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Completely Automated M&m Candy Launcher

Made by hamac2003 / 3D Printing / Food & Drinks / Home Automation / Robotics / IoT

About the project

I built a machine that, upon voice command, will shoot an M&M candy into your hand/mouth/cup, wherever you are in the room!

Project info

Difficulty: Difficult

Platforms: Amazon Alexa, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Python

Estimated time: 1 week

License: GNU General Public License, version 3 or later (GPL3+)

Items used in this project

Hardware components

	Raspberry Pi 3 Model B	x 1
	Arduino Nano 3.0 (with ATMEGA328)	x 2
	Play Station Eye USB Camera https://www.amazon.com/PlayStation-Eye-3/dp/B000VTQ3LU/ref=pd_vtp_63_1/134-4948994-2932262?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B000VTQ3LU&pd_rd_r=02afaa2f-a3a5-496a-b543-d8ee2d9565ab&pd_rd_w=oOys3&pd_rd_wg=9d7uG&pf_rd_p=9dfef364-4fb7-4a3c-8fd7-fa2ed7eb160a&pf_rd_r=16D67M6489SJPZAPCDZ2&psc=1&refRID=16D67M6489SJPZAPCDZ2	x 1
	Compliant Wheel https://www.andymark.com/products/2-in-compliant-wheels-options	x 1
	Small Wood Boards You'll need some small boards, along with some scrap wood.	x 1
	Servo - Generic (Sub-Micro Size) I used a 20kg servo on the feeder mechanism, but any non-micro servo should do just fine.	x 3
	DC Motor 12V 6000 RPM I used this motor: https://firstchoicebyandymark.com/fc-da-9284	x 1
	Wago Splicing Connectors If you want to use fewer wagos, you can do more soldering than I did.	x 20
	Resistor 10K Ohm 1/4 Watt PTH - 20 pk For wiring the Hall Effect Switch	x 1
	Wood Screws I used a handful of woodscrews I had on hand to mount the flywheel assembly onto the turret. As well as to hang the counterweight underneath the flywheel assembly	x 15
	Heat Shrink Generic	x 1
	Zip Ties To help with cable management.	x 1
	STD-A TO MINI-B ASSY 1m/305mm	x 2
	Cordless Drill Battery (20v)	x 1
	Cordless Drill Battery Connector I hacked one out of an old drill. You can also buy 3D printable ones online.	x 1
	3.5-V to 60-V Input, 2.5A Step-Down Converter With Eco-mode™ 10-VSON -55 to 125 Any voltage converter will do, so long as it can handle 20v to 12v at 3 amps.	x 2
	Hook-up Wire - Black (22 AWG) You'll need a lot of wire. Pick the appropriate gauge for the task. The motor wires must have a decently low gauge to handle the high current draw.	x 1
	6x4 Cylindrical Magnets - Pack of 5 You need 2 magnets. You could even get by with 1 if necessary.	x 2
	Automotive linear hall effect sensor with digital PWM output 3-SOT-23 -40 to 150	x 1
	L298 Dual H-Bridge Motor Driver	x 2

View all

Software apps and online services

	Sinric https://github.com/kakopappa/sinric
	Alexa Skills
	Python
	Raspian OS
	Arduino IDE

Hand tools and fabrication machines

	Soldering Iron	x 1
	3D Printer	x 1
	Hot Glue Gun	x 1
	Cordless Drill	x 1

Story

Way back in 2012, the Popinator had it's moment of fame, displaying a machine that would shoot popcorn directly into your mouth on voice command. However, upon further research, you will find that there is little to no technical documentation describing how it works in detail. Regardless of whether this machine is real, or just a PR stunt, I recently revisited this video, and was inspired by what I saw. So I decided to make my own similar machine. Only in my case, it launches M&M chocolates!

With my M&M launcher, all you have to do is say the word, and chocolate will be launched into your hands/mouth/cup!

Code

Automated M&M Candy Launcher - Code

Credits

hamac2003

I'm a highschooler who has a passion for engineering and software development. I build cool stuff and showcase it on my youtube channel.

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Completely Automated M&m Candy Launcher

About the project

Project info