The Liberator CEB Press Prototype IV

The CEB Story 2012. from Open Source Ecology on Vimeo.

Quote from the video: “After this December, there’s going to be major adoption happening as people see this machine works and the quality of the housing that’s built, both in terms of time and cost, is going to be superior.” Marcin Jakubowski, Founder Open Source Ecology

“We’re pleased to announce design completion of Prototype IV of the Compressed Earth Brick (CEB) Press. The machine has come a long way since Prototype I. The main changes since Prototype III includes redesign of the hopper, a stronger frame, the next iteration of the automation controller, and general streamlining of the design for fabrication.

The Liberator, a high performance, open source CEB press, can produce from 8,000 to over 17,000 blocks per day.

Improvements in the newest design:
– Hopper Design – The hopper will now catch 99% of the soil dumped into the grate due to reduced hopper aperture and improved cut design of the hopper panels from a single 5×10 sheet of steel.
– Hopper Interface Saddle – A sheet metal saddle now cradles the hopper and allows a tighter funnel for soil to fall into the compression chamber
– Compression Chamber – The long sides of the compression chamber can now be cut out of ½” steel with ½” flanges welded on as support contributing to flatter bricks.
– Primary Structural Improvement – Several structural members of the press are now built out of 3x6x3/8” steel rather than 2×6 “heavy” U-channel improving overall rigidity.
– Cylinder Press foot – The press foot which presses the bricks is now specified out of abrasion resistant (AR300) steel increasing durability.
– Press Cylinder – The press cylinder is now specified with a bare shaft on which the press foot is pinned rather than welding in the previous design
– Hopper Piano Hinge – The hinges holding the walls of the hopper together are now continuous or piano hinges rather than a series of door hinges.
– Drawer – The drawer is now designed out of nearly all ½” steel plate and could be cut out of a small sheet of it using CNC technology.
– Drawer supports – The drawer is now supported by 4 cam followers which are held by a modular drawer support assembly. See image below
– Grate attachment – The grate is now attached to its structural support using a continuous hinge so the grate can be opened up like a hatch to maintain the soil flow when blockage occurs.”

Source: Open Source Ecology
Liberator CEB IV – Open Source Ecology drawings and specs
Watch the video on Vimeo
Watch the fabrication video on Vimeo
Open Source Ecology: Housing and Construction