The Cutest Elephant in the South

Big Al is a 30″ tall four-function animatronic modeled after Alabama’s mascot, Big Al, in a style inspired by “It’s A Small World.” He loves to sing, and once he gets going, there’s nothing that can stop him (except the E-Stop). This project served as the inaugural project for the Themed Entertainment Association @UA with the purpose of helping members learn hands-on design skills and creating a club mascot that could assist in recruitment. For that reason, we chose to model him after our school’s mascot to play off of common school pride in order to increase student interest in our TEA club amongst active and potential members. We chose to model our figure off “It’s A Small World,” as it would allow us to start at the beginning of animatronics with something simple and allow us to build at full scale rather than at a smaller scale as would be the case if we were trying to depict something the size of an adult such as a pirate or yeti. In order to better replicate a real attraction, we included a show control box allowing for easy selection of show sequences as well as safety features such as an End Cycle button and Emergency Stop.

Show Video

Show: Mobile-Friendly Version

How He Works Video

How He Works: Mobile-Friendly Version

Under the Hood

The figure is brought to life via an Arduino Uno R3. His body is powered by a Hitec HS-485HB with his facial functions powered by three Amraza S51 servos. His ranges of motion are: Mouth 40°, Trunk 25°, Eyes 110°, and Body ~45°.

WIP photos

Show Programming Plan

Team Members and Contributions

• Zach Hymowitz (Year 2- Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Project lead, originated concept, designed figure in CAD, sculpted soft elements such as hands and face, fabricated and assembled figure, troubleshot and solved issues that arose in assembly, selected skin material and assisted in application, wrote show programming, sorted out singing sections of audio files, sourced materials, and figure finish painter.
• Rianna Cassibry (Year 1- Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Lead fabric skin application, modified clothing to size, wired show control box, and assisted in arm CAD design.
• Aiden Dettwiller (Year 4 – Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Originated concept of powering body via bevel gears, designed the trunk in CAD, sourced materials, and troubleshooted spacing between gearbox and body.
• Eric Johnson (Year 1 – Advertising)
  • • Designed show control box graphic, sorted out singing sections of audio files, and modified audio files to suit the show.
• Jacob Dennis (Year 4 – Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Repaired show control wires, designed power circuitry, and troubleshot spacing between gearbox and body.
• Ben Chabner (Year 4 – Psychology)
  • • Assisted in cleaning up fabric skin application, assisted with the installation of the gearbox, and sorted out singing sections of audio files.
• Matthew Carter (Year 2 – Computer Engineering)
  • • Assisted with early versions of show programming.
• Rebecca Maddox (Year 1 – Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Painted football.
• Jon Omaraie (Year 4 – Mechanical Engineer)
  • • Assisted with fabric skin application.
• Mike Waithika (Year 2-  Aerospace Engineer)
  • • Assisted in cleaning up fabric skin application.