Projects
Side projects
Melvin/Projects/Cody

Cody, a robot companion in the making

I’m designing a penguin-inspired robot to fetch socks on voice command: find them in the bedroom, reach under the bed, pick them up with its beak and drop them in a bin.

Category
Hardware
Organization
Personal project
Status
In progress
Dates
Sep 2026 –
Concept board of Cody, a penguin-shaped robot, standing on two legs, leaning onto its flippers and lying low on wheels. Additional views explore the neck, beak and wheel arrangement.
AI-generated concept from my brief, September 2026. Movement and balance still to validate.

From concept to CAD

I based the leg mechanism on Pollen Robotics’ Microduck, working from images and its simulation model rather than native CAD source files. Through reverse engineering, I reconstructed and adapted the assembly with forward-facing knees, instead of Microduck’s backward-facing layout. I’m now resolving the internal layout around the battery and electronics. The low rolling posture still targets a 170 mm envelope beneath a 190 mm clearance.

CAD assembly of Cody with a translucent body, an articulated shoulder and flipper, both legs, a wheel mechanism and an NVIDIA Jetson board positioned behind the body.07 Oct 2026
Shoulder, legs and wheel layout, with the NVIDIA Jetson board positioned in CAD.

Design progress

07 Oct 2026

Designed in CAD

  • Shoulder and flipper architecture
  • Both leg assemblies
  • Wheel system architecture
  • NVIDIA Jetson board placement

Still to do

  • Body layout and component placement
  • Neck and head design
  • Beak mechanism
  • Battery system selection and placement

Next milestone

Finalize the layout and battery system, then prepare the model for MuJoCo. Simulation, motor bench tests and the rest of the roadmap follow.