Apr 30, 2017 | By Julia
For anyone who’s ever watched Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and longed for some dancing kitchenware of their own, now’s your chance to make that dream a reality. A French maker and computer scientist by the name of Paul-Louis Ageneau has created a 3D printed dancing teapot. Full of personality and quirky dance moves, the teapot’s entire set of instructions are available for download on Ageneau’s GitHub page.
To design his new friend, Ageneau used 3D-modeling software OpenSCAD, then 3D printed each part in polylactide thermoplastic (PLA). Once each component was printed, four servos were attached to the robot’s legs and ankles, so to speak, which were then hooked up to an Arduino Pro Mini microcontroller board. Ageneau programmed the Arduino board with several charming dance moves, all powered by a 9-volt alkaline battery.
On describing his process, Ageneau explains that he was initially inspired by the Bob robot, a popular 3D printed robot on Thingiverse. “The Bob robot,” he says, “inspired an impressive number of clones with its really good design. The most famous ones might be Zowi, and more recently Otto. They are both simple, cheap, open-source and 3D printed little robots which have refined [Bob’s] two-legged design.”
“Yet, I am not a fan of their strange square heads. What I would like is a teapot. A dancing teapot,” Ageneau writes.
Et voilà! The tiny dancing teapot was born. For those with a bit of experience on an Arduino, the setup is fairly straightforward. The full set of required materials is as follows:
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A 5-volt Arduino Pro Mini board (or a compatible clone)
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A 5-volt switching regulator
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Four 3.7g micro servos, H301 or compatible
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A 9-volt battery connector and a 9-volt battery
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A USB to UART bridge to program the robot
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Dupont wires, M2 screws, pins, prototype board, and glue
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Optional: A piezo sounder to play music
Ageneau’s GitHub repository contains his readily downloadable sketches, as well as the corresponding SCAD and STL files. There, the French maker also walks you through connecting a piezo speaker to the Arduino, allowing the teapot to play melodies while it dances. A step-by-step guide is also available on Ageneau’s blog.
With electrifying dance moves that rival your friends’, and an adorable clip on lid to boot, this 3D printed teapot might just be the new wingman you’ve been looking for. All he needs is a name. Get acquainted with the video above!
Posted in 3D Printing Application
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Can you make the parts so i could print it? i mean show the parts
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