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KHR-1 Build Report - continued
READY FOR FUN? NOT QUITE:
The robot is complete, the back cover is on, all the wires are neatly tucked away, and the motions are loaded on the
robot. Time to start playing with the robot and having fun, right? Not so fast. We made the software execute a simple
walking command, and while the robot did execute the motion, it began shaking. Every servo on the robot was vibrating,
to the point it went out of control. With a little research, we found that our robot was struck with a condition common to
KHR-1 robots. When the controller tries to put the servo into its final position, it overshoots slightly, then tries to correct
the opposite way, which results in the shaking. You can read about it here.
READY FOR FUN? NOT QUITE:
The robot is complete, the back cover is on, all the wires are neatly tucked away, and the motions are loaded on the
robot. Time to start playing with the robot and having fun, right? Not so fast. We made the software execute a simple
walking command, and while the robot did execute the motion, it began shaking. Every servo on the robot was vibrating,
to the point it went out of control. With a little research, we found that our robot was struck with a condition common to
KHR-1 robots. When the controller tries to put the servo into its final position, it overshoots slightly, then tries to correct
the opposite way, which results in the shaking. You can read about it here.
STRIPPED SERVO:
After removing the servo from the robot, we cracked it open only to find tiny pieces of white shrapnel inside the case,
not a good sign. Upon closer inspection, the gear on the far right of the picture has lost some of the teeth on the small
gear post in the center. This is where the shrapnel came from.
As we mentioned previously, all of the servos in the KHR-1 are identical, so we were able to replace this broken
shoulder servo with the head servo. This allowed us to keep testing our motions, minus the head, while we waited for
replacement parts to arrive in the mail. This proved useful, but a better design would have been to make servos that
don't strip in the first place!
THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKING:
We spent an incredible amount of time attempting to fine tune our KHR-1 to perform the "Improved Walk" motion
provided by Kondo. We could tell that this was a superior walking motion, since it provided for 10 continuous steps.
There is even video of this motion in use. The difficulty was trying to get our robot's home position to allow the walking
motion to work perfectly. After days and days of frustration, we couldn't do it.
One of our goals at RobotServicesGroup is to test each robot using the equipment and motions originally provided by
the manufacturer, without special add-ons. But in this case, we had to make an exception. Since the KHR-1 was the
original humanoid robot, it lacks a key item that every robot since has included; plastic feet. The original feet included
in the KHR-1 kit are just flat pieces of metal. They provide limited traction and we could not get the Improved Walking
motion to work with the standard feet. So we had to bend our own rules a bit and purchase what are referred to as
"Tub Soles" for the KHR-1.
When we perform our Human Emulation testing on this robot, it won't have an unfair advantage because the
Robonova-1 we have already tested includes plastic feet as well. We view this as merely levelling the playing field.
After removing the servo from the robot, we cracked it open only to find tiny pieces of white shrapnel inside the case,
not a good sign. Upon closer inspection, the gear on the far right of the picture has lost some of the teeth on the small
gear post in the center. This is where the shrapnel came from.
As we mentioned previously, all of the servos in the KHR-1 are identical, so we were able to replace this broken
shoulder servo with the head servo. This allowed us to keep testing our motions, minus the head, while we waited for
replacement parts to arrive in the mail. This proved useful, but a better design would have been to make servos that
don't strip in the first place!
THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKING:
We spent an incredible amount of time attempting to fine tune our KHR-1 to perform the "Improved Walk" motion
provided by Kondo. We could tell that this was a superior walking motion, since it provided for 10 continuous steps.
There is even video of this motion in use. The difficulty was trying to get our robot's home position to allow the walking
motion to work perfectly. After days and days of frustration, we couldn't do it.
One of our goals at RobotServicesGroup is to test each robot using the equipment and motions originally provided by
the manufacturer, without special add-ons. But in this case, we had to make an exception. Since the KHR-1 was the
original humanoid robot, it lacks a key item that every robot since has included; plastic feet. The original feet included
in the KHR-1 kit are just flat pieces of metal. They provide limited traction and we could not get the Improved Walking
motion to work with the standard feet. So we had to bend our own rules a bit and purchase what are referred to as
"Tub Soles" for the KHR-1.
