Animatronic system with unlimited axes

摘要

In an animatronic system, recording and playing performances of individual axes of character movement involves, during recording, continually commanding speeds and rotational directions of a stepping axis motor in response to manual movement of a joystick. The joystick commands are modified by means of a feedback motor electrically coupled to the axis motor to mechanically interact with the joystick.

主权项

1. An apparatus for controlling an electric stepping axis motor wherein the said electric stepping axis motor responds to a plurality of different control settings corresponding to binary words of a predetermined set of binary data, said apparatus including:
a memory containing a file for storing a plurality of said binary data; a pulse source for issuing each of said plurality of binary words from said memory at predetermined evenly spaced time intervals; an interface for decoding said binary words from said memory and controlling said electric stepping axis motor in accordance with the control settings corresponding to said binary words; a manually actuable joystick unit for selecting control setting commands consistent with desired speed and direction of said electric stepping axis motor, said joystick unit including a feedback stepper motor for interacting mechanically within said joystick unit to cancel previous control setting commands, said feedback stepper motor including: control wiring coupling said feedback stepper motor to rotate in unison with said electric stepping axis motor; an encoder for encoding said control setting commands into binary words at evenly spaced time intervals; and switching means for saving said binary words to said file in said memory at said evenly spaced time intervals.