Hey guys! So I finally decided to make a page that has everything you could possibly know about my project. Even though I had previously answered everyone’s questions, they were usually through a message. Because of that, I was usually asked the same questions and I figure making this instructable will mitigate that. So without further adieu, here’s the source! If you still have any questions that weren’t already answered, just let me know so I can add it!
Disclaimer: I would NEVER EVER recommend that anyone use a motorized mountainboard with straps. If you’re wondering why I am saying this, it’s because it was only after riding it for a while that I realized why everyone feared so much for my safety. You’d have to be insane to want to build this and ride it! I felt comfortable knowing I have years of experience in skateboarding, snowboarding, skimboarding, and surfing to really give me control of the board, but I never underestimated what I built nor did I ever forget about Murphy’s Law. Heck, even all my board experience wasn’t enough for the 4 second delay that came from the PlayStation 2 controller when I was trying to stop the board. I ended up cleaning the pavement a few feet with my leg, as you can see in the picture below. In anything you do, always be careful, be willing to accept the consequences for whatever you do and when something happens, you have no one to blame but yourself. So let me repeat this: I am not and will never be liable for anything that happens to you.
Now that we have that out of the way, let my project show you that when you follow your dreams, ignore the naysayers, and push yourself to your full potential, you achieve things that you had never imagined. People far too often underestimate their own strengths and skills, and many brilliant ideas end up just being an idea and nothing more. I want my project to show everyone that they can make anything a reality if they go for it. When I first started the project, I didn’t really know about motors and I had to refresh my memory on some of the topics I learned in my classes. If you have the motivation, you can learn everything about a certain topic, as well as master it, and make it your own. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do something if you truly believe in what you are shooting for. All that being said, I’ll leave you with what renowned Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw once said: “You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why not?'”
By the way, here is a link to a video of my board in action just in case you’re interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=686oJ7bNFIU
Step 1: Materials
Disclaimer: this is most likely what I used. Now that I’m looking at the motor specs, I can’t remember if I got a 1.2 or 1.6 since I remember the wattage that I got, but don’t remember seeing the maximum voltage rating ever being lower than 26 volts. But anyway, this was meant to be a guideline, not a step-by-step tutorial. This project is dangerous from the start, and providing steps to a project I even had bugs on could give you a false sense of security, a belief that if it’s online and everything is drawn out so nicely for you to follow along, that the finished product will be safe since that couldn’t be further from the truth. I wouldn’t want you to get injured, and I definitely don’t want to deal with lawsuits. So I’ll repeat this again: I am not and will never be liable for anything that happens to you.
Brushless Outrunner Motor
-RimFire 1.2: http://www.electrifly.com/motors/gpmg4505.html
Brushless Motor Controller
-http://www.hobbywing.com/product_show.asp?id=193
+Can’t find the exact one that I used, but I’m pretty sure this should do
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery
-http://www.batteryspace.com/lifepo426650battery256v102ah26112wh40aratewithpcm.aspx
Arduino Duemilanove
-http://arduino.cc/en/Main/arduinoBoardDuemilanove
-http://www.sparkfun.com/products/666
SparkFun Flex Sensors
-http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8606
SparkFun NRF2401A Transceiver
-http://www.sparkfun.com/products/152
-http://arduino.cc/playground/InterfacingWithHardware/Nrf2401
I bought my board on eBay, and I think it’s an MBX mountainboard. The rest of the materials were either purchased at Home Depot (thick gauge wires), made from the ECE Machine Shop (casing for my battery, casing for the motor, and gears), or given to me from the ECE Service Shop (buttons, small wires, LEDs, op-amp). Some of the board was also built in the ECE Machine Shop.
Step 2: Pictures That Show Details
When I was looking up how to create something like this online, one of the problems was trying to see exactly what they did. So I took many pictures to give you different angles to see exactly how I did it. I hope they help you immensely! Just in case you were puzzled by what the blue thing on the battery was, it is a PlayStation 2 controller because at one point, I controlled the board with it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkhjeEDaagQ).
For more detail: Wireless Glove-Controlled Electric Mountainboard: An Analysis
