Networkdeck

Week 2+3: I forgot to post devlog for week 2 so here it is!

Week 2:
I worked on the battery and it actually worked without blowing up which is very shocking to me as it was sketchy as hell (Amazon BMS and charger).

This week was also the week that I discovered that my PCB redesign for the keyboard didn’t work… Really felt that since it was like 100$. RIP my wallet…(PCBWay so expensive). I used JLCPCB which is like so much cheaper (like 60$) and ordered the v3 of the keyboard.
The main issue with my design was that I thought I just did not think of how I was going to flash the ESP32 at all… So to power my v3 board, I ended up following the Hackclub Keeb guide and used a Raspberry Pico to simplify the flashing.

I also finished getting all of my main components all 3d printed out and switches and thingies attached, so I was ready to basically assemble.

Week 3:

I faced a really big issue working on the screen. It would not turn on as much as I tried looking through the documentation of my screen. I had tested when I got the screens and it worked fine. I was debugging for like 3 hours and I asked my dad to look at it since I needed a 2nd opinion.

I flipped the DSI ribbon cable… RIP 3 hours of my life. I also didn’t get it on Hackatime because I thought it would be a easy assembly… [insert rick and morty meme, “let’s go in and out”]

With the screen working and battery working, I worked on putting the top and bottom cases together. So, for the first time I got it powered completely via the battery pack!! [Picture] (yes one of the first things I did was to install and play Stardew Valley on it)

Finally, today I got my keyboard v3 in the mail and I started assembling my keyboard. I got it assembled in 2 hours since I had all the parts already. It was honestly not that bad, just soldering a lot of diodes and switches in a row.

Using RMK and Vial for keyboard configuration, I was able to get it functioning on my other computer.

Todo:

• Design a keyboard case for the v3 PCB and print out keycaps
• SHIPPPPP!!!!

My keyboard PCB and batteries arrived, so I made the cases for them. Wasn’t too challenging as I had already thought out how I wanted them to be laid out in the box.

front panel v5… This front panel was so hard to design, mainly because I have an A1 printer and so its bed cannot fully support the width of the front panel. I think this design fully satisfies my requirements as it 1) is fully printable in one shot so there’s no weird breaks, 2) is wide enough to fit the entire front cover, and 3) looks nice. I don’t have any of my wires yet and so I will be waiting for those to arrive.

I finished my redesign for my front cover from last night. This (almost finalized) design has some kinks to it, such as still needing ports but the overall dimensions and stuff is done, meaning that I should be able to get it printed and finished tomorrow. All that’s left is: 1) Keyboard 2) Battery 3) Raspberry Pi case which is a lot but a lot has also been ordered and is on the way.

I worked on getting the power supply for my cyberdeck. I decided to go with the custom LiPo battery pack because I can store each cell separately for flights. (which is necessary since I’m taking this to Outpost) So here I was just searching for the right BMS for my battery a 3S battery pulling max maybe 20amps.

I also worked on the front panel of my cyberdeck (where the screen and ports are going to be located) I originally wanted a dual screen setup in which the two screens were overlayed and you could expand it as one screen was on some linear rails. However, that is wayyy to complex for something that I need to ship in like 10 days and it would look really janky and not nice. In other words, KISS - Keep it simple stupid.

Working on the bottom side of my case, where the keyboard and storage lives.

I wanted the storage to be nice and neat (no spaghetti here) and so I made these sliding boxes that would go into the compartment under the keyboard. Some key design constraints was keeping it small and compact, which I did with the hooks on the boxes so retrieving the cases is easy and also really compact.

I plan on using the same sort of design on the other half of the bottom part of case.

With the bottom half of the case being dedicated to storage I’ve changed my design, moving the Raspberry Pi being on the lid half of the case to make room for the storage. I think this should also make my wiring later simpler because now there’s less wires needing to go through the hinge.

Ordering some components on PCBway, they still need to undergo review but hopefully we should have some stuff arrive soonish

Working on proper spacing and figuring out where I want everything to maximize 1) cooling for the Pi (dunno how much it matters) 2) battery size/life 3) Ports and connections

Working On My Keyboard Battery