Dropping Eggs from Drones for Fun and Science - The Claw Egg Drop Mechanism

thingiverse

I was thrilled to accept an invitation from my local school to join their Egg-Drop science event, where innovative minds gather to push the boundaries of scientific experimentation. They were seeking fresh ideas this year, something to break away from conventional approaches. Instead of relying on standard protection methods using boxes, they proposed dropping eggs from a drone or multirotor and challenging us to catch them mid-air. This is my entry into that groundbreaking endeavor. My initial concept centered around creating a claw-type mechanism to delicately release one egg at a time. I found the ideal component on http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:745817, courtesy of glenchung, who generously shared it. The snap mounting had to be tweaked to accommodate a servo. For successful assembly, a miniservo is necessary along with some solid core wire or even hot glue can be used on part of the zip tie arm. My intention was to create a custom servo arm using http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:28566 but ultimately opted for a more intricate Rotary Egg Dropper (available here: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:859220). The details and build instructions can be found on Instructables.com (http://www.instructables.com/id/Dropping-eggs-from-drones-for-fun-and-science/). My printed components in PLA included two perimeters, two bottom layers, two top layers with no support and 15% infill. The outcome needed some careful filing to accommodate the servo and snugly fit the Iris+ arm. Surprisingly, screwing it in place was unnecessary as it provided a secure fit on its own. In the photo of the clip attached to the Iris is our mock "practice egg". Always keep in mind: avoid using i-hooks on real eggs, and refrain from test fitting with actual eggs for a safer experiment. For the event itself, I utilized several inches of electrical tape to create a loop on top of each egg for the claw's secure grip.