Making a Portable, Hand-held Fan

 Making a Portable, Hand-held Fan

(Porta-Fan)


So the other day, I was given an exercise to redesign a hand-held, portable fan. I thought it'd be easy and simple. So, I started doing some ideation and started sketching some basic ideas. I finally came to a design that I thought would be perfect. I'd added some cool features to it and made its shape unique, and I personally thought it'd be great and it'd work.

Two days go by, and I randomly get the thought to make the fan IRL. After all, I had all the stuff and tools I needed. I was excited to make the fan. 

So, one day, I opened Tinkercad and took some basic measurements and started designing it. I took the measurements according to the motor I'd chosen, and the batteries and the wires and the buttons, etc. I finalised the design and asked my father if I could print it. He then asked me whether the design was correct and whether all the measurements were accurate. And I confidently said yes. Done, I sliced it, and it said it took 2 hr 37 minutes to print. That was a lot of time, but it was ok. I printed it and just put the motor in the hole, but I realised that it was not fitting perfectly due to the lack of support to hold the other part of the motor in place. 




Worried that I was, I redesigned it and added a ring-shaped structure to hold the motor in the air. Then, I printed it again and... It was an immediate failure because I accidentally shut the printer down. The print couldn't resume, and I was disappointed. Even the structure to hold the motor came apart, and the empty space, kept for the button, was in the wrong place. But I was driven and wouldn't give up. So, I redesigned the ring structure and set it to print again. It was done. 




I was feeling good, now it was perfect. Then, I made the circuit and assembled the fan. I switched it on and... NO AIR!! Not even a single, slight breeze. 

I was disappointed and started to give up, but that's when my father told me that there was no empty space behind the propeller. So, I guessed that I'd have to redesign the whole thing. Then, I realised my mistake and saw some designs and products online. Then, after an hour or two, the design was final and complete. 




This was my final chance, my final print, because I'd printed four fan models previously, which was not a waste of my process, of course, but it was a waste of filament, though. So, I printed the final product and guess what? 


The model turned out to be perfect. So, I made the circuit, fixed all the components and... the fan was READY!!! 









It is my very first product that I am sooooo proud of.

Here's how to make it:

Materials/Components:
1. 9-12V DC Motor
2. Fan Propellor
3. Switch
4. 2 Wires
5. 2x 2500 mAh 3.7V Batteries
6. 2x3 mm screws
7. Battery Holder

Tools:
1. 3D Printer
2. Soldering gun
3. Double-sided Tape

Instructions:
1. Take all the electric components and take the wires out of the small hole before connecting them to the motor. Make the basic circuit of a motor connected to the batteries through a switch
2. Put Batteries in the Battery holder.
3. Screw the lid shut.

Your Fan Is Ready!

Here are all the components and previous prototype models before the final product







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