Moineau Soap Dispenser
Derived from
Description
This dispenser is designed to reduce waste in a number of ways. First, it is easily refillable, and so can be used for many years. Second, as the pump is turned, liquid soap spills from the spout back into a hole in the bottle, thus recycling any drips. Third, this design makes it easy to get as much or as little soap as you want, while commercial soap pumps often dispense more soap than necessary with a single squeeze.
Instructions
To fill, simply remove the rotor, pour liquid soap into the top of the bottle, and slide the rotor back down into place. Be careful not to fill it too full, or when the rotor is inserted the soap may overflow from the vent hole.
To use, turn the crank clockwise until enough soap is pumped up that it begins to spill from the spout. Wipe your finger up the spout to get the desired amount of soap. The crank should turn easily; soap is viscous enough that a tight seal is unnecessary. This tolerance can also be adjusted in the OpenSCAD file.
The crank drives a progressing cavity*, or Moineau, pump which was invented by René Moineau in 1930 and first described in his doctoral dissertation. His idea helped him found a company that is still around today, selling these very pumps: pcm-pump.com/pump-manufacturer/history.html
* Gaymard, B, et al, "The Progressing Cavity Pump in Europe: Results and New Developments", Offshore South East Asia Show, 2-5 February 1988, Singapore, onepetro.org/mslib/servlet/onepetropreview?id=00017676&soc=SPE.
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Printed on a Replicator 1 (ABS), .27 layer height, 10% infill, 0 extra shells @ 80mm/s. I've spent a ton of time calibrating my machine. But the outcome is AMAZING. It even pumps water!!! The rotor fit perfectly! Soap I'm using is a little thick, so if I turn it quickly it actually misses the drain back hole - or maybe because the pump in mine is so good :)
Excellent application.
Something that is useful, not another idiotic i-widget that is something useless to snap onto an iphone.
Good to take and adapt for so many different applications around the house
Nice one!
These "everyday application things" are my favourite to see. real world and true to the ideals of the 3D maker revolution!
I can't wait to make this! I made your original Moineau pump and while it is a bit tough to turn, once primed it works quite well!
My hats off to you my good man!
I printed this part on a commercial 3D printer and it looks beautiful.
Too bad the rotor doesn't fit in the base because there is not enough clearance.
Have you considered adding a ratcheting mechanism to make sure that it is only turned in the proper direction?
Two questions, first - shells?
Second, has anyone tried to scale this? I'm thinking about a 75% size for the bathroom. See how long it takes the wife to notice ... :-D
I assume it'l scale just fine, but just thought I'd ask.
I used zero extra shells and 10% fill; the zig-zagging fill pattern made the walls completely solid. If you want to print it smaller, don't just scale it; re-render it from OpenSCAD. The reason is that the internal pump stator is designed to be exactly two threads thick so that the tolerances are correct. Make sure the "wall" parameter is 2 times your calibrated thread width, then divide it by 0.75, and then throw a scale(0.75) in front of each part.
I love that it's a completely printable device, without the need for extra hardware.
I love this. It's perfect for 3D printing - it's unique and useful! I can't wait to print it.
Super impressive once again, emmett!
This is the kind of stuff that makes people realize what consumer 3D printing is all about.
I love it and maybe even more how this came out (a cool and bold challenge ^^)...
It's one of the many things here that just show how fabulous objects people can invent... and share, thanks for that :)
For those of you curious about the internal workings of this design, here is a cut-away animation (click for full size). I think this design helps showcase the power of 3D printers because this bottle would be nearly impossible to fabricate any other way (at least as a single piece).
License
A high res version of this would print nicer. Still got the source?
Sure, the source is soapPump.scad. Just fiddle with $fn, $fa or $fs to change the resolution. But beware, it'll take a lot longer to render at higher res.