When we perform our Human Emulation testing on this robot, it won't have an unfair advantage because the
Robonova-1 we have already tested includes plastic feet as well. We view this as merely levelling the playing field.
Little bits of loose plastic are not a good sign.
CONCLUSION:
We had a very difficult time working with this robot. There was a lot of frustration just to get the robot working in a reasonable
fashion. We are certainly glad that robot manufacturers continue to improve on their designs making each new model easier to
build, and simpler to use.
Things We Liked:
The KHR-1 is the original humanoid robot. It is equivalent to the Model T of automobiles. The experience of building and
working with this legendary robot is truly special. We liked the silver brackets which give the KHR-1 a very robotic look, and the
additional servo for the head adds some emotion to the robot. The motion files provided are very smooth and stable.
Things We Didn't Like:
Trimming the horn off a servo during construction seemed like a design flaw. Having to cut out the back cover was tedious. The
battery takes too long to charge. Stripping a servo during normal use indicates the servo gears are flimsy. Shaky servos is a
problem that should have been fixed at the factory, or at least the fix should have been provided for free. Tub Soles should
have been included with the kit. There are not enough motions included with kit. The software is difficult to use, and includes
some bugs. The robot does not come with any kind of remote control as standard equipment.
While our experience with the original KHR-1 has not been much fun, we are not going to let it influence our opinion of future
Kondo robots we might review. Remember that this robot was the first of its kind, and is already over 4 years old at the time of
this review.
We had a very difficult time working with this robot. There was a lot of frustration just to get the robot working in a reasonable
fashion. We are certainly glad that robot manufacturers continue to improve on their designs making each new model easier to
build, and simpler to use.
Things We Liked:
The KHR-1 is the original humanoid robot. It is equivalent to the Model T of automobiles. The experience of building and
working with this legendary robot is truly special. We liked the silver brackets which give the KHR-1 a very robotic look, and the
additional servo for the head adds some emotion to the robot. The motion files provided are very smooth and stable.
Things We Didn't Like:
Trimming the horn off a servo during construction seemed like a design flaw. Having to cut out the back cover was tedious. The
battery takes too long to charge. Stripping a servo during normal use indicates the servo gears are flimsy. Shaky servos is a
problem that should have been fixed at the factory, or at least the fix should have been provided for free. Tub Soles should
have been included with the kit. There are not enough motions included with kit. The software is difficult to use, and includes
some bugs. The robot does not come with any kind of remote control as standard equipment.
While our experience with the original KHR-1 has not been much fun, we are not going to let it influence our opinion of future
Kondo robots we might review. Remember that this robot was the first of its kind, and is already over 4 years old at the time of
this review.
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NOTE: These robots are not meant for children. All of the humanoid robot models discussed on this website use
powerful servos that can pinch or even crush your fingers if you are not careful. Consult the recommended minimum
age from the manufacturer before allowing children to use any of these robots.
powerful servos that can pinch or even crush your fingers if you are not careful. Consult the recommended minimum
age from the manufacturer before allowing children to use any of these robots.
This video shows the Shaky
Servos before and after the fix.
Servos before and after the fix.
Replacement gears were cheap, but maybe that was
the problem in the first place? The gears are cheap?
the problem in the first place? The gears are cheap?
Original metal foot on the left,
additional plastic foot on the right
additional plastic foot on the right
MORE SURGERY:
Now that the servos are performing normally, we can set to the task of fine tuning
our home position to make sure all the motions work perfectly. Unfortunately, while
testing the motions, we managed to strip a servo.
After all that we have been through, now we have a broken servo in the robot's
right shoulder. The animation shows how the right arm swings down quickly under
the force of gravity. Normally, the gears inside the servo would resist gravity, and
either keep the arm stationary, or at least reduce the speed of the swing.
So now we have to take the robot apart to take a look at what went wrong. Of
course, to get the shoulder servo out, you need to completely remove the robot
control boards, because the shoulder screws are underneath. Frustrating!
