ajvink
May 06, 2006, 10:48 PM
Hi Everyone, I need some help to design a portable / rugged "smart" carrying case for my R/C gear.
Key objectives I have for the design are:
1. Easy to build
2. Easy to use, fail safe.
3. Dust, Shock and Water resistant.
4. Portable battery charger.
5. Dual Power source (Internal and External)
Functional Description:
Like many of us, I love to explore new flying areas whenever possible. I have a requirement to take along all the fundamental electronic R/C gear with me wherever I go. Traditionally, I have only taken my tranny, couple of spare servos and gear sets in a carrying case. I have however upon occasion had the need for extra light, soldering and recharging of flight packs, where my vehicle is a fair hike away from the area where I am flying.
Therefore, I set about building a portable / rugged "smart" carrying case for my R/C gear, but require some electronic expertise in achieving my somewhat "idealistic" functional goals.
In a nutshell, I want a carrying case that can be set to power a programmable battery charger for various chemistry types, i.e. LiPo, NiMH, NiCD etc. In addition to that, I would like the system to have a switch that either turns the case on, off, or allows me to charge the internal power source via the inbuilt battery charger inside the case from my vehicle or portable 12V battery.
I would also like the system to automatically detect which power source to utilise for charging, with a preference to the external source. (For example...my laptop automatically uses its external power source if / when it is plugged in, and if unplugged, reverts back to its Lithium battery) While I do not require it to be as seamless as this, that is what I would like ideally. (I designed a circuit with a two position switch, but don't like switches if they are not needed)
If the external power is connected, and the 3pos Switch is set to charge, I want to be able to set my programmable charger inside the case to charge my internal source. Obviously, if the external power is not connected, I want to it to be fool proof enough to NOT allow charging of the internal battery.
I also need an external power socket to connect soldering iron, lights, etc.
Please also feel free to critique my thoughts on this. Any help / feedback would be much appreciated. :) I have attached some Visio, AutoCAD and JPEGs to illustrate my thoughts.
TIA, Alan Vink
Key objectives I have for the design are:
1. Easy to build
2. Easy to use, fail safe.
3. Dust, Shock and Water resistant.
4. Portable battery charger.
5. Dual Power source (Internal and External)
Functional Description:
Like many of us, I love to explore new flying areas whenever possible. I have a requirement to take along all the fundamental electronic R/C gear with me wherever I go. Traditionally, I have only taken my tranny, couple of spare servos and gear sets in a carrying case. I have however upon occasion had the need for extra light, soldering and recharging of flight packs, where my vehicle is a fair hike away from the area where I am flying.
Therefore, I set about building a portable / rugged "smart" carrying case for my R/C gear, but require some electronic expertise in achieving my somewhat "idealistic" functional goals.
In a nutshell, I want a carrying case that can be set to power a programmable battery charger for various chemistry types, i.e. LiPo, NiMH, NiCD etc. In addition to that, I would like the system to have a switch that either turns the case on, off, or allows me to charge the internal power source via the inbuilt battery charger inside the case from my vehicle or portable 12V battery.
I would also like the system to automatically detect which power source to utilise for charging, with a preference to the external source. (For example...my laptop automatically uses its external power source if / when it is plugged in, and if unplugged, reverts back to its Lithium battery) While I do not require it to be as seamless as this, that is what I would like ideally. (I designed a circuit with a two position switch, but don't like switches if they are not needed)
If the external power is connected, and the 3pos Switch is set to charge, I want to be able to set my programmable charger inside the case to charge my internal source. Obviously, if the external power is not connected, I want to it to be fool proof enough to NOT allow charging of the internal battery.
I also need an external power socket to connect soldering iron, lights, etc.
Please also feel free to critique my thoughts on this. Any help / feedback would be much appreciated. :) I have attached some Visio, AutoCAD and JPEGs to illustrate my thoughts.
TIA, Alan Vink