Scalable Snake Puzzle

prusaprinters

<p>A classic puzzle adapted for 3d printing. The design is scalable in the sense it has a smart resize function that scales both the piece and the connector ring appropriately.</p> <p>Hint: to connect the pieces, put the snap ring into one piece, then do a round/wiggly motion with the second piece. The idea is to compress the ring from the side until it snaps in.</p> <p>Biggest challenge with this design was to make it fully printable without supports. I went through a few iterations of the connector mechanism, in the end I settled on this internal compression ring that gives that is compliant/springy feel even after it wears out a bit. It has a 45 degree interface so it doesn't break when taken apart (secondary benefit it prints without support). Second challenge was with sharp edges from the 1st layer and top layer: initially the edges would break very easily and could also cut/scratch or cause high spots during rotation. Chamfering the edges made a huge difference there.</p> <p>Some predefined models are included, but you can use the Thingiverse Customizer to generate your desired scale.</p> <h3>Print instructions</h3><h3>Category: Puzzles Summary</h3> <p>A classic puzzle adapted for 3d printing. The design is scalable in the sense it has a smart resize function that scales both the piece and the connector ring appropriately.</p> <p>Hint: to connect the pieces, put the snap ring into one piece, then do a round/wiggly motion with the second piece. The idea is to compress the ring from the side until it snaps in.</p> <p>Biggest challenge with this design was to make it fully printable without supports. I went through a few iterations of the connector mechanism, in the end I settled on this internal compression ring that gives that is compliant/springy feel even after it wears out a bit. It has a 45 degree interface so it doesn't break when taken apart (secondary benefit it prints without support). Second challenge was with sharp edges from the 1st layer and top layer: initially the edges would break very easily and could also cut/scratch or cause high spots during rotation. Chamfering the edges made a huge difference there.</p> <p>Some predefined models are included, but you can use the Thingiverse Customizer to generate your desired scale.</p> <h3> Print Settings</h3> <p><strong>Notes:</strong></p> <p>PLA works well for the connector spring, but I've noticed there is big difference in elasticity between different brands of PLA (example the red PLA in the picture is too springy so it comes loose easily). You might need to experiment with the openscad coupler_depth/connector_dia parameters to get the stiffness just right.</p>