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How are you handling dosing/delivery method? I've been (over)thinking this for a while now and my prototype "lego hopper with RC servo controlled bottom flap" d
by shabble 10y ago
How are you handling dosing/delivery method? I've been (over)thinking this for a while now and my prototype "lego hopper with RC servo controlled bottom flap" didn't work particularly well, and would get jammed with kibbles, and wasn't particularly consistent in delivering a fixed portion of food.
I'd like to find a nice big & cheap auger that could pull or push to dispense, and have a lot more control.
The other suggestion someone made was a hopper with a close-toleranced vibratory table/spout to bounce the appropriate amount out.
All this assumes you want arbitrary duration/portion dispensing, otherwise you just need N bowls, and a rotary cover that opens each at a set time (which is most commercial ones I've seen).
- peckrob 10y ago> All this assumes you want arbitrary duration/portion dispensing, otherwise you just need N bowls, and a rotary cover that opens each at a set time (which is most commercial ones I've seen). Mine current design will allow some level of arbitrary feeds and duration. My current plans call for a sealed rotating drum with an opening that contains ~1/2 cup of kibbles, so each spin of the drum will dispense that much. Using door brush to seal around the bottom of the hopper and the drum to keep kibbles from escaping. The servo will rotate it from 0 to 180 and back, allowing the kibbles to fall down a small ramp and into the bowl. My concern with this design is that I may not be able to rotate the drum fast enough, but I'll see if that's an issue when I get there. Just spin it X times for X/2 cups of kibbles. I figure 1/2 a cup is good resolution for a home project.