LulzBot Mini Camera Mounting Arm

thingiverse

You can access the CAD source with a free OnShape account at https://cad.onshape.com/documents/1f97201db151ffff180e9eb8/w/ed431e8f40d477a947024067/e/d734e1175cff8b490886d382. I'm a big fan of OnShape because the interface is intuitive and easy to learn, I was able to master it in just one evening after watching the tutorial videos. This part was designed specifically for printing with PLA filament, and it was printed on the Mini shown in the pictures. If you're planning to print with PLA, make sure it's 100% pure PLA, not a PLA blend like eSun "PLA Pro". I know the cables appear messy in these pictures, but I'll get around to organizing them later. The Amazon link to the camera I'm using is https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012ETE75I/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00. Because the camera cable is ribbon-style, I chose to conceal it inside the RasPi case and attach the camera directly to the case using foam-backed two-sided tape that's crazy-strong. The fastest way for me to complete this project was to attach the RasPi to the arm with more of the same tape. Since I'm generally impatient, I try to avoid hardware requirements when possible, so I opted to use two of the holes on the side of the LulzBot Mini frame and found some 3mm x 12mm machine screws at my local OSH. This design could be adapted to connect to the bed instead by creating a new base section. Since I'm not doing time-lapse, I chose to mount to the frame since it's easier to design for. I have concerns that PLA may get weak if placed close to the heat of the bed during operation. You can print however many arm segments you want or simply extend the neck of the segment to make it longer. The friction of the joint is crucial to support the weight of the camera and RasPi, and you can alter this variable by changing the values of the two dimensions shown in the last image, which are found in Sketch 1 in the OnShape document.