How to Make a DIY Robot That Folds Your Laundry Using Common Household Items

Introduction

Folding laundry can be a tedious chore. However, with some DIY robotics skills and common household items, you can build an automated laundry folding assistant! In this article, I'll walk you through a step-by-step process for constructing a simple robotic arm that can identify and fold basic clothing items.

Materials Needed

To build your laundry folding robot, you'll need the following materials:

• Cardboard boxes and tubes - The body and supports of the robot can be constructed from cardboard. Look for sturdy boxes and mailing tubes.

• Wooden dowels - Use dowels of various sizes for axles and structural supports. Round wooden skewers work great.

• Motors - Small hobby motors are required to drive the joints of the robotic arm. Salvage these from toys or purchase basic DC motors.

• Microcontroller - An Arduino or Raspberry Pi can be used to control the robot. They can often be found inexpensively online.

• Wires and batteries - Standard hookup wire and a AA or 9V battery holder will be needed to power the device.

• Fasteners - Hot glue, tape, zipties and screws work to connect the components.

• Sensors - Basic buttons, switches or infrared sensors allow the robot to detect clothing items.

Design and Build Steps

Follow these key steps to construct a laundry folding robotic arm:

Construct the Base

• Cut cardboard tubes and box sides to create a sturdy base for the robot. Glue sections together into a cross shape.
• Attach motors to the base to drive wheel modules. Use cardboard discs or bottlecaps as wheels.

Build the Arm Segments

• Use cardboard tubes, wooden dowels and skewers to create 3-4 articulated arm segments.
• Connect the segments using motors as rotary joints. Make sure to allow a full range of motion.

Add Grippers

• Fashion a simple gripper mechanism from cardboard and dowels. It should be able to open and close to pick up clothing.
• Attach it to the end of the arm so it can grasp and manipulate laundry.

Install Controls

• Connect buttons and switches to the motors to manually control the robot.
• For automated control, wire up a microcontroller and sensors to detect and fold laundry.

Power Everything

• Confirm your voltage requirements and use batteries/adapters to power the motors and microcontroller.

Refine Design

• Test folding basic items and make adjustments as needed to improve reliability.
• Consider adding compliance to the grippers using springs to adapt to various fabrics.

Using Your Laundry Folding Robot

To use your completed DIY laundry folding robot:

• Position it in front of your laundry pile and make sure the batteries are fresh.
• Place a shirt or towel in front of the robot within reach.
• Press a button or use the controls to activate the gripper and grasp the item.
• With the item held securely, operate the arm to manipulate it into a folded shape.
• Continue the sequence until the desired fold is complete then release the gripper.
• Position the next item and repeat the process to fold the rest of your clean laundry.

With some trial and error, your homemade helper should be able to lend a hand with one of the most repetitive household chores! This project is a fun way to get started in robotics using easy to source materials.

Going Further

To take your laundry folding robot to the next level, consider these upgrades:

• Add computer vision capabilities using a webcam and machine learning to automatically detect clothing items.

• Incorporate a conveyor system to automatically feed garments to the robot.

• Build a torso or rail system so the robot can move around the laundry pile on its own.

• Enable voice controls using Alexa or Google Assistant for hands-free operation.

• Improve the grippers with more complex mechanisms and feedback sensors.

The possibilities are endless when building your own DIY automation machine! Start simple but leave room to incrementally improve your laundry folding robot's capabilities over time.