Flopping toy mechanism design

Other Hardware Product Design
1

I've bought a flopping toy for my kid. The toy looks like:

enter image description here

Unfortunately, the toy mechanism inside jams when grabbed and the battery lasts for a short time:

https://i.stack.imgur.com/pzpHw.jpg

I tried to do my own mechanism, printing own case and using Arduino with servo PowerHD R12 but the servo was heating up :frowning: Is there any possibility to make similar mechanism for toy with not oversizing it? What kind of motor/mechanism would be good for that kind of sweeping toy so it doesn't get hot?

1 Like
2

  • Hobby gear Motors could be used.

  • The connection to the moving portion must not be a solid link to the motor shaft, must be stiff but flexible. You could also add foldback current limiting.

  • So it does not always draw high current, the motor operation can be ON/OFF timed (ex: every 4 seconds if there is user attention) .

3

Thanks for your answer! Could you explain more the second point about flexible connection? Which parts and why should be connected like this?

4

Let us assume you are using a gear motor with a cam arm connected to the motor shaft.

You would connect this arm to a stiff but flexible rod that then connects to let say a tail of a toy fish.

If the tail is physically prevented form moving by your hand, the flexible rod gives under your force but the motor still moves as the rod absorbs the force.

Since the motor still moves, it will not be stopped and will not draw too much current or be damaged.

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