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THIS OPEN-SOURCE MACHINE SWAPS ITS OWN TOOLS MID-JOB — PRINTING, PIPETTING, CUTTING

One frame that swaps between 3D printing, pipetting, pen plotting, and cutting — mid-job, with no human touching the machine.

by Machine Agency, University of Washington

FULL CAD BOM FIRMWARE DOCS

WorkshopScience

difficulty
●●●●●
time
two weekends plus calibration
license
CC-BY-4.0
repo
repo ACTIVE614 stars

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

  • 3D printer + filament — printable parts — files are in the repo
  • Electronic parts — full list with part numbers in the repo BOM
  • Dev board / microcontroller — runs the project firmware

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Videos
1

COMPAREE VERDICT

Jubilee is a research-grade motion platform that parks one tool and picks up another without human intervention. It came out of the Machine Agency lab at the University of Washington and is used in real labs for automated pipetting, multi-material 3D printing, and PCB assembly. The frame itself is about 1,350 dollars in parts — mostly aluminium extrusion, linear rails, and the Duet motion controller — and each tool head adds roughly 200 dollars. You will print most of the frame parts yourself on a printer with at least a 200×200 mm bed. The hardest part is not the frame assembly, it is getting the kinematic coupling to seat repeatably so that tools swap without drift — tensioning six spheres against three grooves to sub-0.1 mm is not forgiving. The docs assume you know how to configure Duet firmware and tune motion profiles; if you have never edited a config.g file, this will be a long weekend. The payoff is a machine that genuinely changes workflows — researchers have published papers on protocols automated with Jubilee. If you want to build one tool changer for fun, there are simpler projects. If you want the one that labs actually use and that can grow with you, this is it.

NOT IN THE REPO

  • —Full CAD files for the frame in STEP and Fusion 360, BOM with Digi-Key part numbers, Duet firmware config examples in the repo.
  • —Assembly guide exists as a wiki, with photos and cross-references to each build step.
  • —Tool head designs are separate repos — some are documented well, others are proofs-of-concept with minimal instructions.
  • —No single turnkey kit — you source every part yourself from the BOM and print the frame components.
  • —Released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 — fully open for commercial use.
  • —The project is maintained, last commit January 2025, active community on Discord.

Can I build this?

PrintFrame components, tool plates, and carriages — roughly 1.5 kg of filament, mostly PETG or ABS for heat resistance around the bed.
BuyAluminium extrusion, linear rails and MGN12 carriages, Duet 3 controller, stepper motors, belts, spheres and magnets for kinematic coupling, PSU, heated bed if printing — full BOM in the repo with Digi-Key part numbers.
Tools3D printer with 200×200 mm bed minimum, hex keys, crimping tool for Molex connectors, dial indicator for tramming, patience for kinematic coupling alignment.
SkillsIntermediate 3D printing, basic electronics and wiring, comfortable with Duet firmware configuration — this is not a first build.
TimeTwo weekends for the frame if everything goes smoothly, plus a day per tool head, plus calibration time — budget three weekends realistically.
Cost$$$ — dominated by the motion controller (300 dollars), linear rails (200 dollars), and extrusion (250 dollars). Each tool head adds 200 dollars on average.
SafetyMains voltage for the PSU and heated bed. If you add a laser tool head or a Dremel spindle, those bring their own risks — goggles and fume extraction required.

Build at your own risk. Projects involve tools, electronics and sometimes mains voltage — follow the creator’s safety notes.

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HeyGears G1: 10M+ colors and transparent parts in one print, plus UV printing on flat objects. Figures, parts and labels — no painting.

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Videos

Primary video reference from the repo.

Gallery

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/5fME9aGE3UvfdjaMqcYTzf-1796-80.png
https://mswiseman.github.io/assets/img/meingh.jpg

Start here

Navigation into the creator’s own docs — we don’t rewrite the guide, we route you to the source.

