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New hopper STLs to improve dispensing

A project log for Feeding Experimentation Device (FED) 2.0

FED measures food intake in mice. It is battery powered and designed to be used in rodent colony caging.

lex-kravitzLex Kravitz 07/21/2019 at 14:500 Comments

I recently updated the hopper and pellet disk for FED3 to improve dispensing.  Because the hoppers use the same threading these new parts will also fit on FED2!

There’s a minor consideration with using the new parts - for FED3, the little “feet” click into the housing and ensure that the pellet foot is oriented towards the front of the device.  Photo of FED3:

The FED2 housing doesn’t have anything for the feet to click into, so make sure it’s oriented with the pellet foot directly forward.  If it’s off center it might result in multiple pellets coming down the pellet shoot.   I could also see it loosening up over time, so keep an eye on that.  

The motor also has to be more carefully “centered” than with the prior parts, to ensure the disk doesn’t rub on the walls.  It is larger in diameter now so this is more of a concern than with the old disk:

Use a screw driver through the holes in the bottom to loosen the motor, make sure it's centered and can spin freely all the way around, and then tighten it up!

Please leave comments if you try this!

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