My kids and I love to make Lego Duplo marble circuits. Once you create enough big circuits you start wondering if there is a way to make it run indefenitelly with a marble elevator.
We tried the screwy kind where the balls get lifted inside a tube. Those didn't work as I expected. Even tried to make a new one of that kind and more of the same. Then, I saw a video of lego technic where they used a chain to lift the balls and hit my mind as a good way for Lego Duplo.
In this model you need one unit of each STL you see, but you will also need:
For the upper end of the lifter:
· 2 bearings of 3x8x3mm for the end gear, the one you find up top the lifter.
· 1 screw of 3mm x 32-35mm for the upper gear.
· 1 hexagonal nut for the 3mm screw. 5mm between planes.
For the chain:
· 2 screw of 30mm long and 3mm thickness. Each 2 will be used to "get" the balls.
For the motorized base:
· 2 bearings of 5x10x4mm for the bottom gear.
· 1 screw of 42-45mm long and 5mm thickness.
· 1 hexagonal nut for a 5mm screw and 8mm between planes.
· 1 motor to move it. I used the one of the link and the picture: 5v 60RPM. The motor housing measures 12mm x 10mm, and the lenght does not matter.
The challenge for you to make this elevator is going to be to find the right motor. Below you will find a link to aliexpress where you will find mine, as other parts of the BOM. Once you have them all, the rest is pretty straight forward to mount. I recomend to get the USB connector. You will find a place to put it over the motor, in one side.
I attach the Fusion 360 document of the hole elevator. Sorry, not a professional so the order and techniques are not the more convenient.
I hope you like the model and helps you enjoy the marbles even more.
Thanks to TNS as the following model is the one I remixed for the chain.
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2105040
Links for the BOM:
· Screws: https://es.aliexpress.com/item/32907505613.html
· Motor: https://es.aliexpress.com/item/33059907659.html
· USB connector: https://es.aliexpress.com/item/1005001375699847.html
· Bearings: https://es.aliexpress.com/item/4000603220149.html
| Ascensor_Cadena_Lego_Duplo.f3d | 17.4MB | |
| Base_balls_elevator.stl | 995.6KB | |
| Chain_link.stl | 207.2KB | |
| Motor_box.stl | 628.0KB | |
| Motor_gear.stl | 2.8MB | |
| Passive_Gear.stl | 710.7KB | |
| Tractor_gear.stl | 1.9MB |
