GlintX is a hands-free phone cleaning station that automatically removes fingerprints, dust, and surface grime with a single button press. A motorized microfiber roller travels the length of the screen while a peristaltic pump delivers cleaning fluid through a mounted nozzle. UV light also runs simultaneously for surface sanitation. The project was built with Arduino and 3D printed components in collaboration with @Ben_A.
We finally finished making the 3D model of our project!
We spent a long time on the carriage design (the square piece in the attached vid that holds the two microfiber rollers) and getting the gap between rollers right to fit phones of all sizes, including cases. We went for a sleek futuristic look, so it had to be compact and not too big. In the end, while designing the cleaning fluid container, we realized in the end that we have only one water pump and one long pipe but 4 nozzles lol. So we have to cut them and find a way to arrange and connect them separately.
The hardest part was the middle base — it supports the carriage, phone, and threaded rods simultaneously, and getting exact measurements was annoying since several Amazon listings don’t list dimensions. We also designed two internal pillars for structural integrity that double as mounts for the UV strips.
The build splits into 6 parts: top lid, carriage, middle base, 2 parts for the shell, and bottom base for all the wiring and Arduino. This was because we wanted to 3D print this project easily without much supports.
I also added all our files and created a README to our Github repo and also created a demo video. Our project is now ready to submit for the outpost funding!
Thanks for reading! (sorry about making this a bit too long, I should’ve made this into multiple devposts)
Hey everyone! I finalized the parts list after almost 3 hours of research.
Figuring out the motor setup was pretty challenging. I first looked at the NEMA 17, but that was too overkill, then went through 4+ different DC motors before picking TT motors, which have low RPM but high torque (required for spinning our threaded rods) unlike the other motors we looked at.
Also had to ditch our first power adapter when we realized 1300mA wouldn’t handle 4 motors running simultaneously. Swapped it for a proper 12V 2A supply.
Next, we have to create the CAD model for our project and submit the design!
Hello everyone! I tried to come up with an original and useful idea for a hardware project for Outpost and decided to make a phone cleaner!
@Ben_A and I designed some of the mechanical design for the project in a whiteboard today. The cleaner uses two threaded rods to drive a microfiber roller up and down both sides of the phone, with UV lights lining the inner walls and a sliding door on top to add cleaning fluid. The phone sits vertically in the center.
Hardest part of the design was figuring out the microfiber roller design. We ended up choosing threaded rods in order to make the roller move up and down along the phone’s screen and back.
Next, we have to complete a proper diagram of our project, make the CAD models to 3D print, and finalize the parts list. We’re trying to find as many parts as possible in local stores nearby to avoid shipping delays!
