[DIY] Magnetic, Wireless Wood Charging Stand

[DIY] Magnetic, Wireless Wood Charging Stand - Nexus 5 Accessories

So, ever since I found out that the Nexus 5 had the metal disks in it to to help align the phone with the official charger, I've been determined to make my own stand. My goal was to design a stand that would hold the phone at an angle on my desk, use only magnets to hold the phone, incorporate a Qi charger, and also to look super-clean. Well, I just finished it last night. It works well and I think it turned out good. Hopefully you guys like it and if anyone wants more info or pictures, I'll be happy to provide it
Stand without the phone. The wood is a piece of walnut, oiled and waxed, with no magnets or charger visible from the front.
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Stand with the phone stuck to it, you can see the "Charged" appear on screen and the battery charging icon, indicating that the phone is connected to the Qi charger, and you see the bottom of the phone is not resting on the desk. It's held up entirely by the magnets. Sorry for the photo quality on this one, it was taken with my GNEX.

This looks AWESOME! it looks so relaxed. you should make a tutorial for this
it looks awesome mate, keep it going.

impressive! charger model?

ruspa said:
impressive! charger model?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just ordered the coil/board itself. But, it appears to be the same coil used in any of the cheap chinese Qi chargers based on some of the other pictures around here.
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/QI-w...arging-accessory-DIY-wireless/1325747887.html
Only $12 shipped. Takes about 2-3 weeks to arrive from China

kidgenius said:
Just ordered the coil/board itself. But, it appears to be the same coil used in any of the cheap chinese Qi chargers based on some of the other pictures around here.
http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/287741367.html
Only $12 shipped. Takes about 2-3 weeks to arrive from China
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cool! Now I'm zazzled of making one myself :good:

Acelius said:
This looks AWESOME! it looks so relaxed. you should make a tutorial for this
it looks awesome mate, keep it going.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!
Here's a run down of how I made it.
Materials:
Wood: approx 1/2" x 12" x 2 5/8"
Magnets: 1/2" x 1/8" N48 Discs
Qi PCB/Coil, either buy direct or yank out of another charger.
I started with a block of walnut which was 1/2" thick, 12" long, and just a little narrower in width than the phone itself (about 2 5/8). I made it narrower than the phone, because my fingers naturally extend past the sides of the phone when I grip it. This makes it relatively simple to center the phone, left-to-right, on the stand. I started by cutting the 12" board down so I had one piece that was 6 1/4" long which would be the face, and the remaining piece would be used as the base as well as some waste area to dial in the hole depths with the drill press.
Next, I had to lay out the holes for the magnets. The metal discs in the phone back are 49mm from the top edge of the phone to the center of the upper-most disc. The 4 discs have their centers at the corners of a 36mm x 36mm square. This began with finding the center-line of my block of wood, and then drawing parallel lines, at a distance of 18mm on either side of the center line.
Then, I drew perpendicular lines at a distance of 49mm + 5/16" reveal (~2 1/4") from the top. And another line, 36mm further down from that.
Lastly, I had to find the center of the square so I could accurately drill for the coil.
Then, off to the drill press to drill the holes. I drill the 4 holes for the magnets first, using a 1/2: Forstner bit. You could also use a brad point bit, or a twist bit, but the entry hole wont be as clean with the latter. Then, I used a 2" Forstner bit to drill for the coil. I drilled each hole about as far as I could go without the spur (center point) of the drill exiting the face of the board.
When all was said and done, the result was this:
The deeper you can get the hole, the better. This really is a game of millimeters. When I drilled the holes initially, a single magnet in each hole wasn't enough to hold the phone. But, with two magnets in each hole, the phone couldn't detect the charger through all the wood. I drilled the the larger hole as deep as I dared, because air has a lower permittivity (easier for EM fields to pass through) than wood. Still, even with a bunch of wood hogged out, the distance was still too much. I had to make the magnet recesses even deeper in the hopes that single magnets would hold the phone, thus allowing the charging coil to sit super low in the block of wood. After having drilled those magnet recesses as deep as possible with a drill bit and not being able to drill any deeper, it was time for a more risky manuever.
That's a 1/2" carbide end-mill chucked into the drill press. I bored straight down, getting the holes to withing 1/32" of the face of the block of wood.
SAFETY WARNING! This worked for me and I didn't, at any time, feel that I was in harms way. The wood, router bit, and drill press did not, at any time give any indication of any impending problems. Still, router bits are designed for the significantly higher speeds of a router, and drill presses are only designed for axial loading. If you are going to ever put a end mill in a drill press, please do not induce sideways loading on the bit. Go read up on drill presses and tool tapers and why this would be a bad idea. Do this at your own risk! END OF SAFETY WARNING
Next, I laid out the recess for the PCB of the charger. I took the coil of the charger and affixed it to the back of the PCB using double-sided foam tape. Then put the coil into the hole and traced around the PCB.
Then, with chisels and a router plane, I excavated the waste. You can use a router, drill bits, whatever you want to eliminate the waste. I also cut out a recess for the coil wires that looped up to the PCB, and I also included a 1/2" thick slot to accommodate the USB plug and cable. After this was all done the piece looked like this:
Next, came the base. This is from the same block of wood as the front, so the color and dimensions all match the front block. Both ends received a bevel of whatever angle felt "right". I held the front block on my desk and angled it back until it was pleasing. This then was set as the angle for all the bevels. If I had to guess....it'd be about 15-20 degrees.
I also had to cut a 1/4" in groove, from front to back, to accomodate the USB cable. The base ends up looking like this (as a note, the top face in the picture will be resting on the desk. I turned it bottoms-up to show the groove)
Next, I glued the base to the front using an extra thick/gel super-glue, as this was a fairly difficult piece to clamp. Traditional wood glues would be difficult, but not impossible, to use. Using the same glue, I glued the magnets into their recesses. I made the polarities all line up, so on the face, all the magnets have the same North-South orientation. I don't think this is critical though.
Lastly, I dropped in the coil. It is not held in place with any glue or screws. The coil has a ferrite backer and the magnets end up being close enough to hold the PCB in place. They don't actually contact the magnets, but I doubt it matters as the coil appears to be insulated. The USB cable slides up through the bottom through the channel that was cut earlier in the front block.
Turn it over, plug it in, and you are set.
The only other thing remaining which I plan on doing, is ordering some nano-suction polyurethane material to held hold the stand to the desk. But that's just peel'n stick and should be easy enough for most people to figure out.

