminals for power, input, output, and a pot to
> > adjust the delay.
> >
> > You might also want put more than one neuron in each unit - no problem.
> > Since we are using hex inverters anyway, we have six inverters doing
> nothing
> > - so it's pretty easy to add a cap and a pot to it.
> >
> > Now another unit could be a power unit - it just plugs right into the
> chain,
> > and the pulse wires go straight 'through' it without this unit being part
> of
> > the chain.
> >
> > I think the most important thing here is standards. If we make all our
> > units to conform to the same standard then we could have a meet somewhere
> > and everyone's units could plug into everyone else's units, to make a
> > monster nervous net!
> >
> > Anyway, enough dreaming,
> >
> > Ben
> >
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