3D Printed Projects

3D printed pieces often need rough edges filed down so that pieces can fit together smoothly, especially where there is movement involved.

And what are the current projects?

The InMoov robot hand:

And this pcb workstation:

First test of the InMoov finger movement:

What We Did With Our Summer

1. Scoured craigslist rentals.
2. Pooled our resources for rent.
3. Hauled.
4. Scrubbed.
5. Patched.
6. Painted with oops paint mixed together with partial cans from our garages.
7. Watched craigslist and freecycle for workbenches and fans.
8. Received help from some generous friends.
9. Installed wiring, fans, and new shop lights.
10. Started using our new shop space.

Maker Faire 2015

We were just one of dozens of wheeled objects at the faire, but we were the only ice cream cone.

Well, the only wheeled ice cream cone.

Two Weeks Ago...

...we were here:

adding texture strips

using this adhesive to...

...glue stacks of foam rings

 Doug used his custom sawzall blade to sculpt the top:

Emilio worked his paint magic once again, and we had another test run:

This evening, there were minor adjustments, including the addition of this printed emergency button housing:

And then it was finished, the mobile cupcake ice cream cone:

We'll be at the 10th Annual Bay Area Maker Faire this weekend. Hope to see you there, too.

Busy Meeting

Meetings can feel busy when everyone splits off to work on different aspects of a project.

Doug received quite a bit of admiration for his modification of a reciprocating saw blade. Grinding off the teeth and sharpening the edge made it into a fast and accurate foam cutter.

Another team cut holes for the support wheels...

While a third group wired the batteries in sequence to power the controller.

Everything worked.

And of course, this led to all kinds of playing around.

Now that the car works, how shall we dress it up?

Wheels and Wiring

Soldering wire connections and measuring for wheel mountings:

photo by Sabrina Granados

photo by Sabrina Granados

photo by Sabrina Granados

Catching up

Documentation has slipped a bit, but here's what has happened over the last two months:

photo by Sabrina Granados

photo by Sabrina Granados 

photo by Sabrina Granados

photo by Sabrina Granados

photo by Sabrina Granados

The project has been changed from a cupcake to another edible. More on that to come—

Dismantling a Wheelchair

We had a long break due to holidays and the loss of our previous work space, so the first meeting of the year featured a junked wheelchair that Doug had sourced from craigslist. The kids love nothing so much as taking the thing apart.

using a wrench to add leverage to a stuck nut

a break in the middle to talk about possible rc car modifications

Sadly, once we got the motors apart, it was clear that they were too rusted to be easily salvaged. However, the wheels and frame parts may prove useful.