The nerds & artists of Calgary are collaborating to create a remotely controllable art robot.

Our project is awesome because it can only be completed through the collaborative & volunteer efforts of a few of the innovative communities of Calgary. This project will produce a robot that can be controlled by artists around the world through the mail-out of a simple, cheap control system. The automaton will have wheels/tracks to get around (whether it be down-town or at an art gallery) and a robotic arm that will interface with the mail-out control system over an internet connection. The movement of the remote artist's hands will be mimicked by the mechanical artist here in Calgary, bringing innovative art to our city in an innovative way. Finally, while having swappable art mediums (chalk, brush, spray), we will outfit the robot with 2 cameras to stream both the artwork and the audience response back to the contributing artist in real time.

In addition to the volunteer efforts of independent artists and roboticists, the following organizations have made a commitment to support this project:

• EZ-Robot
• The Western Canadian Robotics Society
• Protospace
• Endeavor Arts & Events Space

We have many of the expensive parts already being donated (computer, EZ-B, chassis), and all of the development, prototyping & building will be done by volunteers. The $1000 will be used to buy items we do not yet have, which consist of:

• Sensors for the remote control mechanism (likely a wearable sleeve)
• Materials to laser-cut for the chassis & robotic arm
• IP Cameras
• Servos
• Battery packs

To keep Calgarians up to date, we will blog, photograph & film the project as it progresses.