Sphericon

This is a parametrized Sphericon.

A Sphericon is a mathematical body, that is generated by rotating a polygon around one of its symmetry axes. The resulting body is then cut in half, one half is turned a certain amount, and finally the halves are joined again. Many Sphericons can roll, but with a wobbly motion.

I saw Sphericons on the YouTube channel Makers Muse, and wanted to make them myself:

The scripts can generate Sphericons based on polygons with straight edges, as well as more decorative ones with curvy edges. Unfortunately curvy Sphericons take very long to render in OpenSCAD.

The Sphericon halves are joined with cylindrical pins, however they can also be joined with small Neodymium magnets.

Print instructions

Wood Imitation

The objects in the photos were printed with wood filled PLA, color: light/natural. The filament was painted with a black marker, at regular intervals, to imitate growth rings.

The printed objects were lightly sanded with 150 and 320 grit sand paper. Subsequently they were treated with dark colored wood polish, and wood oil.

3MF

The 3mf files are sliced for a 0.6 mm nozzle diameter, 0.2 mm layer height, and wood filled PLA. No supports are necessary.

OpenSCAD

The scad files are a program for the CAD language OpenSCAD. They depend on each other. Together they are a program to generate Sphericons:

• sphericon.scad contains the definition of the Sphericon itself and the various parameters for its shape. Only a subset are module parameters and can be varied on a print plate (in a generated series).

• sphericon-print-plate.scad contains definitions to arrange the parts of the Sphericon for 3D printing. It can also be used to print a single Sphericon.

• sphericon-print-plate-curvy.scad is just an example to show that curvy sphericons can be generated.

• sphericon-print-plate-6p-1.scad, sphericon-print-plate-6p-2.scad each contain the the parts for a series of Sphericons, arranged so that they can be printed on a 3D printer. I printed them on a Prusa MK3S.