Introduction: Electric Epoxy Mixer

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About: I’m a 16-year-old A-level student from Sri Lanka with a passion for robotics. Dedicated to building and innovating in the field, I enjoy creating and exploring new technologies to push the boundaries of what’s…

Hello there, In this project, I'll show you How to make an epoxy mixer based on Arduino. It is very useful for epoxy-based projects. This is a 100% DIY project and a very useful full machine for the workshop. Follow my steps and if you have any questions feel please comment below. I'll reply immediately. For more information visit my site. If you like this post please like and comment. Enjoy.

Step 1: Supplies

  1. Glue Gun.
  2. PVC Glue.
  3. Black Electric Tape.
  4. Double-sided Tape.
  5. Epoxy(For testing).
  6. Arduino UNO.
  7. L298n Motor Controller.
  8. 550 Motor.
  9. Jumper Wires.
  10. Wires.
  11. Box(For base).
  12. ON-OFF Switch.
  13. Potentiometer.
  14. Potentiometer Knob.
  15. LCD Screen with i2c(16x2).
  16. 12v 2Amp Power Supply(For motor and Arduino).
  17. 110mm Endcap.110mm PVC 10cm long.
  18. 40mm Endcap x 2(For motor housing).
  19. 40mm PVC Pipe 3cm long(For motor housing).
  20. Black color paint.
  21. Black color Binding Sheet.
  22. Propeller Adapter(For mixer).
  23. 4mm Drill Bit(For mixer).
  24. 3 LED ceiling light(For mixer).
  25. Wire Connector(For Mixer).

Step 2: Making the Box

First, you need to start with the base(Box). The box should be enough to add inside Arduino, L298n motor controller, and LCD screen. I used a transparent food container. Using black color paint I painted it. It looks cool now.

(1)Drill 3 holes

1st Hole- wires for power and motor.

2nd Hole- For potentiometer.

3rd Hole- For switch.

(2)Attach both Arduino and L298n motor controller using Double-sided Tape.

(3)Attach potentiometer using its nut.

(4)Attach the switch to the side of the box.


Step 3: Making the Box Lid

After painting and drilling the box it's time to make the box lid. Follow my steps and images to make the lid.

1)Cut the binding paper as your lid fits.

2)Cut 7cmx2cm rectangle in binding paper(For 16x2 LCD).

3)Glue it on the Lid using a Glue Gun.

4)Glue the LCD screen on the lid using a Glue Gun.

Step 4: Making the Motor Housing

To prevent contacting epoxy with the motor when mixing I made a house for the motor using PVC endcaps. Follow my images and steps to make the motor housing.

  • For motor, I am using a 550 motor you can use a similar one that didn't draw more than 2amp when mixing.

1)Take a 40mm end cap and drill 3 holes on it(Shown in above picture 1).

2)Take another 40mm endcap and drill a hole on it(Picture 2).

3)Solder 2wires to the motor.

4)Screw the motor with the 1st endcap.

5)Glue the half of 3cm 40mm PVC using PVC Glue.

6)Take motor wires out through the 2nd endcap.

7)Finally, Glue the remaining PVC pipe into the 2nd endcap.

Step 5: Making the Mixer and Mixing Container

The mixer is attached to the motor to mix the resin and hardener. This step shows how to make the mixer mixing container. The below steps and above images show how to do it. Follow them and finish the hard part of this project.

Mixer

1)Take the motor and connect one side of the wire connector and screw.

2)Unassemble the 3 LED ceiling light and take the mixer shape(Image2) part.

3)Connect the light with Propeller Adapter.

4)Finally, connect one side of the 4mm drill bit with the wire connector and the other side with the Propeller Adapter.

Mixing Container

Glue 110mm PVC pipe with 110mm endcap using PVC Glue.


Step 6: Circuit Diagram

Connect all wires as follows

LCD Screen

VCC >> 5v

GND >> GND

SCL >> A5

SDA >> A4

Potentiometer

Middle pin >> A0

Connect remaining two pins >> 5v and GND.

L298n motor controller

ENA >> 6

Pin1 >> 5

Pin2 >> 4

GND >> GND

5v >> 5v

Power in >> 12v 2amp Power supply

Step 7: The CODE

This CODE for controlling the motor speed. When changing the value of the potentiometer the motor speed also changing. The motor running speed is showing on the LCD screen as a percentage(0% to 100%). Copy or download the following CODE. Select your correct COM port and board. Finally, upload the code.

#include  
#include 

LiquidCrystal_I2C lcd(0x27,20,4);  
int speed1=0;
int speed2=0;
int motorpin1 = 5;
int motorpin2 = 4;
int ENA = 9;
void setup()
{
lcd.init();                   
lcd.init();
lcd.backlight();
pinMode(motorpin1, OUTPUT);
pinMode(motorpin2, OUTPUT);
pinMode(ENA, OUTPUT);
lcd.setCursor(4,0);
lcd.print("Welcome!");
lcd.setCursor(0,1);
lcd.print("Epoxy Glue Mixer");
delay(3000);
lcd.clear();
}
void loop()
{
speed1=map(analogRead(A0),0,1024,0,100);
speed2=map(analogRead(A0),0,1024,0,255);
lcd.setCursor(0,0);
lcd.print("***Speed=");
lcd.setCursor(10,0);
lcd.print(speed1);
lcd.setCursor(12,0);
lcd.print("%*");
lcd.setCursor(3,1);
lcd.print("Max-5Mins");      
analogWrite(ENA, speed2);
digitalWrite(motorpin1, HIGH);
digitalWrite(motorpin2, LOW); 
}

Attachments

Step 8: All Done!

To test what you make,

Take epoxy 2:1 ratio resin and hardener.

Add them into the PVC container.

Rotate the potentiometer to the lowest position.

Power on up the machine.

Gradually increase the speed of the motor.

Yes, It works

Hope you enjoy this project. See you next time.