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ROBBY STORY
The goal from inception of this project was to produce
the most highly scaled Robby the Robot tin toy as possible, using
to the utmost, traditional methods and materials of the Japanese
tin toy makers' art.
We started with the Mechanized Robot dies, using what could not
be improved upon, and discarding the remainder.
First, with the assistance of Bill Malone, the toy Robby's color
and paint texture were matched directly from the one and only real
Robby.
To capture the essence of Robby we felt it was of particular importance
to properly scale the head.
The inside the dome head design includes, lithographed sax valve
separators, cooling slots, and wigwag mechanism. The physical components
under the dome include dome light, gyro, mechanical brain, mechanical
sax valves, and nickel-plated head coils.
The outside the dome head design elements include rotating scanner
rings, nickel-plated scanner fins, and four blasting beams with
blue focusing units. The voice tubes are blue with flashing light.
The lower torso has been properly scaled in height and also includes
the two lighted heart box elements, the star drive, and the Geneva
movement device.
The intricately detailed blaster design was scaled down directly
from an original prop blaster. It is composed of plastic and machined
brass. Internally, the blaster has a red mini-lamp that is timed
to pulsate in sequence with an internal IC controlled sound chip.
During the blasting sequence the right arm moves back and forth
with a spraying action. The rear of the torso contains the battery
box, which takes two AA type batteries. The on/off switch is discretely
located on the lower rear of the torso.
Between the torso and the legs lie the hip plate joint structures.
These structures are anchored to the torso by a shaft and swing
back and forth with each individual leg movement. The leg structures
are scaled as closely as possible to Robby's ball and socket leg
design. The feet contain wide track rollers which allow a more stable
walking action.
The internal electromechanical design has features such as smooth
scanner drive mechanisms, sax valve lifters and other complex mechanical
and electronic elements.
We are convinced we have produced the highest quality product possible
using a blend of traditional methods and modern innovations.
-------- Ray Rohr
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