Now that the servos are performing normally, we can set to the task of fine tuning
our home position to make sure all the motions work perfectly. Unfortunately, while
testing the motions, we managed to strip a servo.
After all that we have been through, now we have a broken servo in the robot's
right shoulder. The animation shows how the right arm swings down quickly under
the force of gravity. Normally, the gears inside the servo would resist gravity, and
either keep the arm stationary, or at least reduce the speed of the swing.
So now we have to take the robot apart to take a look at what went wrong. Of
course, to get the shoulder servo out, you need to completely remove the robot
control boards, because the shoulder screws are underneath. Frustrating!
The shoulder servo
is stripped
is stripped
Bottom view
SHAKY SERVO SYNDROME:
Fortunately, there is a way to fix the problem. There is software
called ServoManagerforRed version 1.3 that is available here.
Unfortunately, the only way to connect your servo to the software is
through a special connector cable called an ICS Connector Cable.
We had to purchase a remote control system, which had the ICS
Connector Cable included. Refer to this page for complete
instructions on how to stop the servos from shaking. It was very
frustrating to have to fix a problem that should have been addressed
at the factory, especially since we had to spend more money to get
the cable. At least the KHR-2HV and 1HV robots do not have this
problem.
You will notice in the video that the shaking is so bad that the robot
actually vibrates across the floor without moving its legs to walk.
You can also notice that when the robot does push ups, it puts the
servos under load, and they stop shaking. But as soon as the push
ups are done, the shaking returns. Without the fix, the robot is
essentially unusable.
Fortunately, there is a way to fix the problem. There is software
called ServoManagerforRed version 1.3 that is available here.
Unfortunately, the only way to connect your servo to the software is
through a special connector cable called an ICS Connector Cable.
We had to purchase a remote control system, which had the ICS
Connector Cable included. Refer to this page for complete
instructions on how to stop the servos from shaking. It was very
frustrating to have to fix a problem that should have been addressed
at the factory, especially since we had to spend more money to get
the cable. At least the KHR-2HV and 1HV robots do not have this
problem.
You will notice in the video that the shaking is so bad that the robot
actually vibrates across the floor without moving its legs to walk.
You can also notice that when the robot does push ups, it puts the
servos under load, and they stop shaking. But as soon as the push
ups are done, the shaking returns. Without the fix, the robot is
essentially unusable.
TESTING:
As we took the time to get the Improved Walking motion perfected, another drawback to this robot became painfully clear.
There is no remote control included in the kit. There are only two ways to control the robot as part of the standard equipment.
First, you can use the robot with a tether between the control board and your PC. This allows you to tell the robot which motions
to execute, but the robot trails along the tether wire, and can trip over it. Second, you can load a series of motions to the robot
in a special memory location. Then when you turn on the robot, you press a button on the robot, and it will perform the motions
that are stored in memory. This was tedious, and we eventually had to purchase a remote control unit so that we can do our
Human Emulation testing. Details on how to set up the Remote Control can be found here, and instructions on the software can
be found here.
Of course the robot only comes with 14 motions, either on the CD or available from the Kondo website. New robots today come
with almost 100 motions pre-programmed, so this shows how far the robot industry has come in just a few years.
As we took the time to get the Improved Walking motion perfected, another drawback to this robot became painfully clear.
There is no remote control included in the kit. There are only two ways to control the robot as part of the standard equipment.
First, you can use the robot with a tether between the control board and your PC. This allows you to tell the robot which motions
to execute, but the robot trails along the tether wire, and can trip over it. Second, you can load a series of motions to the robot
in a special memory location. Then when you turn on the robot, you press a button on the robot, and it will perform the motions
that are stored in memory. This was tedious, and we eventually had to purchase a remote control unit so that we can do our
Human Emulation testing. Details on how to set up the Remote Control can be found here, and instructions on the software can
be found here.
Of course the robot only comes with 14 motions, either on the CD or available from the Kondo website. New robots today come
with almost 100 motions pre-programmed, so this shows how far the robot industry has come in just a few years.
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