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In this video, I'll walk you through the process of how I designed and engineered a unique sculpture that resembles as a mini basketball game. The sculpture features two miniature basketball hoops and nets, and it shoots mini basketballs back and forth between them, creating an entertaining and interactive experience for viewers.
You can get the STL for the fully mechanical, fully printable version here:
engineezy.com/products/the-ro...
These are the balls I used:
amzn.to/43Qb5c3
Much of this project was printed on my Bambulab X1 Carbon which I HIGHLY recommend (seriously, nothing beats it) Here’s my affiliate link: shrsl.com/2a5d5-2yn7-1cwx9
To create this sculpture, I started by sketching out my ideas and making a rough 3D model. Once I had a basic design, I began prototyping and testing various mechanisms for shooting the mini basketballs. After several iterations, I settled on a system that uses a stepper driven linkage design with a compound gear train.
Next, I had to figure out how to power the motor and control the timing and speed of the ball movement. I decided to use an Arduino microcontroller and some custom code to control the motor and trigger the ball release mechanism. I also added some sensors to detect when a ball had made it through the hoop and into the opposite scoop, which triggers the next shot.
The final sculpture is a combination of wood, metal, and plastic parts, all carefully crafted to fit together seamlessly. I'll walk you through the construction process, from cutting and sanding the wood to assembling the various components and wiring up the electronics.
Overall, this was a challenging but rewarding project that allowed me to combine my love of art and engineering. I hope you enjoy watching the process as much as I enjoyed building it!