Toilet Paper Microfactory

The holidays are finally over, and it's time to get back to building neat stuff. Like these little cable holders to clamp the mains cable along the 2020 aluminium extrusion. It just snaps in place, no need for screws or nuts.

The mission is to feed empty toilet rolls into the machine, wind them up with toilet tissue and then eject a finished TP-roll. Simple, right?

It would probably take a lifetime if it wasnt for modern 3D CAD modeling. 

Most parts can be 3D-printed which makes replication easier and ofcourse open source when it eventually will be finished. Can you make out how it will work by looking at the model? The slide with the motors on the right will push new rolls to the left and when the paper gets cut and the motor returns back the roll will chute down and out, ready for "assumption" (short for ass-consumption)

This is not a project that will be finished in a weekend or two. The housing was put together quite fast, but all the small pumps and mechatronics are tedious work. Right now the work is focusing on the slurry pumps, mostly 3D-printed. The DC-motor needs to be located above the water lever, and a stainless shaft goes down to the impeller. Seems simple, but finding the right proportions might require some trial and error, unless I get it right on the first try *fingers crossed*

The paper pulp for the microfactory will be quite thin and dilluted, but it can still be a challenge to pump it to where it needs to be. Since as much as possible will be open source, the pumps will also be mostly 3D-printed.

At first I tried a sorts of archimedes screw which in my head seemed like a great idea, but when printed and tried it was awful. So some research showed that paper mills use slurry or impeller pumps. So back to the digital drawing board, and soon the new prototype is ready for trial. 

Aluminium extrusions are mans best friend. Modular and easy to assemble, and compared to the good old days they are surprisingly inexpensive. The entire housing (40x80x80cm) costs around $60 which I think is very affordable, especially when I will be able to produce a lifetime worth of toilet tissue. The entire build will cost around $500 which is substantial, but imagine the billions it will save me on butt wipes. And not to mention the hundreds of hours of fun designing and assembling and tuning it...

Thank god for dirt-cheap electronics from an unnamed chinese shopping portal, because it allows for this amazing project without breaking the bank. Cables, microcontrollers, screws and lots more. Also a bunch of aluminium t-profiles that will make up the frame. So stay tuned to see how it all will come together!

Perhaps not the most common DIY-project, but one that you have use for every single day. The goal is to build a fully automatic TP microfactory that produce enough toilet tissue for a small household. Open source, naturally!

The project is now in its design phase, but purchase of parts and components have begun so the prototype can start to take form within weeks.