Writing on the convergence of 3D printing and music, I came across this work by 3D printed instrument craftsman Olaf Diegel that didn’t fit in with the rest of his designs. If music is 3D printing and 3D printing is music and all categories really do blend into one another, it might be said that Diegel’s latest addition to his collection is an instrument. As much as it’s a flower or a couch cushion or an omnidirectional robot.
The OddBot is an omnidirectional robot outfitted with mecanum wheels and designed to be 3D printed on any 3D printer. Diegel’s site explains the origins and purpose of the mecanum wheels: “A mecanum wheel, invented by Swedish engineer Bengt Ilon in 1973, is a special wheel, with angled rollers around its periphery, that allows a vehicle to move sideways without needing to change the angle of it’s wheels. If the front wheel rotates in one direction and the rear wheel rotates in the opposite direction, you get a sideways motion.”
Inspired by Up! user John Chan (aka Madox), Diegel wanted to create an educational and open-source project that almost anyone could 3D print. The OddBot runs on any micro-controller and servo motors, with Diegel using the Infocast microcontroller and the Pololu Maestro 6 servo controller and AA batteries to power it. The design leaves room for additional sensors, if you want to make your OddBot more cognizant of its surroundings. With custom, web-based OddBot software, you can start piloting your little omnidirectional robot into every direction.
All of the instructions to build the OddBot are on Diegel’s website, along with the .stl files, the bill of materials, and a link to the software. All that’s missing is you!
