Android phone web cam for 3D printer

thingiverse

I recently saw an Instructable on using an old Android phone as a WiFi enabled webcam. Since I have been wanting to add a camera to my Da Vinci printer to monitor prints, I thought that was a great idea! However, somehow despite the large number of phone mounts and holders on Thingiverse, I could not find one that suited me. So I used http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:512350 as a basis, and rolled my own. It is adjustable by about 30 degrees in one direction, can be mounted vertically or horizontally, and holds its position very well. The mounting base comes in two parts, (please refer to the pictures) and there are two options for each part. One version of the base can be mounted using two screws or there is a version that clips onto the corner rail of a Da Vinci 3D printer. A mounting piece slides into the base which holds the phone clip either flat or at a 30 degree angle. This piece is square so it can fit in any of four directions. Finally there is a clip that holds the phone which is adapted from Thing number 512350. The phone I had available is a Droid Bionic (68 mm wide) so the clip I have to offer fits that phone. See the instructions tab for information on adapting it to another type of phone. I hope someone finds it useful, or at the very least gets a little inspiration from it! The information on using a phone as a webcam can be found here... http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-A-Wi-fi-Webcam-From-An-Old-Android-Phone/ And here is the software that makes it happen... https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pas.webcam.pro Instructions Printed in ABS using a stock Da Vinci 1.0 on typical "Excellent" settings... 0.2 mm layers, 30% infill, normal shells, standard speed. For the half-round Clip part I dialed it up to 50% infill for a firmer grip. Printable without support, the models have built in support where needed. The support should be easy enough to remove, don't worry if the recess for the screw head comes out a bit jagged. The halves of the base are meant to fit snugly. You may need to file the edges a bit--I found an emery board works very well for that. It is pretty simple to put together, I used a 1½ inch #10 machine screw , a washer, and a wing nut to join the two mounting pieces. There is a recess on the bottom of the second piece that the head of the screw will sit in. I added a bit of epoxy to the hole to hold the screw. That worked very well but be sure to run a nut down to pull it tight before the epoxy hardens. If you are interested in adapting this to another type of phone, use http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:512350 to create a clip to fit your phone. I made mine 3 mm thick by 20 mm wide and 5 mm shorter than the width of the phone. The phone measured 68 mm wide using a digital caliper so I set the clip to 63 mm. You will need to use your 3D design software of choice to edit the STL file you download from Thing 512350. The slot in the clip is 5.6 mm by 25 mm. The "grip" ridges are cylinders 1 mm wide by 20 mm long that sit halfway on the edge of the face of the clip. The center ridge is center of the slot the others are offset by 2.5 mm from each other. If I have time, I will make additional clips to fit other phones and add them to the files section. (I can't promise I will make one for every phone out there!) Just post a comment with the exact maximum width of the phone you need a clip for. For the sake of accuracy, I would much prefer it if you use a caliper to take the measurement.