This is simply phenomenal. Nice work. I wish I had a workshop of my own to be able to build stuff like this.

A side hustle
This is really great work. I feel like you could have a little side business on your hand, a kickstarter even haha! In any case, if you ever feel like banging out a couple extra of these, let me know. Even if it's just the pre-drilled wood and I have to buy the other components, I would be interested in buying it. Great work!

Acelius said:
This looks AWESOME! it looks so relaxed. you should make a tutorial for this
it looks awesome mate, keep it going.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AliLaPointe said:
This is really great work. I feel like you could have a little side business on your hand, a kickstarter even haha! In any case, if you ever feel like banging out a couple extra of these, let me know. Even if it's just the pre-drilled wood and I have to buy the other components, I would be interested in buying it. Great work!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I briefly thought about it....briefly
I just enjoyed making it for myself and felt like sharing so anyone could replicate it at their leisure. Thanks for the kudos though!

AliLaPointe said:
This is really great work. I feel like you could have a little side business on your hand, a kickstarter even haha! In any case, if you ever feel like banging out a couple extra of these, let me know. Even if it's just the pre-drilled wood and I have to buy the other components, I would be interested in buying it. Great work!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I totally agree, i love this design! Keep us in touch when you decide to make some more :angel:
Awesome job!

martjeuh said:
I totally agree, i love this design! Keep us in touch when you decide to make some more :angel:
Awesome job!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also have one more thing to add, which is an NFC tag in the center recess. That way I can use Tasker, etc., to do things like keep the phone from sleeping while on the charger. Alas, my NFC tags have not yet arrived.

wow man. amazing work. really interested in trying this myself

Do you know of this coil trickle charges when the battery is full?

lengz said:
Do you know of this coil trickle charges when the battery is full?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From what I've noticed...
The phone will charge up to 100%. Then starts dropping down to ~95-96% before starting to charge back up.
I think this is a phone function, not a charger function though.

