Drawing inspiration fromYouTuber手工工具救援, 3D printing content creator教学技术has designed and 3D printed his own open-source version of a rare antique fractal vise.
Unlike a standard straight vise, which is typically only capable of clamping block-like parts, the 100 year old fractal design is capable of morphing to grip virtually any object, regardless of the complexity of the geometry. Dubbed ‘the coolest tool you didn’t know you needed’, the fractal vise is near impossible to purchase these days – this is where low-cost FFF 3D printing comes in.
教学技术stated, “My mind was blown. I had no idea such an incredible tool existed, and I just needed to have my own. There’s no way just to buy one, however, so I knew I would need to make my own. Fortunately, I’m in a room surrounded by 3D printers.”
How does a fractal vise work?
在数学中，分形是包含永无止境模式的复杂几何形状。当您放大分形设计时，您看到的是原始设计的缩小版本，并且这种图案一遍又一遍地重复（例如无限的俄罗斯筑巢娃娃）。
分形设计的一个众所周知的例子是3D可打印Sierpinski金字塔model, which many in the maker community have no doubt come across. The pyramid comprises five smaller pyramids, all of which are made up of five even smaller pyramids.
So how does the concept of a fractal relate to a vise? The fractal vise is actually made up of a series of stacked arcs, whereby each arc houses two smaller arcs that have half the diameter. In Teaching Tech’s open-source design, there are four layers of these arcs, meaning each jaw of the fractal vise features eight arc grippers which hold the part in place. In contrast, a conventional vise only has two lips which are unable to conform to the shape of the part between them.
3D打印分形虎钳
When starting the project, Teaching Tech had a number of specifications for the 3D printed vise already in mind. He wanted it to be able to wrap around almost any part geometry and constrain it to the point where it cannot move. He also wanted to design it so that it couldn’t rotate to the point of disassembling itself, and he wanted to minimize the use of support structures.
教学技术避免支持材料的计划是将每个弧线切成两半，从而将大型横截面保存在较小的零件中。这也具有使单个组件更易于打印和从床上移开的效果。下一个问题涉及收紧组件以完全限制被夹紧的零件。为此，他简单地将原始设计上的grub螺钉卸下，并用集成到3D模型本身的塞子代替。
Once 3D printed and assembled, the fractal vise “worked beautifully”, clamping a whole host of non-conventional objects and securing them with ease. This included a spanner, an artistic bust, and even a banana.
All of the open-source可以在此处找到分形虎钳的STL文件, and avideo tutorial of the assembly process can be found here。虽然Tech Tech确实使用PLA和TPU来打印分形虎钳，但其他聚合物丝也很好。
内容创建者得出结论：“我真的很兴奋的是看到社区以混音和定制进行设计。毫无疑问，原始金属版本优于此版本，但您无法获得它，因此这种民主制造业意味着任何拥有3D打印机的人都可以拥有自己的。”
开源3D打印社区通常是巨大的创新来源，产生了您在行业中看不到的低成本项目。一个名字的学生youtuber卢卡斯·弗特奇（Lucas Vrtech）has previously designed and3D printed a pair of low-cost finger tracking glovesfor use in virtual reality. Named LucidVR, the open-source gloves cost just $22, and grant users the ability to precisely track their fingers without the use of dedicated VR controllers.
在其他地方,开源3 d打印技术爱好者约翰·冯·科诺（Johan von Konow）has previously launched a modular 3D printable MIDI synth as a DIY project. Dubbed theLEET合成器，这个有趣的项目可以以总计6美元的价格建造，并且只需几个基本的焊接和嵌入式电子编程技能即可。
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Featured image shows Teaching Tech and his open-source, 3D printed fractal vise. Photo via Teaching Tech.
