aircraft phone holder

cults3d

A cellphone wireless charger mount designed for installation in a standard 3 1/8" aircraft instrument panel cutout. This design revolves around this wireless cellphone charger https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Proelio-Wireless-Car-Charger-Phone-Holder-for-iPhone-8-X-for-Samsung-Galaxy-S6-S7-S8/32844712249.html and this USB power supply https://www.aliexpress.com/item/9V-12V-24V-to-5V-DC-DC-Step-Down-Charger-Power-Module-Dual-USB-Output-Buck/32847583351.html. Other wireless chargers will work without modification as long as they feature a 17mm ball/socket attachment. [Edit 13 Oct 18: It appears that this USB charger causes radio interference. I'll be searching for a new charger and redesigning this Thing accordingly. Do not replicate this.] Note: This USB board requires a heatsink on the large chip if more than 2A is drawn. The charger draws about 1.5A, so you will need the heatsink if you plan to use both sockets simultaneously. Heatsinks are attached using self-adhesive pads. I opted for securing the heatsink to the PCB with braided copper wire (which also serves as an additional heatsink) twisted together and soldered. You'll require 4x M4x20 screws (I used countersunk because the panel itself is countersunk), 4 x M4 nuts, 2 x 2x8mm self-tapping screws, some wire, perhaps a connector, and a short USB-to-micro-USB cable. Solder wires to the pads on the USB board, then secure them back to the board for strain relief. Connect to fused, master-controlled 12V supply (e.g., the back of the cigarette lighter socket). Mount the USB board to the phone holder using self-tapping screws. Insert M4 nuts into the recesses at the back of the holder, securing with hot glue if necessary. Install the holder in the panel (V1 could be achieved through the hole in the panel itself, if access to the back is challenging) using M4 screws. Remove all the way the plastic nut that holds the air-vent or any other attachment to the back of the phone holder. The attachment ball part should then simply pull out of the socket. Keep the nut. Place the plastic nut over the ball on the panel, push the socket onto the ball, and tighten the nut. Plug in the micro-USB cable. V1 features the USB at right angles to the panel face, with two parts to facilitate printing the USB board mount. V2 is a perhaps-better design that I haven't actually printed... it's single-piece, and has the USB board at 45 degrees. If you're modifying this design, consider moving the ball position off-centre, so that the phone is higher or lower. I positioned the USB board to the right of the holder, allowing it to remain accessible even when there's a phone in the holder, for plugging in a second phone.