360° Tripod Mount Any Phone 3D Printed

grabcad

The smartphone market is seeing an influx of high-quality cameras and innovative photography apps. One intriguing app is Google's Photosphere, which captures 360-degree photos. However, the challenge lies in perfectly tilting and rotating a phone for seamless stitching between multiple images. To address this issue, the author designed a versatile tripod mount that attaches to any 1/4" screw tripod, freely pivots around the horizontal axis, adjusts to hold various phones, and aligns with the center vertical axis of a phone's camera. The design includes eight parts, but required multiple revisions due to printer errors. The project successfully incorporated M6-1.0 x 12 mm cap screws, hex nuts, springs, and rubber grips. The ball bearing assembly was a highlight, while finding the right margins proved challenging. Design improvements include reducing wiggle room in the ball bearing assembly and slightly increasing phone holder depth. The author's tripod mount works with various phones after some design modifications.