  1. 1.Read the assembly guide in the repo wiki(The wiki is the only structured build guide — start there before ordering parts.)
  2. 2.Check the BOM and source your parts(Digi-Key part numbers are provided, but stock changes — verify availability before committing.)
  3. 3.Print the frame components(PETG or ABS recommended, print settings are in the repo.)
  4. 4.Join the Discord for build support(The community is active and has solved most of the traps — ask before you guess.)

Resources

Documentation, files and community threads for this build — we link straight to the original sources and never rehost the creator’s files.

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KNOWN ISSUES

  • The kinematic coupling is the single hardest part to get right — six spheres seating into three grooves to sub-0.1 mm repeatability. If your spheres are not perfectly smooth or your grooves are not clean, tools will not return to position and you will spend a weekend chasing phantom offsets.
  • There is no kit — you are sourcing every part from the BOM yourself. Digi-Key part numbers are provided, but some parts go out of stock and you will have to find equivalents. Budget time for this.
  • The docs assume you know Duet firmware. If you have never configured a Duet board or edited a config.g file, the learning curve is real — this is not plug-and-play.
  • Each tool head is a separate mini-project with its own BOM and assembly notes. Some are documented well, others are proofs-of-concept with minimal instructions — check the tool head repo before you commit to a specific one.
  • The frame is big — 400×400 mm footprint, and you will need a printer with at least a 200×200 mm bed to print the frame parts. If you only have a smaller printer, you will be printing in pieces and gluing.
  • If you add a heated bed for 3D printing or a spindle for milling, you are adding mains voltage and mechanical hazards — plan for proper wiring, fusing, and enclosure before you power it on.

Can I buy a kit?

No. You source every part from the BOM and print the frame yourself. There are vendors who sell partial kits, but nothing official from the project.

What tool heads are available?

The repo lists 3D printing extruders, pipettes, pen plotters, vacuum pick-and-place, camera microscopes, and experimental ones like a syringe pump and a Dremel spindle. Each is a separate repo with its own BOM and build notes.

How repeatable is the tool change?

Sub-0.1 mm if the kinematic coupling is tensioned correctly. If it is not, you will see drift and have to re-seat the spheres.

Can I use a different motion controller?

The repo is built around Duet. You could port it to Klipper or RepRapFirmware on another board, but you are on your own — the config files and examples are Duet-specific.

What is the biggest limitation?

Speed. The frame is optimised for precision and repeatability, not for fast printing or fast pipetting. If you are racing, this is not the machine.

Community builds

No community builds yet — be the first, we feature the best ones.

Discussion1

FROM THE COMPAREE TEAM

600 stars, used in real research labs, and the kinematic coupling is the part that will eat your weekend if you rush it. What would you put on the build plate first — printing, pipetting, or something else?

CompareeTEAM21d ago

Practical notes from our verification: the repo is actively maintained, last commit January 2025, and the Discord is where the real build support happens — the wiki is structured but the community has solved most of the edge cases. The GenTLab bot project linked in the payload is one working example of Jubilee used for automated lab protocols — it is worth reading to see what the machine actually does in production. The single biggest trap is the kinematic coupling: six spheres seating into three grooves to sub-0.1 mm repeatability. If your spheres are not perfectly smooth or your grooves are not clean, tools will not return to position and you will spend a weekend chasing phantom offsets. The docs assume you know Duet firmware — if you have never edited a config.g file, budget time for that learning curve before you order parts.

Machine Agency, University of Washington

Jubilee came out of the Machine Agency lab at the University of Washington, led by Nadya Peek. The lab researches digital fabrication, automation, and modular hardware — Jubilee is one of several open platforms they have published for research use.

GitHub Web

Star the project on GitHub

DISCLAIMER

  • Comparee is not the author of the projects featured here. All rights to each project belong to its creator — every page links to the original source, and we never host creators’ files.
  • Information is provided without warranty and may become outdated as projects evolve. Prices are indicative bands only — always check the creator’s parts list for current costs.
  • Building and operating any project is at your own responsibility. Protective equipment, safe workshop practice and compliance with local regulations are the builder’s responsibility.
GitHub repo