DIY 3d printed phone dock/charger

[tomd3969]

**********Update************

These docks are now available for anyone who wants one. To date designs have been completed for:

1. IPhone 4, 4s
2. IPhone 5, 5s, 5c
3. Iphone 6, 6s
4. Samsung Galaxy 6/6 edge
5. Samsung Galaxy 56. Nexus 5x

Designs are compatible with the below models

1. Mk5 Golf/jetta platform
2. Mk6 Golf/jetta platform

I'm also keeping track of expressions of interest for other phone model designs. If you want to see a dock for your phone let me know. Enough interest for a particular phone and I'll look at doing a new design!

Current expressions of interest (over the last week or two)

Samsung Galaxy s6: 7
Samsung Galaxy s6 edge: 2
Nexus 5x: 4
Samsung Galaxy 5: 4

In addition please remember if you want charging capability you will need to either:

1. Install a USB outlet to your cupholder - see DIY below
2. Run an external USB extension to a cigarette lighter USB plug (not a particularly neat option but possible)

If you dont want charging, I recommend ordering a cable with your dock anyway and cutting off the excess cable. The lightning connector will help keep your phone in place!



See below for background on the design


************Beginning of original thread*******************

Hi all. Thought I would share a DIY I've been having a bit of fun with lately.

The project came about because I wanted a place to put my phone in the car where it could charge and not rattle around all the time. I know there are clip on style ones available for vents/windscreen but decided to try come up with something a little neater/integrated with the car.


My idea was to integrate a charger and dock into the existing space where the VW bottle opener sits in the cup holder area (Mkv golf). It's an area that doesn't really get used and I certainly dont use 2 cups/bottles there at once! I could also take advantage of the way the bottle opener "slides" in. ie. Design a dock to do exactly the same thing as a means of keeping it fixed in place.


Initial concept of how the phone might "sit" within the console





Measured up the bottle opener with some calipers, measured up the phone and this is what I came up with - First cut of the design in solid works





You can make out the charging pin below. Integrating it with the dock was a small challenge. Somehow a charging cable needed to be threaded through the dock and the pin fixed in place. Ended up designing a small "channel" underneath the dock to allow threading of the cable, and a recess to accept the head of the pin. The charging pin press fits into the dock - no glue or anything required.




First prototype 3d printed in abs- a few minor clearance issues still to be sorted out





Underneath - the channel that allows the charging pin to be inserted





Inserting the charging pin











And now the phone! Should mention that I designed it based on the phone 5 platform (5,5c,5s). But the great thing is this could be done easily on virtually any phone platform with a few tweaks to the design





Comparison with the bottle opener





By this stage I'd already had a good think about how to source the power for the charger. I wanted to tap into the cigarette lighter and route direct to the cupholders. However, I wasn't too keen on drilling anything through the console plastic itself to route the cable.
There are 2 small rubber mats on the base of the cupholders - these are easily removable. Underneath are pre-formed holes which help the mats "key" into place.








What I found was these are just large enough to fit the charging pin through, and the mat can be slotted back into place with virtually no interference. Although I am using the "flat" type profile cable, I did test with a circular profile and its virtually as good.








Obviously I still need to pull the console apart and tap the power of the cigarette lighter - that will be the next stage of the project. What is also needed is a 12V to 5v converter (phone chargers only take 5v). Fairly easy to source on eBay but will take a week or two from china.


Inverter 5V Female USB Socket Hard Wired CAR Charger FOR GPS Tablet 12V TO 5V | eBay


Once I have everything on hand will finish up and post a few more details on trim removal and electrical work.


And the finished product - enjoy!

[snerlo]

Good work mate. Great effort.

[Lucas_R]

Looks great - well done!

[Splashalot]

Stroke of genius!

[Passat my07]

That's great work.
Do you think you could print out a new diesel engine the meets the current emission standards?

[Mcsteve]

This is brilliant.
Any chance of sharing the cnc/cad plan?
I'd love to tweak one to replace my silly cup/slot thingy in my oct rs console.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[tomd3969]

This is brilliant.
Any chance of sharing the cnc/cad plan?
I'd love to tweak one to replace my silly cup/slot thingy in my oct rs console.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Happy to provide the part file for people to play around with! Actually if you can provide a few key dimensions of your "slot thingy" I can probably make the adjustments fairly quickly for you. Now the first prototype is done I will be making some minor improvements to the design over the next few days.


What I would also like to do is make the STL file available for anyone who would like to 3d print this part. For anyone new to 3d printing, this is basically a format of the original CAD file which allows the part to be printed.

It's actually quite easy to get something 3d printed these days. For starters check out this site:

https://www.3dhubs.com/

Sign up, upload the STL file you want to print and its very easy to find a 3d printing service in your area. If your in a major city you'll almost certainly find something in a 10km radius. The site also automatically generates quotes for the part to compare services. Then just order online and have the part delivered. Very cool stuff. From memory this part cost around $25 to print.

[golfmeup]

This is awesome! So many possibilities! I'm now seeing 3D printers having an everyday application!

Top stuff mate!

[tomd3969]

Ok, version 2 of the dock is now virtually complete. Just a few minor clearance issues that had to be sorted, I'm getting it printed later this week just to double check everything. Will confirm everything is good once I get it in the car.


I've made the latest design available for free download! Anyone interested check it out here:

VW iPhone car dock and integrated charger by Tomd3969 - Thingiverse


If you don't have access to a printer, a great place to start is here:

https://www.3dhubs.com

[tomgti]

Sweet! Can you do for iPhone 6s?
I always thought a good spot would have been the flap panel where the cig lighter is.. although possibly only good for landscape viewing - e.g. google maps