Summary

This thing was made with Tinkercad. Edit it online https://tinkercad.com/things/hH0x2ioC8xp

This is my first attempt at a conveyor mod for the Printrbot Simple. It could use some gear reduction.

Instructions

(Note: version 0.2 won't require you to disassemble the original Simple if you have a spare motor and spare bearings and rods)

You'll need to get two 5/16" dowel rods for support, some very long paper or other material for the conveyor belt, eight small M3 bolts and twelve zip ties. Print four roller halves, two each of the roller supports, and one axle coupler. Take off all of the print bed including the linear bearings and remove the X motor (or disconnect it and use a spare).

Zip tie the dowel rods straight to the bottom of the Simple with two zip ties each. Then zip tie the X plate to the rods.

Repurpose two of the linear bearings as roller bearings, zip-tied to the roller supports. Use the 6.5" rods as axles for the rollers. The axle coupling is composed of two halves, one tapers while one is even. The even end goes on the 8mm rod. In the tapered end, insert the vinyl tubing from the X motor as far in as you can get it, then shove the motor shaft into it. You'll have to clamp the X axis to the table or secure it some other way.

Secure the build plate to the X platform as it had been, originally. You'll likely want to use some carpet tape or other non-slip material on the rollers to grip the conveyor. Wrap the conveyor around the rollers and secure the ends together. You'll have to recalibrate X. Disconnect the X axis limit switch, if you have one.

You may need to refer to the Tinkercad model for more details.

After each print job, try some G code such as "G1 X100; G92 X0", to move to a blank portion of the conveyor and start fresh.

Printrbot Simple Infinite (v0.1)