Cam Claw Is a 3D-Printable Grabber Tool with a Handy Camera

You know those grabber things mounted on poles that you can use to reach things approximately four feet away from you? They’re pretty useful for reaching items that are high up or low down, which is great. But they have a major flaw: they only work if you can see the object you’re trying to pinch. That’s a real problem if, for example, you’re trying to pick cherries a night—a situation we all find ourselves in on a weekly basis. To solve that problem, Gokux designed the 3D-printable Cam Claw, which is like a grabber with a camera attached.

Compared to the typical grabber tool that you can find for $10 at your local big box store, Cam Claw has several key differences:

1. It is DIY and 3D-printable.

2. It has a camera over the claw, so you get a first-person view of the action.

3. It has LEDs that act like headlights to illuminate the subject.

4. It has a servo-actuated claw, so your own grip strength is irrelevant.

5. It can be attached to a pole of 20 feet or more, for maximum reach.

Clearly, Cam Claw is the future of long-distance snatching and the benefits just keep coming. Users can view a live video stream from the camera on any smartphone, tablet, or computer, as Cam Claw self-hosts a web interface. Just connect to that and load the page to see what you’re about to squeeze. An optional phone holder can mount to the handle end of the pole for easy looking. And, best of all, the whole thing is pretty affordable to build.

The claw mechanism resembles a robotic arm gripper and has parallel jaws. A powerful MG995 servo motor rotates the gears that actuate those jaws. All of the parts to assemble the business end of Cam Claw can be printed on just about any 3D printer, then attached to the pole of your desired length.

The servo motor operates under the control of a Seeed Studio XIAO ESP32-S3 Sense development board, which has an OV3660 camera sensor. Power comes from an 18650 lithium battery and there is a DC-to-DC boost converter to push the voltage up to 5V. The LEDs are hardwired to the boost converter’s output, so they’re lit whenever Cam Claw’s power switch is in the “on” position. A custom PCB ties everything together and keeps it all tidy.

If you’ve found yourself dissatisfied with the low-tech grabbers of the past, then Cam Claw is the upgrade you’ve been waiting for.