I'd totally buy one. I don't have the resources to make one myself, just the know how.

davwman said:
I'd totally buy one. I don't have the resources to make one myself, just the know how.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
his looks way better then mine would.

Looks great! I just got some new tools so this might be something I will have to make!

This is awesome :good:
I'm definitely going to make one for myself - already ordered the charger circuit from your AliExpress link
Based on some SketchUp measuring off scaled images from ifixit's teardown of the N5 and the top view picture of your charger coil - it looks like the N5 has 1/4" diameter metal disks around it's Qi coil - so wouldn't it have been easier/better for you to use 1/4" diameter neodymium magnets instead of 1/2" ones? This would have allowed you to place the coil a little over a millimeter closer to the phone because the magnets would be against the ferrite backing instead of the coil.

zuberio said:
This is awesome :good:
I'm definitely going to make one for myself - already ordered the charger circuit from your AliExpress link
Based on some SketchUp measuring off scaled images from ifixit's teardown of the N5 and the top view picture of your charger coil - it looks like the N5 has 1/4" diameter metal disks around it's Qi coil - so wouldn't it have been easier/better for you to use 1/4" diameter neodymium magnets instead of 1/2" ones? This would have allowed you to place the coil a little over a millimeter closer to the phone because the magnets would be against the ferrite backing instead of the coil.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think they are 6mm discs (which is darn close to 1/4")
I went with 1/2" in the hopes that I could have a little more lee-way on the positioning/placing of the phone whenever I put the phone on the stand. I'd be curious to see your updates with a 1/4" magnets.

Very nice workmanship and attention to detail. which QI charger did you use?
Nice workshop and PM66.

Related

[HOWTO] Make your own magnetic qi car charger dock

I can't take credit for the idea, a number of people in the forums have done something similar. But I thought I'd document my build so others could follow along.
The concept is to have a nice qi wireless car dock but with a twist. Utilizing the small metal disks in the back of the nexus 5, we can make the whole thing lock on magnetically. True one handed operation with no wires.
Here's what you need:
One small qi wireless charger like the lg wcp300. (I also tried the goosewhite charger but it was dead on arrival).
An old or new car mount that can be adapted.
Four half inch by one sixteenth inch neodymium magnets. I picked up 10 from amazon for $6.
Black plastidip spray (available from home depot or Lowes).
(Possibly) a small amount of household sealant to smooth any rough edges.
Epoxy or strong glue
Double sided tape
Tools:
Electric drill or dremel tool
Screwdriver
A vise is convenient
Calipers or a good ruler
OK. So here's what we're going to latch the magnets to:
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The disks are in a line down from the camera lens...25mm from the lower edge of the lens to the center point of the first disk. From there all the disks are in a square 36mm on a side, center point to center point.
This is important because that's where you have to place the magnets on the charger.
Next let's look at the charger.
OK now let's mess that little guy up.
First let's see how thick the plastic is that the top is made out of. My idea was to drill into it so that magnets can rest flush.
If you peel back the little feet you get access to four screws.
Now we can open it up.
I quickly learned that on this charger there was no room between the qi coil and the case to place the magnets in the inside. So on to plan b. I measured the plastic and found the thickness was under 2mm. Hmmm. The magnets are about 1.6 mm. Not a lot of room to maneuver. I decided to go for putting a groove into the top of the case for each magnet. This would at least minimize the distance between the coil and the phone as much as possible which should lead to optimum charging.
With a pencil, I marked the center points of each magnet location and started making my grooves.
I free handed the above with a small grinder bit on my drill. The bit wasn't a half inch so it got a little rough at times but it was doable. Here the magnet in the groove.
The magnet sits in the groove about half way... All I had to do was remove about one thirty second of an inch of plastic for four slots.
The above shows how only a small amount of the magnet is not flush. It's really close to flush.
Here's that step done. It's a little rough but not too bad. Glue each magnet in with a dab of epoxy or gorrila glue or whatever you have handy.
So now let's polish it up. If your grooves are pretty then you won't need the sealant...I put some on to smooth out the edges. Sorry didn't get a pic of that step.
Now let's get ready for the plastidip.
If you've never used it, it's great. It's a spray on rubber that will give the charger pad a non slip texture to ensure the phone won't slide off even on the most bumpy roads. The half inch magnets are quite strong but we're talking sheering force here. You need some grip. The half inch size helps also due to increased surface area.
First let's tape off the bottom.
And start spraying.
Pro tip: the hand spray attachment is awesome. So let's see what we got.
This is four light coats.
Next I used a mount I had from my gnex days and never could sell. Some dremel work later and presto a nice sized mount.
To attach the charger I opted to use some 3m auto trim tape. This is super strong and heat proof. Also it's reversible unlike epoxy. A little dental floss sawing between the two pieces and the charger is removable.
A couple of strips and we're done.
And here it is with the nexus 5 on it and charging.
Thanks and let me know if you have any questions.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Nice work. Thanks for the pictures and the walk through. Would like to see some pictures in the car when you install it. Have you been able to find a 90 degree angle micro USB connector so you can possibly hide the USB cord? Looks nice though. The best one I have seen yet.

