In spite of his relatively young age, 25-year-old Doan Hong Trung, a resident of Da Nang’s Thanh Khe District, has joined efforts with his colleagues to create the most affordable yet efficient Delta X, which is a general-purpose open source delta robot kit offering the motion flexibility of a human wrist, fast cycle times, ultra compact arm and high precision.

The Delta X robot is playing a piano app on a smartphone by pressing the keys according to programmed positions.

In reality, delta robots are amazing devices that use three motors and a linkage system to carefully position a manipulator in space. They’re commonly used in 3D printers, but you may also see them in an industrial setting, doing a variety of jobs at speeds that are difficult for the human eye to track. Such robots are usually used in the industry, especially in mass production lines to ease workers' manual jobs of packing products. However, the cost of these delta robots is relatively expensive, ranging from 2,000 US$ to 20,000 US$ in many foreign countries. This fact has inspired Trung to come up with the idea to create the most affordable yet efficient robot.

Early 2020, after two years of research, Trung and his associates set up their own IMWI Technology Company based in Lien Chieu District, which specialises in providing robot solutions and 3D printing technology. The Delta X 1 version was also born at this time.

The Delta X 1 can use its ‘arms’ to pick up paper sheets and a variety of other objects such as candies and fruits, and perform some related tasks programmatically.

From February to April, when the global supply chain was disrupted due to coronavirus, IMWI continued exporting more than 60 sets of Delta X 1 worth 249$ - 749$ each to foreign countries around the world.

In May, IMWI made the debut of the Delta X 2 version and then received a large number of orders for this new product worldwide.

According to Trung, the IMWI-created Delta X product is powered by an Arduino Mega and RAMPS 1.4 board. This gives it largely the same components as a RepRap 3D printer, with the addition of circuitry to control end effectors. Like a 3D printer or other CNC machine, it’s controlled by G-code commands sent to its serial port. User interface can be accomplished through a computer or smart device over a wired connection, Bluetooth, or WiFi, and it uses custom software that will run on Windows, Ubuntu, or MacOS.

Trung said, “Delta X is a cheap robot that anyone can make for their own, so designing to reduce costs but still achieve efficiency is really a challenge. We have gone through many versions to achieve the final one”.

Currently, Delta X is one of the Da Nang-based five startups to have earned their places among the top 60 in the Viet Nam Startup Wheel 2020, which is now the largest and most prestigious annual startup competition in the country.

By the end of this year, Trung and his colleagues will focus on adding more features for the Delta X 1 and Delta X 2 versions, and create another one, named Delta XS.

“Once the coronavirus is put under control globally, IMWI and its US and Indian partners will enter a long-term cooperation agreement with the intention of gradually realising the ambitious dream of elevating Viet Nam's science and technology stature”, said Trung.

By MAI QUE – Translated by A.T