Wooden robot lost in space - kinetic sculpture by Alan Westby

I posted last month about the wooden robot automata made by Alan Westby. I just received word that he's finished another in the series. This one depicts a poor robot hurling through space just beyond the safety of its rocket ship. Thankfully, most robots don't require air.

Note the clever use of two sets of bevel gears used to create rotation in two directions off of the same drive shaft. Well played!

See more of Alan Westby's robot-themed automata on his web site.

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Wooden robot automata will soon rule the world!

Artist Alan Westby has made a series of wood automata depicting robots. They are beautifully made, with finger-jointed cherry boxes, laser-cut wood gears, and carefully assembled geometric shapes. The entire series is cleanly construction. At the same time, it is playful as well. Westby's wooden robots are engaged in domestic scenes, space scenes, flying airplanes, and various other shenanigans.

See more wooden robot automata by Alan Westby on his web site.

And just to prove my point that wooden robots are taking over the world, here are a bunch that you can buy -- but never truly control -- on amazon.

P.S. If you've never seen it, here's my own contribution to the wooden robot genre from 2007.

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