Deployable Hook/Cam Accessory

Last crawled date: 1 year, 10 months ago

18SEP: Added GIF versions of MP4 videos to the images
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06SEP: Prototyped 2-arm model on San Jose TechShop's new uPrint 3D printer! See photos and 5-second video clips (sorry, no YouTube, so need to download MP4 files). It took 6 hours to print and (2) 8-hour soaks to remove all support material, but it was worth waiting to see the finished assembly in action. The "Hook" video is shown as-printed. For the "Cam" video I added elastic bands (ORANGE) to open the jaws and covered the jaws with silicone (CLEAR) to simulate a soft material that would have been possible with a multi-material 3D printer.
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A drone accessory that can be transported closed and then deployed as either a Hook or as a Cam-action Gripper. It can be configured with 2 or 4 arms.

As drawn it may be a bit large for the Horus drone, but as an example I have shown it attached with a simple Strap (BLACK) that will help keep the assembly from spinning when the Jaws are deployed.

Basic Operation:
1. Jaws (YELLOW) are folded up and held closed by the ring on the GREEN Shaft.
2. To deploy, touch the tip of the GREEN Shaft to the ground, forcing the ring up and releasing the Jaws. There are Posts (RED) for attaching springs or elastic bands (not shown) to help open the Jaws.
3. The triangular tip of the GREEN shaft is used to help guide the end into an opening when using the Cam-action Gripper feature. This tip is optional and can be removed for a more compact assembly.

This design highlights many key features of 3D printing:
1) BLUE and GREEN Shafts have multiple geometries that would normally require multiple machining and assembly operations.
2) The BLUE Shaft includes hinge pins that allow the Jaws to be 3D printed in place.
3) The GREEN Shaft will be 3D printed already captured in the slots of the BLUE Shaft.
4) The Jaws include Gripper Pads (ORANGE) that could be 3D printed with a softer material.

This single 3D-printed design is a pivoting, translating assembly that would normally require multiple fabrication (molding or casting, machining) and assembly (bonding or welding, pin insertion) techniques using traditional manufacturing methods.