OWI Robotic Arm Edge

Posted In: Building Costs

Janiece Irie says...

it is nice educational kit. I love it and i enjoyed assembling and running it. i recommend this kit for the people who like to know how industrial robotics works.

Posted on October 17, 2011

Yi Lowcks says...

My 7 yr old daughter built this in about 8-9 hours. Supervision all throughout is required as parts need to be cleaned from excess plastic, and tightened properly. Some parts will need to be positioned precisely (like the clamp module). The quality of the plastic is quite good.It is similar to plastic model toys.While building, test the motors with a pair of wires to a battery if they can turn the gears properly before closing them in their housing.One electric motor failed to even work out of the box, so to make it work, I had to open it up and reposition the rotor and clean the contacts.My daughter now has some exposure of how those gears work to move something. She got to use a screwdriver, cutter, pliers, a digital multimeter in this exercise.I think she is no longer afraid of wires, since she tested all the motors before installing them.she now wants a butterfly robot.She also now want something that allows the arm to be mobile rather than be in a fixed base (I am thinking Revell Vexplorer).She plays with it by getting pencils from a case.Great weekend activity, quite educational, even for a 42 yr old.Very good value for the money.

Posted on October 18, 2011

Jenelle Pirozhkov says...

The most difficult step is building it properly.You must take your time and offer loads of patience.The rewarding part takes place when construction is complete.The robotic arm is adjustable(you can assign different functions to different buttons and switches), flexible, and inexpensive when compared to others of similar quality.If you like toys and gadgets of this nature, I would strongly recommend it, I really enjoy it!!!

Posted on October 18, 2011

Daina Schol says...

I had great fun putting this together. It's fun to play with too! All the motors worked out of the box. Refrain from breaking all the pieces off from their racks at the beginning; the diagrams are clearly labeled and the racks help you locate pieces you need at each step. Only reason I gave 4 stars on durability is because I haven't had it long enough to really tell. I may re-judge later when I know how long it works.



Another reviewer commented on having difficulty with the nuts in the gearbox housings. They aren't that bad. Use the needlenose pliars, as is recommended in the instructions, play with it until you get the rotation of the nut right, and press it in. Most of them will go in the same way, though there is one slot in each housing you'll need to do differently. May take a little trial and error, but once you get them right, they'll stay.

Posted on October 19, 2011

Sally Pluvoise says...

For the cost, this is a well made, well thought-out kit with a good instruction manual - all pieces are identified and images clearly show their correct orientation etc.Build with care and patience and you will be rewarded with a fun learning project that will demonstrate simple mechanical (robotic) joint operation and simple power distribution via the switched control box (this also requires assembly).Children also get the benefit of using basic tools - such as cutters, screwdrivers and files.Note that children will require supervision and may need some help.Thoroughly recommended.

Posted on October 19, 2011

Chelsey Redcay says...

I think this would be fun for those who like to build stuff..Took me around 2 - 3 hours to get it done but enjoying every bit of it after that..=)

Posted on October 20, 2011

Raul Guedea says...

This is a good intro into robotics. I got it for father's day and made me very happy. It took me about 3 hour to build.Couple of things to keep in mind:

-Some of the screws look a like but are not.I would say to sort them before hand so not to get them mixed up.

-I was surprised the gears have no lubrication.This could make it quieter. I think this is something you could add your self.Just be careful not to degrade the plastics.

-I would like to have seen a DC adapter rather than batteries.I may build one.



With the simple pin-out system, it should be easy to hack.

Posted on October 21, 2011

Lance Travino says...

My daughter (7 years old) and and I had th best time assembling and building this robot.

She was so proud of herself building with motors, gears and wires.

Best bonding time

Posted on October 24, 2011

Mechelle Pappalardo says...

So, I got this for my 15 year old brother for his birthday. He's all the time tinkering with things like broken VCRs and CD players and such, so I figured this would be perfect.



It shipped fast and very well packaged. When my brother finally got it, it took him all of 45 minutes to have it put together. He loves it, he's currently 'teaching it how to write' with a sharpie! It's very easy to control and seems very sturdy, it's not too big but it's heavier than it looks. Overall, this was a fabulous gift and my brother was thrilled with it. It shouldn't be too much of a challenge for anyone with a little electronics know-how (though it does have some pretty small parts you need to keep an eye on) and it's a blast to play with!

Posted on October 25, 2011

Kendall Cosey says...

You have to put this thing together. There are a lot of parts. It's not as easy as I would have liked. Also, the clamp keeps messing up. It just stops opening and closing. Other than that though, it works well. It will take multiple inputs at a time on the controls. It's pretty smooth and looks pretty cool.

Posted on October 29, 2011