Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks

71

5

5. How to Hack a Furby

(and Other Talking Toys)

Cost

Time

Difficulty

$100–125

a weekend

very difficult

In 1998, a subsidiary of Hasbro Toys called Tiger Electronics introduced

Furby, a cloth-covered robotic toy controlled by microprocessor. Furby

had a microphone, an infrared receiver/transmitter, a speaker, and a set of

gears to make its eyes, mouth, and features move. Furby responded to its

sensor inputs and would speak phrases in English, Spanish, or Japanese

(depending on where the toy was purchased), as well as its own language,

“Furbish.” Furby was an instant hit. However, after playing with the toy for

a short while, the built-in phrases ceased being cute and began to annoy its

owner (me).

In this hack I will describe one method of hacking a Furby to allow complete

control of its actions and output phrases. After modification, the Furby will

be fully programmable in either C or assembly language. I will also describe

how to hack more basic talking toys to allow you to change what they say.

Project Overview

To perform this hack, you’ll first take apart the Furby and remove several of

its circuit boards. Next, you’ll assemble your own circuit boards and install

them. (This can be tricky, as you will be soldering some very small surface

mount components to a board.) Finally, you’ll reassemble the Furby and

surprise your friends with its new vocabulary.

“I pity the fool!”

Credits

Photos and portions of the text copyright ©

2003 Andrew Staats and Jeff Gibbons.

What You Need

• One un-hacked Furby

• A soldering iron

• Solder wick

• Electronic hand tools

• A multi-meter

• 36 inches of 30-gauge insulate wire

• Other items listed in

Exhibit A

ch05_furby.indd 71

1/21/2002 12:32:59 PM