I’m automating my dorm room as much as I can without breaking housing regulations here on my college campus. Everything is going well, except the light switch. Of course, I can’t replace it with an X10 module or add a relay, as that would be both against housing regulations and dangerous, because I wouldn’t be capable of turning the power off while I did it. So, I’m looking for a good exterior control method. I laser cut, assembled, tweaked, and tested the project here ( http://m.instructables.com/id/Easy-Home … -switches/), but alas, the servos apparently aren’t powerful enough to Flip these particular switches, which are a bit more springy and harder to flip than normal ones.
I’m simply looking for ideas here. I might try finding more powerful servos, but failing that, any better designs, or new ideas that may work?
Wyatt
P.S.
First time posting on the forums, been a customer for a while though! Hi!
I’d look at some type of worm gear arrangement. You could even machine the “rack” into the plastic slider that activates the switch. Yes it might be slower but do you care ? The only added complication would be the need to add limit switches at each end of travel.
Thanks for the replies! I actually found a wall wart that gave me 6v instead if 5, and that’s working wonders. The appeal of this design btw was the fact that you could still use the switches by hand.
I wish I could put X10 stuff in, but alas, they are pretty strict on what you can and can’t do to the dorms. Basically, if it can’t be undone quickly without extensive tools or it leaves any permanent marks, you can’t do it. So, homemade stuff it is!
I’ve got it all wired up discreetly, and I have a laser projector and a strobe light hooked up to a relay board from sparkfun. Now, I just need to add more lights, displays, laser, etc.
