Halley: Ambassador Robot 001

Overview

Ambassador Robot No. 001, also known as Halley, is a 2.6-foot humanoid automaton built for the sole purpose of exploring what it means to be human from a non-human perspective. The primary means of achieving this is through human-robot interaction, where Halley emulates as many human functions as possible while interfacing with another person.

A humanoid shape of respectable size is deemed necessary for authentic human connection, along with an array of face-to-face communication techniques:

A speaker, camera, and microphone for basic sensory input and output
Movable arms and legs to support gestures such as raising a hand to ask questions
An Android phone as a face, allowing a wide range of expressive emotions to be displayed

The ultimate goal: to have Halley take the place of a student in a classroom — attending and recording university lectures as a remote proxy.

Hardware

Arduino Mega 2560
Samsung Galaxy Light SGH-T399 (Android phone face)
AUVIO Universal Portable Speaker 4000372
21× Power HD-1201MG metal gear servomotors
Plugable USB 2.0 7-Port Hub w/ 3A Adapter
5V 10A switching power supply
3.0mm laser-cut acrylic frame
3D-printed hands & feet

Fully reproducible for around $500–800.

Software

Unity3D, Arduino, RhinoCAD, Autodesk Maya, Google Translate

Built entirely in the CMU Robotics Club workshop.

Recognition

The Halley Instructable received more than 23,000 views. Graduate students and a tech professor at various institutions expressed interest in replicating the project. The Poppy Project — a team of roboticists in France who inspired this work — were impressed enough to consider merging Halley’s contributions with theirs.

Support & Affiliations

Frank-Ratchye Fund for Art @ the Frontier (FRFAF) — microgrant supporting the build
CMU Robotics Club — workshop space and community
Poppy Project — open-source humanoid robotics inspiration

All source files are open-source under GNU GPL v2.0 on GitHub.