Dashboard Phone Holder

prusaprinters

I never did like the suction cup smartphone holders on the windshield, so on my first car (a 2002 Fiat 600) after all the air vents were broken I had to make one by myself to be placed on the dashboard.Having to firmly fasten it to the dashboard I decided to go all-in using bolts and nuts and since I was already making holes in the dashboard I designed an additional one for an integrated charging cable.I developed this design by splitting it into 4 parts:The BodyIts elongated shape is purely aesthetic following the stylistic lines of my car dashboard. It has 3 holes for the fixing bolts (2 on the front and one on the rear). I printed it in blue cheap PLA as a prototype but about two years later and two 40+°C summers in Rome parked on the outside, it lasted very well showing only (when inspecting it carefully) a slight relief on the shell of the hexagonal pattern used as a fill so I never printed it in higher quality material.The BallBall diameter 17mm, I designed it as a piece in its own right that screws into the body because I had no idea what material it would be needed given the forces it would be subjected to. And after having changed more than 5 I can say that I did it right. The first one was in the same PLA as the body and melted in less than a month, then I started going up from PETG to ABS but both didn't last for long. Then came the PC with the annealing process which lasted for quite a while but eventually broke as well. For a year now I'm using ASA which is performing really well and I think I can define it as the final product. Tested printed at various angles and the best one is at 45° as in the uploaded g-code.The Cable Guide CapPrinted in TPU to close the charging cable hole while still allowing it to pass through. Being flexible it fits easily into the guideway hollowed out inside the body.The AdapterI used the LiDAR on my iPhone to scan the surface of my dashboard and then imported it into Fusion 360. I drew a surface to adhere to it and then traced a loft to join it with the body. I also replicated the 4 holes for the bolts and the charging cable to go through. Printed with the same settings as the body and the same material (cheap blue PLA), two years passed and still holds on as the first day. Printed in two parts with the body to avoid supports and allow modularity with adapters for other cars. Filaments used for the provided g-codes:ColorFabb PLA Economy (body and adapter)Polymaker PolyFlex (wire hole cap)Formfutura ApolloX (ball) AssemblyVery trivial, after placing the adapter and taking the measures for the holes (conical drill recommended for the charging cable hole),  nuts underneath and three M4x10mm (the length depends on the thickness o the dashboard shell)  bolts from above. The rear hole was very close to the windshield so I had to use a torque wrench. Then the ball screws in and the hole cap snap in place. Finally, you have to mount on the ball your favorite phone bracket, I chose one with wireless charging that I don't recommend, the mechanism inside to grab the phone is total plastic garbage.WiringI took 12V from the lights from the dash controls below and connected them to a step-down board that supported USB Quick Charge 3.0. Then I plugged a small USB cable to bring it outside and isolated everything for good measure.