Hello MMDers,  Some of you might be interested to know that we are
designing and building an automatic guitar.  This device is based on
a six-string electric guitar but it uses stepper motors to change the
"finger position" for individual strings and to raise and lower
individual picks.

Picking is accomplished using hydraulic actuators.  The motors and
actuators are controlled by proprietary software and hardware running
off of a Windows-based PC.  We've built several prototypes, the most
recent of which actually produces music.

As you can imagine the Guitarbot is capable of producing a near
infinite variety of sounds that are not possible for a human being to
produce.  Two of the most obvious types are sliding down one or more
strings while picking others, or strumming chords that would only be
possible for a human if their fingers were 24 inches long.

We don't have a web site up yet, but if you'd like to hear the Guitarbot
drop me a line and I can email you a file.

Wayne Wilson

 [ Possibly the best-known hydraulic automata are the animated dolls
 [ in the "Small World" ride at Disneyland.  Please send us a photo,
 [ of the Guitarbot, Wayne, to <editor@foxtail.com>, and we'll post it
 [ at the MMD web site.  -- Robbie