📋 Overview
At Burning Man last year, I spent the week spraying people with water and earned the nickname "Mister Mister" / "Mista Mista." AutoSquirt is the roboticized version of that — a backpack-mounted robot arm that tracks people and sprays them with water. Work in progress for Burning Man 2026.
💡 Context
Last year I just had a spray bottle. This year the goal is to automate it — a robot arm on a backpack that does the spraying for me. Still a work in progress, evolving from a denhac proof of concept into something playa-ready.
🛠 Tech Stack
🧠 Technical Architecture
The Jetson Orin Nano draws too much power for a single battery when combined with servos and pumps. Designed a dual power system — dedicated battery for compute, separate supply for actuators — to prevent brownouts during operation.
Flash (camera) → person detection → SO-101 arm tracking → pump trigger. The arm follows detected targets in real-time while the pump system delivers water through a motorcycle windshield washer nozzle.
Everything lives in a 3D-printed frame that mounts to a standard backpack: compute module, batteries, robot arm, water reservoir, pump, and nozzle. No external tethers. Walk around freely and spray at will.
💰 Bill of Materials
| Component | Cost |
|---|---|
| SO-101 Robot Arm | ~$200 |
| Jetson Orin Nano Super | $249 |
| Energizer 30,000mAh Battery | $40 |
| Windshield Washer Kit | ~$15 |
| 3D Print Filament + Hardware | ~$30 |
| Total BOM | ~$490 |
🎯 Role
Creator and builder. Designed the system architecture, built the initial proof of concept with Daniel and Austin at denhac, sourced and purchased hardware components, and am iterating toward a playa-ready build. Dual arms + vision + CamelBak working as of Feb 2026.
✨ Key Highlights
- Proof of concept described as "honestly insane" — but it works
- Evolved from JuggerBot POC to full backpack system in 2 months
- Dual robot arms + computer vision tracking operational
- Total BOM under $500 for a wearable autonomous robot
- 3D-printed housing designed for portability and playa conditions
- Target deployment: Burning Man 2026
🔜 Status
Hardware acquired, teleop working, dual arms + vision + water system functional. Currently waiting on a replacement servo and finalizing the 3D-printed backpack frame. Next milestone: field testing before the playa.