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April 11th, 2011 by Jeff MightyOhm

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DIY Vacuum Pickup from drug123

I have made this DIY vacuum pickup once, it took about 5 minutes to build.

BOM used:

- sparkfun Vacuum Pump (SKU ROB-10398) - $14.95;

- Medical infusion set from the nearest drugstore - $0.25*;

- Ball pen - $0.10;

- 12V wall adapter - don't know, have a lot of them from old hardware, suppose it is less than $5 on ebay;

- Any rubber-like insulation material. I had used 2" piece of self-amalgaming rubber tape but think high viscosity adhesive or silicone sealant will do the job.

Infusion set was cut and reversed to filter incoming air using included droplet filter to keep air inlet clear. Ball pen handle was cut from both ends and then small hole drilled near the needle end. This hole is pickup/release valve: by closing it you will start the suction through the needle; when it is wide-open, air flow passes through it and releases handled part. Next ball pen handle then connected to the tubing using insulation material.

Feel free to point over image for additional hints.

* I really doubt if medical supplies like infusion sets are freely available in the US/EU drugstores, but you definitely could buy suitable silicone tubing in local hardware store and dispensing needle set from dealextreme or ebay.

Update: I have checked today, insulin syringe with extracted needle works perfectly as handle for standard needle.