Octoprint tablet case and wireless charging dock by jongsanders

Last crawled date: 3 years, 3 months ago

I've been slowly reworking my BLV MGN Cube 3D printer. Since I ended up repurposing the original PanelDue touch screen display, I wanted to come up with a different solution for the front display. I decided to go for a cheap 7" Android tablet, which would let me access the full Duet Web Control interface, as well as connecting to my other printers. (And play music and take pictures, I mean, why not?)
This would also have the benefit of allowing me to grab the screen and take it on the go, if for example I wanted to keep an eye on my print while I was in a different part of the house!
I wanted a clean look, though, and that meant not fussing around with plugging in a micro USB to the janky tablet connector all the time. So I got myself a Qi wireless transmitter and receiver, and integrated them into the dock.
I also wanted a solid connection between the tablet and the dock, so I integrated pairs of neodymium magnets into the case and dock. This yields a very satisfying "thunk" when the tablet connects!

The transmitter I used also has an abundance of bright blue LEDs to indicate charging status, so I integrated a light ring printed in transparent PETG to make it visible.



It turns out the strong magnets interfere a bit with the inductive power transmission, so after a bit of research I found that angling the transmitter board gave me a reliable connection. YMMV, though, so it might also be worth trying less powerful magnets. They're plenty strong as they are!
The case is printed in PLA with an inner TPU liner for shock absorption. It has a print-in-place kickstand for when it's undocked; the kickstand is held closed by a pair of press-fit 3x3mm cylinder magnets..

Here's a rough parts list:
1/2" x 1/4" x 1/8" neodymium bar magnets (8)
3x3mm neodymium cylinder magnets (2)
wireless receiver (make sure you get the plug facing the right way for your device)
wireless transmitter
various M3 screws, plus M2 screws for affixing the transmitter board
Vankyo MatrixPad S7 tablet