Raspberry Pi Zero - 18650 Battery Project Plate by orcusomega

Last crawled date: 3 years, 1 month ago

I found that working with Pi projects can get complicated when trying to see if a design works before you solder it all up more permanently. There are a lot of projects that I found myself struggling to keep organized while I figured out wiring, code, etc. Also, since the places where I want to test the project might not have easy power, I wanted to have the ability to run off battery for a while so I could try everything out before I ran wires, installed solar, etc.
So I designed this thing to allow a designer/tinkerer to assemble a Pi Zero project on the bench and test it where it needed to be tested without the need for USB chargers, etc. Since the Pi header is exposed, a serial connection can be used to manage the device as well, without the need for wifi. This can also be used for permanent mounting if needed as it has holes to mount to a wall with screws.
Incorporated into this design is Mitzpatrick's "Heavy Duty Mountable 18650 Battery Holder" (https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1433232)
Components used in this project:
Qty 4 - M2.5x5 screws (holds the Pi to the board)
Qty 4: M3 x 5 screws and lock washers (these are the terminals that attach the wires to the battery ends)
Qty 12 - M3 washers (used to space the terminal screws and protect the battery wires)
Qty 1 - Raspberry Pi Zero
Qty 2 - 18650 Li-Ion batteries
Qty 1 - USB charging puck