An Adafruit Feather 32U4 Bluefruit LE, which is an Arduino compatible, BLE capable board. I would download a copy, in case it ever becomes worth something, some day.

Using the code I wrote back then, and visual inspection of the finished product, I’ve made a drawing of how the different components are connected, using state of the art graphics software. I would’ve loved to show you how I wired it up in steps, but this was all done 2 years ago and it didn’t occur to me then to make photos along the way. I didn’t use the wires in my one, but perhaps it could be useful for something.

I tried to save the wires of the doodad on the right-hand side, but failed and ended up cutting them off with the Dremel. I am sure you could use a very sharp knife, but the plastic is pretty strong, so you may end up cutting your way into the hospital emergency department. I used a marker to draw out what I was going to cut. Next, go to town on the cover with a Dremel, removing all the excess plastic. Desolder or cut them away from the board. The wires to the motors are attached to a small PCB, which you can see once you’ve opened it up. It takes a single screw to remove the lid, to get to the batteries and then another 3 to remove the top of the robot. Direction is changed by rotating the main body, using a second motor, which changes the disposition of the legs, changing the direction in which the entire robot moves. All the 6 legs are powered with a single motors. These Battle Spiders are mechanically really interesting. Ever since I saw these HEXBUG Battle Spiders, I’ve wanted to tear them apart and supply them with a more capable brain. This is a project I’ve had on the shelf for quite some time (2 years or so), and only just now finished up.

Download hexbug spider fight with light