Articulated Tentacle (Inspired by SpiRobs)

Additional Materials & Tools: To assemble this model, you will need a few extra items:

• 3x Strings of Fishing Line: I used 0.35mm nylon mono fishing line, but other thicknesses up to 0.6mm or 0.7mm should also work perfectly fine.
• 1x Short piece of TPU Filament: This acts as the flexible core layer of the tentacle.
• Tools: A lighter and pliers.

Printing & Assembly Tips:

• Important Print Setting: It is highly recommended to print the tentacle segments with a brim for better bed adhesion.
• The Flexible Core: Instead of using a complex flexible layer as described in the original research, I simply used a piece of TPU filament. Just melt both ends slightly with a lighter and squish them flat with pliers so it stays securely in place.
• Tensioning the Strings: When threading the fishing line, cut a bit more length than you think you need. Thread everything through, attach the rings, and only trim the lines to their final length after you have evenly tensioned the strings at the finger rings.

About this Project & Inspiration: This project is based on an absolutely excellent, well-written, and highly detailed research paper that I thoroughly enjoyed reading and recreating. You can find the amazing paper here: "SpiRobs: Logarithmic spiral-shaped robots for versatile grasping across scales" (Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666998624006033)

I am absolutely fascinated by the developer's idea and the mechanics behind this, and I will definitely be using this knowledge for future projects! While the original paper focuses on versatile robotic grasping, I built this 3D version purely for fun. It is an awesome gadget to amaze (or annoy!) your friends, and it has great potential for cosplay props.

I really hope the amazing paper and the original developer get the attention they deserve. Have fun printing and playing around with it!