Great mod!
I was looking at the picture of the phone. Do you know how big the magnets/metal plates that are surrounding the charging coil? I want to do a similar mod, and I was thinking of getting magnets that are the same diameter as the ones on the phone itself.

Great post. I'm really not the DIY type, so I might struggle sinking the magnets in, but I really want a magnetic car mount, so maybe I'll try...

wow, what a simple and elegant way.
no more clamps and stuffs.
good one~~!!!!

Microscopy gromean
Great post!! :good:

A couple of more pics from inside the car...
To answer questions:
I think the metal disks in the phone are 10 mm diameter. I believe that quarter Inch magnets would work fine.
I was planning to hardwire the USB cable but switched fuses are few and far between in my car. I used the last one for my radar detector. Maybe I'll vampire off of the cig lighter port that's already there.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

pedxing said:
A couple of more pics from inside the car...
I think the metal disks in the phone are 10 mm diameter. I believe that quarter Inch magnets would work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
BAsed on the FCC photos, the disks are 6mm in diameter.
They are between 36 and 37mm apart, at their centers.

Very nice job! I will build one of these attached to a RAM ball so I can use my existing mount. I much prefer the one handed operation. But I will build it sans charger.
But a word of caution... I built an in vehicle cradle out of a WCP700 last year about this time. Come Summer, it was unusable to charge the phone under heavy use (screen and GPS on). Battery temperatures just got too high. Unless you can mount it in a location where the A/C can directly blow on it for cooling, you will prematurely toast your battery. I think there is a very good reason why OEMs don't offer one of these fro their phones.

How good do the magnets hold it? I don't want my phone flying off it if I hit a pothole
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

themuskr said:
How good do the magnets hold it? I don't want my phone flying off it if I hit a pothole
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am guessing 4 magnets will be plenty strong. Each of the half inchers are rated at 1.6 pounds. They might be too strong. I am going to go with 3/8" ones as that is the smallest forstner bit I have.
BTW, for those getting ready to do this... use a forstner bit in a drill (press). They will shave a perfectly clean, round indentation.
I think I am going to make my sans charger version out of a hockey puck.
---------- Post added at 11:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------
kidgenius said:
BAsed on the FCC photos, the disks are 6mm in diameter.
They are between 36 and 37mm apart, at their centers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you post a link?

Nice how-to op, I just ordered a bunch of stuff to have a crack at building one. :good:

green_comet said:
Nice how-to op, I just ordered a bunch of stuff to have a crack at building one. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WOW! This is awesome!

