Like every project this one stemmed from a need I had. I had taken to using my tablet to read me the scriptures and then to listen to podcasts on my commute. But having my phone sit next to me meant that occasionally my eyes left the road, and that’s not safe. So I wanted to figture out a way to mount my tablet to my car’s dash. At first I was trying to capture the exact shape of my dash and use it’s ridges, but then while shopping Deal Extreme I saw a univeral phone mount that clipped into the air vent and realized that was a better way..
It works great, holds my tablet just above the radio and allows me to start the next page or recording without taking my eyes off the road.
I printed the first iteration in blue PLA and discovered that it worked great the first day, then not at all the second when the sun softened it and loosed the connection. So I printed the warped parts in Orange ABS and they’ve been working well for over a month now. ABS or other plastics with similar temperature requirements is the way to go on this project.
For the cable I didn’t wan a lot of dangling excess, so I got a pair of $1 headphones and spliced them end to end to make a cable just the right length. It turns out cheap headphones have some strange wires that are a combination of copper and cotton, so soldering them is a pain, but I gave it a shot and they seem to work most of the time.
I’ve also resized and tested the clips for phones, but I haven’t got any pictures. but trust me, I have people who have been using this for over a month as well with their phone.
I’ve made the files for this project available to download online if you’d like your own.
