Mechanical Fan with planetary gears

thingiverse

Update1: I created a new crank that's reinforced and easier to rotate slowly (I designed it with 3 gearboxes in mind since rotating the whole thing would be relatively hard). Next, I'll focus on improving the planet gears holder, as it's now the weakest part for the 3 gearbox variant. Update2: I added a reinforced version of the planets holder thingies, and they're solid enough that I consider this project finished . You can check out the completed model here: https://youtu.be/ytXheS1m-V4 PS: I think 2 gearboxes and the old crank are the best combination, but 3 gearboxes are cool - they just add too much friction and make the system more prone to jamming. However, it's up to you! How to assemble (sorry about the quiet audio): https://youtu.be/9Z3ExSQPsK8 Hello! I'm excited to share my few-months-worth of project with you . I don't know why, but I wanted to create a mechanical toy that could do something while it was just a static filament roll only a few days ago. First and foremost, I want to thank those guys who published their projects on Thingiverse: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1415432 and http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:56542 . I used their parts because I knew I'd struggle creating my own fan and gears from scratch. Thanks for sharing your work, even though I heavily modified it. To print this model, just remember a few things: there's no need for supports in any of the parts, and the printer should be accurate enough to handle shapes like the fan case and fan holder. When you assemble the fan case and fan holder, there will be a very small gap between them, but it won't jump or move around when rotating. Assembling is straightforward: 1) Insert the Fan_case_pin into the Fan_case - the pin has a small cap on it that stops at the right moment. 2) Place the Planet_gear into the Planet_holder_bottom while keeping the small bump on the gear aligned with the top. 3) Close the Planet_holder_bottom with the Planet_holder_top. 4) Insert the Fan_holder into the Fan, and you should hear a click sound when they connect securely. 5) Place the assembled Fan_holder with Fan into the Fan_case, making sure the planetary gearbox is on the other end. 6) Position the Crank_holder on top of the assembled gearbox. 7) Insert the Crank_pin into the Crank in the same way you did with the Fan_case pin and Fan_case. 8) Place the Crank_handle into the assembled Crank_pin - note that this is a one-way trip, so be careful not to break the pins inside the crank handle. 9) Assemble the Crank by inserting it into the Crank_holder. 10) You might want to use the Pin and Short_pin (which aren't really necessary, but I included them just in case). The only thing I suggest is gluing the gearbox ring gears together with each other and the fan case pins with the gearbox so they don't fall apart at high speeds. Sorry if I forgot anything - there were countless iterations and thinking involved in this project. There are like 10 versions of everything, but I think it's pretty reliable and easy to make now. Hope you enjoy it!