Lab Rocker

thingiverse

Currently operational, feedback always welcome INTRO This is a rocker I designed for my lab. Anyone who has worked in a a biology lab has used on of these to keep a sample from settling, develop a blot, or stain a gel, but the lab I'm in now didn't have one (everything was placed on the same shaker we grew cultures on, or even tapped to the legs of a shaking incubator). When I asked why we didn't I never got a good answer until I looked up the price of for one, and basically I got personally offended by what I saw. SUPPLIES This is a full list of everything I used to make my rocker, brands are most likely irrelevant but if you choose a different motor you may need to resize the hole in the middle of the wheel, and the seat in the motor base to fit. Besides an FDM printer you will need Some sturdy filament (I used PETg, PLA + was just too soft) A motor (Greartisan DC 12V 100RPM ) A pulse wave modulator or a potentiometer (Greartisan 1.8V-15V 2A DC Motor Speed Controller PWM) to control the motor speed A way to power said motor and controller (inShareplus 12V LED Strip Power Supply 2A 24W, Wall Mounted 12V Switching Power Supply) Two zip ties 2 M3 screws and nuts Glue/adhesive of your choice (I used 2 part epoxy for everything, why? because I had it and had lost my super glue) ASSEMBLY Print 1 copy of the RoCker plate and 2 copies of the RoCker Edge. Attach the edges to the rocker on the top along the flat sides using glue of your choice (I used super glue) Print 2 RoCker Legs the pegs on the legs go in the holes on the rocker. This may take some sanding or filing depending on your tolerances, I have made them the exact same size in the STL files using one as the negative to create the other. Print the RoCker Motor Base this was intended to use zip ties to attach to the motor. However I found that the motor still moved and I instead attached the rocker and motor with 2 part epoxy. I left the wholes for the zip ties in the model, A : since it uses less material with holes in it B: the zip ties hold the motor while the epoxy cures very nicely C: because if your zip tie game is better than mine you may still be able to use them. Print the RoCker wheel and attach it to the motor. The suggested motor has a D shaped drive shaft however I still chose to use a 2 part epoxy to secure the drive shaft to the wheel. This may be unnecessary depending on your choice of filament but if you do do it this should be more than sufficient to hold everything together. Print the RoCker Driver. This has 2 holes do not worry both sides are symmetrical. One side screws into wheel via a M3 screw, the other screws into the small appendage on the plate in the same manner. With the legs in the holes of the plate and the motor, motor base, and wheel assembled and screwed to the plate the bottoms of the legs and the bottom of the motor base should all be level. Secure the bottoms of the legs and bottom of the motor base to a flat hard surface. I purchased a bathroom tile from Lowes, but anything hard heavy and flat will do. If you are sure you never want to get rid of it it could even be attached to a table. Wire the motor, control unit, and power supply and let it rip. Congrats you just saved several hundred dollars go tell your PI.