3D Printed Interactive Cat Toy (9V Battery Powered)

Recently I started looking at interactive toys for my cat. I found good things, but I think most of them are unnecessarily expensive. So I started doing something myself and came up with this toy.

Normally, my cat doesn't like toys that moves around. However, she played with this toy for hours and still did not lose her interest.

It takes about 100 grams of filament to make it. Together with the filament and other parts, the total cost is about $15 (Except 3D printer, wire and soldering iron parts). It's a very fun toy to make. Your cat will probably like it too.

- 3D Printer (Recommended: Ender 3 V2 or Ender 5 Pro or CR-10 V2) (If you don't have it)

- Arduino Nano

- DC Motor with Gearbox

- IRF540N Mosfet (Alternative: IRFZ44N)

- Slide Switch

- 10K Resistor

- 9V Battery and Connector

- Wire - Wrapping Cable (If you don't have it)

- Screws and Nuts (x4 M3x25) (x1 M3x20) (x2 M3x5) (x2 M2x5) (If you don't have it)

- Soldering Iron Kit (If you don't have it)

- Any cat toy toy (size must be up to 40x50x45mm)

- Also, some parts may require sanding. So If you don't have one, you can consider getting sandpaper.

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There are a total of 9 parts you need to press for this toy. You can access STL files from my Thingiverse account here.

Print "Connection Part.STL" 4 times with supports. Other parts don't need supports.

I print all parts with 0.28 layer height. It took about 10 hours this way.

The circuit in this toy is pretty simple. An Arduino nano is used to start and stop the motor periodically, a mosfet to drive the motor, a 10K resistor, a motor and a 9v battery.

Make the circuit using the diagram in the picture. Be careful not to keep cable lengths too long. If necessary, put the components on top of the 3D model and measure.

After making the circuit, you can assemble the parts to the model with the help of M2 and M3 screws. Be careful not to over tighten the screws of the motor, otherwise it will not work. The 9V battery fits tightly. If not, use double-sided tape.

The code required for this toy is a very simple code. There is no need for a complex code for this project. Upload the code below to Arduino Nano, decrease or increase engine speed if necessary. Change the delays if you want. Thats it.

void setup() {
  pinMode(3, OUTPUT);
}
void loop() {
  analogWrite(3, 200); //Running speed
  delay(600); //Running delay
  analogWrite(3, 0); 
  delay(4000); //Stop delay
}

After finishing the circuit, you can now start assembling 3D printed parts. First, install the "Connection Part.STL" parts to the "Top Part.STL" part. The triangular joint should fit snugly into the socket. If it doesn't fit, you can sand a little.

Then connect "Motor Connector - Bottom.STL" with "Spinning Rod.STL" and fix it with M3x5 screw. Put the cat toy on the "Spinning Rod" and glue it. I used hot glue gun. Finally, attach the "Motor Connector- Bottom" part to the motor. Do the same for "Motor Connector - Top". I used a 40x40x40mm ball toy for the bottom part. For the upper part, I used a hairy wire.

Finally, mount this entire assembly on the "Bottom Part.STL" part. Again, you may need to use sandpaper at this stage.

Tarçın tested it and approved it. She played with the toy for a very long time. Keeps playing as long as I don't take it away.

A fun toy for the cat to play with, which is fun to do. I think you should give this toy a chance if you have a cat :))