I know what I'll be doing over the holidays (other than ArduPilot projects and the T3-4 contest): assembling my new MakerBot. An open source 3D printer for less than $1,000. I can make ABS plastic objects with .4mm precision up to 4"x4"x6". What should I make?
Pan tilt unit( like pandora) for cam is good idea or how about pan tilt for ardustation antenna mount using pexiglass cutout for standard servo size including sail servo in DIY store? :)
Martin, I spent some time at MakerBot labs and was impressed by the robustness of the fabbed products, They're essentially indestructable (well, I was unable to break them, despite throwing them on the floor a few times). Good interlayer bonding and flexible ABS is the secret. You wouldn't use it for something you needed to be super rigid, but perfect for all the application described in this thread.
My vote is for an aerodynamic camera pan/tilt platform - based on a consumer camera like the sony webbie.
My thinking is that most small plastic parts for an RCplane are already in mass production overseas - but the camera ball is fairly unique, and while there are several laser cut pan tilt heads, they aren't very practical for UAVs.
We usually soak them in acrylic bonding solution. That will fuse the layers together by melting the plastic slightly. You can buy the solution from Tapp plastics and brush it on.
How well do those layers hold together? I've seen a couple prototypers like this one (Reprap) and the inter-layer bonding was insufficient for, say, aircraft parts.
And to answer your question: you could make an entire fuselage with this, right? Completely custom. Or a camera mount. Or propellers :]
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My thinking is that most small plastic parts for an RCplane are already in mass production overseas - but the camera ball is fairly unique, and while there are several laser cut pan tilt heads, they aren't very practical for UAVs.
And to answer your question: you could make an entire fuselage with this, right? Completely custom. Or a camera mount. Or propellers :]
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