M MECHSMITHWORKSHOP LOG
Docu-series · Phase 01 — Planning

Building Bobby,
a droid that feels like a friend.

A from-scratch friendly droid: four-wheel skid steer, pan-tilt head, onboard AI, and a safety-first architecture — designed in the open, one phase at a time. Budget: $1,000. Patience: unlimited.

Follow the build What is MechSmith?
Bobby droid concept render
CONCEPT RENDER — matte-black security-droid styling, four custom wheels
The roadmap
PHASE 01

Planning

Architecture, parts, CAD. Every subsystem decided on paper before plastic melts.

PHASE 02

First prints

Test wheel, bench electronics, prove the spine board and drive.

PHASE 03

Rev 1 assembly

Full chassis, head, wiring. Bobby rolls under his own power.

PHASE 04

Rev 2 + dock

Sensor expansion, IR homing dock, polish. Then mischief.

Latest from the bench
Wiring architecture diagram
PHASE 01SEP 17, 2026

Killing the wire rat's nest

Every past Pi/Arduino project ended in a harness hairball. This time the fix is a custom spine PCB: six tidy runs, everything else plugs in.

Brain-spine UART link diagram
PHASE 01SEP 17, 2026

Brain suggests, spine decides

One UART link between the Ventuno Q brain and the STM32H5 safety spine — with a dead-man heartbeat so a crashed brain can't drive the droid into a wall.

Wheel rev 1 CAD render
PHASE 01SEP 17, 2026

Wheel rev 1: 110 mm of split-TPU attitude

Two-piece beadlock rim, chevron tread that bridges the tire seam, and a Bobby portrait embossed on the cap. One test print before the other three.

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