The creativity of some enthusiasts simply knows no bounds. A drill is usually only good for making holes, but Izzy Swan has turned this classic tool into a motor for saws, lawn mowers, and miniature motorcycles. This time, Swan has created a kind of personal walking machine that combines wheels, two legs at the back, and a DeWalt cordless drill that powers the strange mechanism.
In the past we talked about Theo Jansen's kinetic sculptures , a Dutch engineer, scientist, and artist. His most striking and media-friendly creation is Strandbeest, something like "beach beast", which has a series of legs with a very particular design. Today, we come across Izzy Swan, an American inventor and DIY enthusiast, known for using a simple cordless drill as a motor for several of his creations. Swan was inspired by Jansen's work, and he knew that at some point he would develop something of his own based on the special legs of the Strandbeest. After several modifications, wooden prototypes, and some later adjustments, Swan presented his new project, similar to a Segway that got stuck halfway while trying to become a Transformer.
In the video, Swan explains several details about the manufacturing process, but we can also see his creature with a drill heart in action. Swan is not exactly a small person, and he calculates that he can carry up to 167 kilograms. The maximum speed of his walking machine depends on how heavy the pilot is, and in terms of autonomy, the battery of the DeWalt drill has enough energy to travel about one and a half kilometers. The drill's transmission deserves a special mention, even though it only offers one speed. Swan bought several of the parts for his construction, a logical decision if we consider the complexity of each part, as well as the precision needed and the durability, two aspects that would be very difficult to reproduce in a garage.
Swan has said that the design is not finished, so we will likely see new optimizations in the future. Personally, I imagine things like a larger battery pack, or a series of shock absorbers to make the walk smoother. Whatever it is, we definitely want to see it.
