Print

[Kami]

A friend of mine linked to an interesting article earlier today on Twitter, mentioning me in the tweet. I guess everyone knows my interests only too well!

Print your own life-size robot for under $1,000

It's definitely up my alley - I too would really love to use some of the cool new open-source tools we have these days to build my own open-source robots, although not necessarily humanoid robots. Something more adorable, like Pleo, would be ideal. It's cool to see some people who are making headway with similar projects though. I know we have at least one other 3D printer owner on here, so if there are any others hiding around maybe some people will want to try to put together this robot for themselves...

[kat]

If there are pleo owners out there with access to a 3D printer then spare parts for pleo would be a great thing to have    There are a few of us out here who like to tinker with fixing broken pleos but you can't get spare parts    So If someone was to be able to supply some spare bits from time to time I'm sure it would be much appreciated by many 

If your wondering where to start then neck vertebrae would be a good place as we have seen a few pleos with broken ones of those.  It seems sometimes when the neck cables break the vertebrae get broken too from the force of the cable snapping. 

[Kami]

Yes, 3D printers are really ideal for repairing robots like Pleo where the internals are hidden, because it really doesn't matter that the parts come out looking slightly rough-and-ready compared to plastic items produced with more expensive equipment. The printed parts are quite strong, too, and it's ridiculously cheap to make small items.

I would be more than happy to produce those parts for people on my side of the world if someone were able to provide the design files. Unfortunately I can't design and try out the parts myself as I have no broken Pleo, but I do have access to a 3D printer or two and will no doubt be printing my own replacement parts that way if something ever did happen to Lizzy or a future Pleo.

[kat]

Not sure how to create a design file but I have pulled a few pleos apart and would maybe be willing to take little Frankie apart again if it meant being able to create spares for broken pleos.  I'm in Perth WA.  Not sure where you are - I'm guessing on the other side of Aus?  Maybe you could talk me through how to put together the files you would need in order to replicate parts?  Would I need special equipment or computer software to create a design file?

[Crewella]

I have spares of all kinds I can post if you want to try?  The vertebrae would be a good place to start, as Kat says, as they're often broken and don't need to be as exact as some other parts?  

[mlbelanger]

I'm planning on making some spare parts once I get some Pleos in the for repair.  I'm in the U.S., California to be more precise.  RWM will be sending me some of her broken Pleos over the next few months and I'll be able to design some replacement neck parts, etc and post the files on Thingiverse.

I have a first-generation MakerBot Cupcake 3D printer which produces great results with ABS Plastic.  If anyone else has a 3D printer please feel free to chime in so we can get a handle of where we have them.

Michael

[Kami]

The parts themselves probably wouldn't be too hard for anyone competent in a CAD program to design. The challenge with 3D printing is making sure that they will come out of the printer at the size you want and that you've designed something the printer can actually produce. I know the theory but Michael will do a far better job than I could so I'm glad there's someone around to take on that duty.

Once he has those files available I'm happy to supply whatever people need in Australia or a bit beyond if necessary for the cost of printing and posting. (The postage will be the most expensive part!)