I have been meaning to do this update for a while now and since it is 3am, and I am seriously overtired... seems like the perfect time!

The initial concept has given way to some more practical designs choices.

First up, the head.

I went with a tray that holds everything, the cameras are locked in place with a top cover that screws into place. I still have to print a retention clip that holds the boards down into the tray, this clip will fit right up behind the eyes between the two screw mounting holes.

The eyes have also changed somewhat, gone are the eyelids... at least for now and in their place I am making use of some LED rings. These rings have individually addressable LEDs that can blink, change color, and shine a bright light when PAL needs it. The two holes between the eyes are for a speaker and another visual effect led that will flash when PAL speaks. On the side of the head you see a set of stereo microphones. The whole thing bolts together by feeding through to the top of the head where a couple nuts hold it all in place. This design also leaves me room to hook up the "neck" system later.

That is one blank stare XD

I ended up modding the USB cables as the strain relief was too long to fit properly. With a knife, I carefully cut away the plastic revealing the wire. This also lets me make the cables the length that I require.

I did cut a notch into the shell, this will be fixed in the main file so future versions will not require a mod. The hollow plastic was filled with hot glue to keep it from delaminating more after the cuts were made. You can also see the modified USB cables in place.

In other news, I have received a very wonderful linear actuator. This will be what is used to raise and lower the main body of PAL. It moves 6 inches, and with the use of a speed controller should do the trick.

Sorry for the picture heavy update. Work has kept me very busy this last week and I have not had a lot of time to work on PAL. I am also making some modifications to the lower chassis design to accommodate the much nicer tracks that I made the other day (seen in the images with the linear actuator).

Currently I am on the fence if I want to print the head in a higher resolution and possibly give it an aluminum paint job to match the rest of the body, or if I will just leave all the plastic looking like 3D printed PLA :)

As always... more to come as I find time !