Repair

SwayForm combines commercially available electronics and actuators with custom, replaceable 3D-printed structural parts. When something breaks, schools replace the affected part rather than the whole robot — and many repairs are a supervised student learning opportunity, not a service ticket.

Component identification

Before repairing anything, identify what actually failed:

• Structural / printed part — a cracked bracket, broken mount, or worn joint housing. Usually a 3D-printed part.
• Servo — MG996R (large joints) or MG90S (small joints, fingers). See the joint table on the Robot page for which servo drives which joint.
• Electronics — Raspberry Pi, PCA9685 controller, power converter, camera, or wiring. See Technical Reference.

Diagnostic procedure

1. Power off and disconnect before touching any wiring.
2. Check for visible damage: cracked plastic, loose screws, disconnected cables, burnt smell.
3. If a joint won't move, check Troubleshooting first — many "broken" joints are a software or power issue, not a physical one.
4. If a joint moves but grinds or catches, suspect a mechanical/structural issue.
5. If a joint doesn't respond to any command but others on the same controller do, suspect the individual servo.
6. If an entire side or group of joints doesn't respond, suspect that PCA9685 controller or its power rail — see Technical Reference for which controller and rail serve which joints.

Disassembly & reassembly

Structural parts are held with standard M3 hardware wherever possible. General approach: power off, remove the minimum number of fasteners needed to access the failed part, note servo horn orientation with a photo before removing it, replace the part, and reassemble in reverse order.

Calibration after a repair

After replacing a servo or reassembling a joint, re-check its neutral position and range against the values in the Technical Reference joint table before running any demo or lab. A servo installed a spline tooth off from neutral will hit its safe-limit clamp in the wrong place.

Required tools

• Small Phillips screwdriver (M3 hardware)
• Hex key set, if included with your unit
• Multimeter (for electrical diagnosis)
• i2cdetect / terminal access (for I²C controller diagnosis)

Replacement parts

Every individual 3D-printed replacement part is priced below $20. Schools may download the available print files and produce replacement structural parts themselves. Electronic and mechanical replacement costs vary by component — when a larger assembly is damaged, schools replace only the affected printed or electronic components rather than purchasing a new robot.

Post-repair test

After any repair, before returning the robot to classroom use: power on, verify the repaired joint reaches its neutral pose correctly, run Demo: Wave as a general motion check, and confirm no unusual noise, heat, or resistance.