Make a pouch with plastic films and a sealer then become a soft hinge actuator!
Video
Materials
- polyethylene freezer bags (thickness: from 2mil – 0.05mm to 3.5mil – 0.09mm) Buy(Japan)
- air connector (outside pie 1.5mm) Buy(Japan)
- double-sided adhesive tape (Strong Type)
- adhesive tape
- paper board
Tools and Equipment
- syringe Buy(Japan)
- air tube (inner pie 2mm) Buy(Japan)
- heat sealer Buy(Japan)
- scissors
- awl (Toothpick also available)
- fine tip marker pen
Directions
1Trace a pattern
Put a film on a printed pattern and trace the shape with crosses or dots with a pen.
2Cut Films
Cut a pair of films bigger than the pattern.
3Seal
Adjust a timer dial of a heat sealer to the lowest setting that will still seal the films (maybe around 2.5).
Place a pair of films on the sealer. Adjust the position to make sure that the crosses/dots are on the sealing line. Push the sealing arm down and keep the arm down for 3-4 seconds.
Repeat the sealing process to make a square pouch.
4Cut a Pouch
Cut the margin of the films along the outline of the pouch.
5Make a Hole
Make a cross/dot to mark the position of an air inlet hole with a pen. Fold the films crosswise around the mark. Cut a VERY small piece off from the corner of the films with a scissors.
6Check
Unfold the films to check the hole. The diameter of the hole must be around 1-2mm. If it’s too big, cover the hole with a tape and try again on the other side.
7Prepare a connector
Apply a both-sided tape on the bottom of a connector. Make a through hole with an awl.
8Put the connector on the pouch
Fix the connector on the hole of the pouch.
9Cover the flip side
Cover the another hole on the flip side with a tape.
10Prepare paper tabs
Make two square pieces of paper boards fit to the size of pouch to make a tabs. Apply both-sided tape on the one side of the piece. Cut two corners off a square.
11Put tabs
Fix two square pieces of paper board on the both side of the pouch.
12Move
Connect a syringe and tube to the pouch. Push the air into the pouch to see the inflation of the pouch make a flapping motion. Try different sizes!
Download
- Pouch patternpouch_samples
- 3D model of the connector (STL file)