Form•Z rendering of spinning top
3D Printing—Self-Inverting Top
In this assignment we make a self-inverting top from aluminum using the lathe and milling machine. Unfortunately, though able to model my top in IDEAS, I was not able to complete a toolpath. Thus I used the 3D Printer to print the top instead.
The first attempt shown above was based on flawed understanding of reversible tops, so I revised the design and started to work again on the new shape.
Form•Z rendering of spinning top
Before settling on the final design, I made a top in the FDM200 3D printer,
shown below in draft and model.
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Wireframe model of second generation
top
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Printed top — ABS
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Top spinning
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Top spinning
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In the images on the right, it can be seen that the top does not invert, never moving beyond a certain point on the upper surface.
For the final attempt, I modeled the top as a sphere. The cutout along the shaft, shown in section, pushes the center of mass upward. I had hoped that this would cause the top to rotate in the manner desired.
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Top view
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Bottom view
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Section view, cut face transparent
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Unfortunately, the top did not work as desired, still failing to turn over onto the thin shaft.
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The two 3D printed tops
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Spherical top spinning
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Spherical top spinning
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