Furby Autopsy Dr. Jones Department of Programs and Objects The Tech Museum of Innovation

The Victims

In case you were wondering what was behind that random animal-like toy with humanoid traits, a body metaphor might help: Organs (eyes, ears, heart, muscles) A nervous system (brain, sensors) A musculoskeletal system (bones, muscles)

Just like humans, babies and adults differ in structure Notice Ear bone difference and tummy color

The following pictures should help you through the process Keep an eye out for these body parts Switches Sensors Motors Gears and Cams

The Nervous System The nervous system of the Furby consists of a PC board and input devices that include sensors for light and sound and output devices such as a speakers and moving parts. Figure from http://www.phobe.com/furby/guts.html

The Musculoskeletal System The Furby moves based on a combination of the movements of gears, cams, switches, and screws Cam-a rotating disk shaped to convert circular to linear motion or a rotating mechanism Switch-control consisting of a mechanical or electrical or electronic device for making or breaking or changing the connections in a circuit Armature – coil used to induce voltage by motion through a magnetic field Motor –converts mechanical energy

Task at hand…Identify parts Switches (5) Sensors (3) Microphone Speaker Motor Now, see if you can put him back together. Pet switch--microswitch mounted on main PCB Inversion switch--mounted on main PCB Tummy switch--strip metal leaf switch mounted on top of speaker. Tongue switch--microswitch behind mouth Stroke switch--small leaf switch which monitors position of main gear system Light sensor--photocell in forehead IR sensor--in forehead IR send--IR LED in forehead Speaker--about 1.25 inch speaker mounted to belly. (Sound quality is not really any better without the fur) Motor speed sensor Microphone--small (0.33 inch) mounted in the side (to furby's right). It's unclear how clear the furby "hears" -- it could be listening for specific sounds, or simply hears "loud" noises as single bit of input. I've never noticed that Toh-Loo-Kah could differentiate sound other than to respond generically to any loud noise, so I suspect the Furby's auditory capabilities to be pretty basic. DC open armature motor--reversible reset button--on bottom http://www.phobe.com/furby