Automatic Ball Launcher for Dogs

Vittorio, is my second dog, which I have had during my life, is a pug of about 2 months. Vito, although he sleeps a lot during the day, when he wakes up is a complete whirlwind, he runs, he bites, he jumps, he licks, he becomes something similar to Taz of the looney toons. Most of the time I play with him, however, at a time I will start college so I will have less time and I fear that he will be bored at home most of the time, since my parents are working and they are no longer so young to play with Vito. So looking for some way to make Vito not to spend so much time bored while I do my jobs or tasks, I started this automatic launcher so I can play with it while I do my homework. The ball thrower is quite simple to make, no need of advanced knowledge of electronics or mechanics, besides using materials relatively easy to find, it is quite cheap, in my country Peru, it cost me less than 50 dollars to realize the whole project. However, I believe that buying electronic parts in China and reducing the cost of printing designs. All the launchers could reduce their cost by approximately $ 35. I hope you enjoy doing this project and thank you for reading my instructable.

Step 1: Components

Electronics:

-12V LED Automation Delay Multi-funtion Timer Control Switch Relay Module Programming Setup with Buzzer(2 Buttons)

-Relay Module 12v Delay Switch Ne555 Module Timer 0-20s

- Cables

- Solenoid (12 v)

-Limit switch

-Motors (12 - 24 v)

- Power Supply

Tubes:

-4 inch to 2 in reducer

-A long 90 degree bend

-2 Straight tube

3D Prints:

- Here are the objects printed in 3D: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1DmxIeeFkU0...

Tools:

- PVC glue

- Pliers

-Screwdrivers

-Dremmel

Step 2: Cutting of Pieces

1: Cut a line in the reduction tube deep enough so that when placing the ball and it activates the limit switch

2: Cut a circle, a few cm larger than the diameter of your solenoid. 3: Cut a space equivalent to the empty space occupied by the piece "print_wheel", in a straight tube, make sure that the space is the required one since otherwise the wheels could be hit with the tube, for this it would be advisable to draw with a marker the space to be cut.

Step 3: Assembly of Parts:

1: Join the pieces, as shown in the picture and paste them with PVC glue.

2: The solenoid, as well as the limit switch, go in the cuts made for them previously, however, in the case of the solenoid, this can be supported and pasted on the "stand", however if it is the case in which your solenoid does not fit in the stand, you can modify it in any CAD program.

Step 4: Wiring

To make the wiring can be done with any cable that supports 12v and any size, I recommend using small cables if you decide to screw them, however, if you are going to solder the use any size of cable is your choice. These are the steps of the wiring:

Positive from the barrel plug goes to VCC on the blue board

Negative goes to the GND on blue board

Motors get one wire to CK on the blue board and one wire to GND if they spin the wrong way to just switch the wires around

You need a jumper from VCC to CM on the blue board

The switch gets a wire to VCC and one to IN on the blue board

Now you need one wire from CK on the blue board to DC + on the red board

One wire from GND on the blue board to DC- on the red board

The solenoid gets one wire from COM on the red board and one from DC +

Then you need a jumper from DC- to NO on the red board

I think that should be everything. Last assemblies. The last thing is to stick the wheels, for this you can use any glue. If necessary, you can also glue the tires or wrap the motors so that they fit into the "brace"

Step 5: Last Assemblies

The last thing is to stick the wheels, for this you can use any glue. If necessary, you can also glue the tires or wrap the motors so that they fit into the "brace"