Moving Gear Clock

thingiverse

I've been working on an idea for a clock where the frame moves instead of the actual pointers in my head for quite some time. I finally managed to turn it into something tangible. The clock, which consists of a circle with two pointers, moves around its base once every hour. A video at https://youtu.be/f4Gc3qVG7UA shows an accelerated version of the clock to illustrate its mechanism. Everything is 3D-printed without support, except for a small stepper motor that I controlled with an Arduino. The backplate will need some modifications if you want to use it with a different motor. You can find more information about the stepper motor at http://www.geeetech.com/wiki/index.php/Stepper_Motor_5V_4-Phase_5-Wire_%26_ULN2003_Driver_Board_for_Arduino. To assemble this, please consult the exploded view for instructions. Most printed parts will have a tight fit, so you may need to use a hammer to press-fit all components together. For me, simply pressing in the components was enough to keep everything secure, but you might prefer to add some additional glue.