Android Boom Box

Machine Type:

OpenBuilds LEAD Machine

Software:

Solidworks, CamBam, bCNC

Electronics:

OpenBuilds BlackBox

Machine Time:

Many Hours

Bit or Laser Size:

1/8" Dual Flute

Feeds & Speeds:

300mm/s, 8000 RPM, 3MM Depth of cut

Materials:

MDF

I had an extra Android car stereo and it has a very odd faceplate that does not fit regular cars. Rather than throw it into my electronics graveyard of stuff, I decided to make something useful from the car stereo. This project uses 1/2" MDF and it is VERY, VERY heavy but also very strong.As with most things I make, I didn't really plan to post it but after all was said and done, it looked really cool so I decided to. Since I never planned to post it, I don't really have good pictures of the build along the way, they're just sort of random during the build.

Also, you'll notice in the picture that the radio touchscreen is sometimes vertical and sometimes horizontal. It's motorized and works in both positions. This is the reason the boom box has a base, to make clearance in vertical mode. Also, the base has a sweet angle that works nice for a touch screen.

For anyone interested in what in the box, just send me a private message. Here's the highlights:

Heavy Duty Barn Door handle on top, from Amazon
JBL 2way 6.5" Speaker with crossover, from Amazon
2x 12v 6AH LifePo4 Batteries with charger (this thing can literally go all day and night on battery)
12/5v Dual AC Power Supply (I can switch to AC power when plugged in for max battery charging speed)
WeMos D1 Mini ESP8266 - microcontroller I use to run the relays for ignition wire, also runs the sleep timer, and monitors battery levels, current draw, will auto power off during low battery, all accessed via Web Interface
Various electronics to support the above, relays, etc
Duratex coating and damping material, purchased from Parts Express

Just like the last project, the main box and lower box were made on makercase.com. I do this because making all the finger joints manually is tedious so I just let makercase.com do it for me. The makercase files are then just laid up in CamBam to create the toolpaths. For more intricate cuts like the speaker and radio cutouts, I lay those out in Solidworks and then back to CamBam to make the toolpaths, generate the G-code. Finally, I use bCNC from a raspberry pi to stream the G-code to my Openbuilds BlackBox controller.

I also posted a screenshot of the web interface. There's not much to see here but you can see that I monitor the current draw by the radio, the voltage levels when on battery or AC power. In the toolbar at the top there are menu items for setting sleep timers and other various stuff, like uploading new Javascript, CSS or HTML. The toolbar at the top also has a power button/indicator, a battery/ac button/indicator and a battery level meter at the far right. At the bottom of the web interface is an always on debug log that allows me to see what's going on. It's not pretty but it works.

There's was no real design intent here, just kind of made it up as I went along. That's not a strategy I recommend but it worked out alright. Any questions, just ask!