Large format build of the New Standard

[amyjar]

Hi to all,

My husband and I have teamed up to build a DIY scanner. I am a web designer, by profession, and hubby (I'll call him 'MJ') is a carpenter/general contractor. My employer has contracted MJ to construct this large format scanner to be able to scan and preserve a series of bound magazine issues, dating back to 1931. These historic magazines need to be carefully preserved by my employer before they get sent to an archival warehouse. The magazines tell a detailed story of the history of this organization, and are deteriorating due to age.

We need the scanner to scan large books 11" x 18". We have built the base and the cradle according to clemd973 (http://www.diybookscanner.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=698) and Daniel's New Standard (http://www.diybookscanner.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=333). We are now building the platen. The problem we are running into is that the platen, being so large, is HEAVY. When built according to the the "New Standard" design, it is too heavy to be lifted properly by the handle. It doesnt slide up the back arm support. So, we deconstructed the platen and reconstructed it using one triangle of plywood, instead of the doubled-glued triangles of MDF. This made it much lighter. We are also thinking of using some sort of counter-balanced pulley or bungee to help with the weight problem.

Does anyone have any ideas how to make the large-format platen slide easily up and down the back arm support?

[daniel_reetz]

Welcome to the forums! Sorry you are having trouble. You have a few options. You're right that the platen part of that build doesn't scale well - I'm sorry about that. MDF is just really heavy. How far along are you?

Options (from most difficult to easiest):
You could make a 4 bar linkage like there is on the new hackerspace scanner.
Here is a treadle lift idea.
Here is a counterweighted New Standard style scanner.
I also need to point out Drake Ravensmith's EXCELLENT guide to the New Standard.

Simplest thing to do is just to use a counterweight. Over time we are looking to replace linear slides in our designs as they can be troublesome like this. But take heart, lots of people happily use New Standards all the time.

[scann]

Hey Amijar,

We had the same problem as you did, so we put a thicker MDF and then we also put a counterbalance. I have photos of it, but I can't upload them to the forum, it says that the quota has been reached!

[daniel_reetz]

scann, can you please post the exact error? that shouldn't be happening. thanks!

[amyjar]

Thanks for the examples, Daniel!

I like the idea of Drake Ravensmith's counterweight pulley system. We are almost done with the New Standard build, so I can't imaging re-building according to the new Hackerspace Scanner design. I will post some photos when its complete.

[amyjar]

Here's a photo of our progress. We made a longer arm on the top and a double-pulley system to help raise the large platen. It may not be the best solution, but it works. It's kind-of a two-handed operation, since you have to use on hand for the platen handle and one hand to pull the pulley. It may hinder scanning time when turning pages. Waiting to receive gooseneck arms and camera supports in the mail to install this week.

[daniel_reetz]

Looks great, thank you for sharing your progress! Let us know if you need any more guidance or run into any problems.

[scann]

Maybe I was doing something wrong, because now it seems to be solved!

well, here are the photos. this is our scanner:



and then the attached photos, one is from the back of the scanner, and the other ones are from the bottom of it. The wheels are at the bottom of the scanner, and there's one more wheel between the power supply and the cradle. If you want more details, I can upload them.

[Tim de Mello]

You say " If you want more details, I can upload them."

I would be very interested in seeing the details.
Can you send them to timdemello@outlook.com?

Thank you very much