Automatic Belt Loader

About the Project

This project started during the COVID-19 pandemic and was my passion project over the course of quarantine. The project is a back mounted belt loader for a hobby called airsoft. This was something that I tried to find for purchase but I could only find other personal projects documented on YouTube. I decided that this would be a fun project to peruse and I got through a few iterations before going back to school. My long term goal is to turn it into a small business once I have more time away from my studies.

(Click images for more information)

Problems

There are a few technical challenges in this project including:

Needing to transmit a signal through a continually rotating part
Keeping a constant force against the BBs being fed without using the motor to continually torque due to burn out
Keeping it small enough to fix next to an HPA tank
Keep it simple enough to be manufactured at my house with only a 3D printer and basic hand tools

Iterations

This project has been through many iterations since conception relating to many mechanical and electrical aspects of the project. While the circuit is quite simple, building a slip-ring to transmit the circuit signal proved quite difficult due to limited manufacturing capabilities requiring a total of 4 redesigns. A complete redesign of the motor system was also required as the motor I originally chose did not have enough torque to push the BBs up the tube.

Skills Utilized

SolidWorks
3D printing
Simple circuits
Design for manufacturing
Iterative Design