Precision Tweezer Grinder
Hardware- 4 Devlogs
- 6 Total hours
It is a grinder for precision tweezers
Ship #1
Pending review
Soldering and Finishing
In this session, I worked on soldering the components together. While it should have been a simple process, a tricky component turned it into a two-hour task, but everything now works as intended.
- Micro USB Challenges: Struggled with the Micro USB port because it was a bare USB port rather than a proper 5V breakout board.
- Soldering Difficulties: Faced issues soldering wires directly to the tiny pins without bridging them or having the connections fall off.
- Cable Solution: Resolved the issue by cutting a standard USB cable and soldering those wires directly into the circuit instead.
- Current Status: The solution works perfectly as intended, even though the internal wiring is not quite as sleek as originally planned.
- Future Improvements: Plan to replace this current setup with a proper breakout board in a future iteration to make the design cleaner.
Final CAD Adjustments and First Assembly
In this session, I worked on the final CAD adjustments for the project design and successfully assembled the newly printed parts. Everything fits much better now and looks amazing.
- CAD Modifications: Changed the hole sizes and reworked the micro USB bracket to prevent it from sliding inside its case.
- Printing and Fit: Printed the three parts with the new dimensions and verified that everything fits much better than the previous version.
- Case Assembly: Tapped the main case for M3 screws, placed all the components inside, and screwed the entire assembly together.
- Next Steps: The last remaining task is to solder everything together, test if it works, and submit all CAD files and journal logs.
First Print and Full CAD Mostly Done
In this session, I finished the main design in CAD and printed the three parts. The two main body pieces fit together nicely but will need a few minor adjustments.
- Time Tracking: Spent 2 hours total on this session, including 1 hour and 15 minutes on CAD and 45 minutes assembling and tinkering.
- Base Plate Tweaks: Need to raise the height of the pole on the base plate so it pushes up against the motor properly.
- Hole Alignment: Need to move the holes inward slightly because they are too close to the wall to print properly with a 0.4 mm nozzle.
- Chassis Strength: Need to remove the small micro USB port area from the main body and place that pad on the bottom half instead to make it stronger and easier to print.
- Motor Clearance: Need to make the recessed area larger because the motor does not fit yet.
Day 1 CAD
Today I started the CAD for this project. I recorded a time-lapse while making it.
- Component Modeling: First, I created the motor, switch, and micro USB models to determine their sizes and better visualize the design.
- Main Chassis: I then started designing the main body and added a recessed area for the motor to fit into. This is not yet finalised.
- Manufacturing Setup: I then started work on the mounting points for the bottom and top halves, as the design will consist of two parts for ease of manufacturing.
- Fasteners & Alignment: There are 2.4 mm diameter holes, which will be tapped to M3. The holes have a recessed area that allows the bottom plate to align perfectly with the top.
- Switch Integration: The last thing I did was add the area where the switch will sit and be press-fitted into place. This is a simple slot with a very small clearance, allowing the switch to be securely press-fitted into the housing.
