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• First rotation action!

  Martin Lindskog • 07/16/2015 at 11:56 • 0 comments

  First test of software + all hardware successful! Everything works as expected. Next step will be to assemble the entire large structure which will take place next week, prior to the annual family croquet tournament (~30-40 participants).

• PCBs have arrived!

  Martin Lindskog • 07/16/2015 at 11:53 • 0 comments

  I will use an arduino for the randomizing and sequencing. While I have experience with several hardware platforms, I value short set-up and development time and good community support over performance and price. It was also a good opportunity to try it out!

  I designed a simple breakout-board to simplify installation. Also gave me an opportunity to test OSH Park.

  I chose to use hole-mounted components to be able to easily modify the design when it is in place outside, by the croquet court.

  It has connections to five servos, some various power supply options as well as a number of buttons to start the mixing sequence. I've also included expansion possibilities for IR gates, which might be used in a future update of the system (I plan to use suitable delays in the first revision)

• Servo mount

  Martin Lindskog • 07/16/2015 at 11:47 • 0 comments

  The basic idea is to have three rotating shafts that open or close holes that the balls can fall into. Previous attempts have been flimsy and not rigid enough, so I decided to create a proper solution. I use cheap servo motors for the rotation (the force required is quite small), but the small servo motors need proper mechanical fastening. I purchased some cheap ball bearings from aliexpress, and 3d-printed a servo holder with bearings to offload all force from the servo. Seems to work fine!

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