themuskr said:
How good do the magnets hold it? I don't want my phone flying off it if I hit a pothole
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The magnets hold well but the key is using some sort of non slip coating. it won't hold without that. I used plastidip spray but there are a lot of things that would work.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Solutions Etcetera said:
But a word of caution... I built an in vehicle cradle out of a WCP700 last year about this time. Come Summer, it was unusable to charge the phone under heavy use (screen and GPS on). Battery temperatures just got too high. Unless you can mount it in a location where the A/C can directly blow on it for cooling, you will prematurely toast your battery. I think there is a very good reason why OEMs don't offer one of these fro their phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally. The owlpad I had for the n4 was horrible about this. So far the wcp300 is causing less heat (it's been 75 here recently) but full summer is a different story. One reason I wanted the connection to the mount to be reversible. Right now the ac isn't directly on the back but it does point up at it.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Solutions Etcetera said:
I am guessing 4 magnets will be plenty strong. Each of the half inchers are rated at 1.6 pounds. They might be too strong. I am going to go with 3/8" ones as that is the smallest forstner bit I have.
BTW, for those getting ready to do this... use a forstner bit in a drill (press). They will shave a perfectly clean, round indentation.
I think I am going to make my sans charger version out of a hockey puck.
---------- Post added at 11:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------
Can you post a link?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wish I had a drill press..

primetimelive said:
I wish I had a drill press..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ha! Me too. I came this close to getting one just for this project but the wife was already giving me looks.
Harbor freight has one for $70 bucks but that stuff is pretty hit or miss. (Mostly miss)
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

pedxing said:
Ha! Me too. I came this close to getting one just for this project but the wife was already giving me looks.
Harbor freight has one for $70 bucks but that stuff is pretty hit or miss. (Mostly miss)
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hahaha...
Hmm.. would something like this work if you just had a regular hand drill?
http://www.amazon.com/Wolfcraft-452...cp_2_VE2G?ie=UTF8&refRID=0AKZSMQJP0KN07FB8G0Y

Solutions Etcetera said:
I am guessing 4 magnets will be plenty strong. Each of the half inchers are rated at 1.6 pounds. They might be too strong. I am going to go with 3/8" ones as that is the smallest forstner bit I have.
BTW, for those getting ready to do this... use a forstner bit in a drill (press). They will shave a perfectly clean, round indentation.
I think I am going to make my sans charger version out of a hockey puck.
---------- Post added at 11:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------
Can you post a link?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From this post in the other thread about a magnetic Nexus 5 Qi car charger:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=47530130&postcount=220
It appears that you can disassemble the LG charger including the top plate.
Once dissembled, you can drill the top plate separately without having to worry about hitting the coil and electronics underneath.
You could drill through the entire top plate with a regular drill instead of using a drill press and the forstner bit.
Just glue in the magnets in the holes and reassemble the charger.
Hope this helps... plee3

I've used that exact "press" before and it's really sloppy laterally. You'd probably be no worse off drilling by hand while drinking a beer...YMMV

DIY Cheap Wireless Charger with Magnets UPDATE: PICTURES AND INSTRUCTIONS!

Edit: Instructions and pictures are in the second post. If you like my post, be sure to give thanks.
Edit: Before you get scared off, anyone can do this mod.
What's up, everyone? I hope you are enjoying your phone as much as I am. I refuse to pay $50 for the Google/LG charger, but I really want to have wireless charging. Wireless chargers can be had for much cheaper, but they don't have magnets. I believe I've come up with a cheap way to make a magnetic wireless charger.
I bought this cheap charger from eBay for $15:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/350864130374?var=620157913035&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
I bought (100) 1/2 x 1/16 inch magnets for $20:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CS5OV0U/ref=ox_ya_os_product
Note: You don't have to get 100 of them. (Obviously, LOL) You can get 10 of them for like $4. I'm splitting the 100 pack with my friend, so in the end I'm paying $10 for 50 magnets.
I was able to fit my fingernail (I am a guy and have short nails) underneath the top of the charger and get it to snap off. There are no wires connected to the top, and there seems to be plenty of clearance. I think I can easily glue four magnets in the appropriate positions.
I already have two of the chargers, and my magnets will arrive via Amazon Prime on Saturday. I will post pictures if I am/am not able to get them to fit. When it is all said and done, I will have paid $40 for two magnetic wireless chargers, with 42 magnets to spare!
I don't want to write out an entire review of the charger, but I have been using one at home and one at work for a few days already. Both of mine are black, so I cannot say anything about the white model. The black has a semi-rubberized feel to the plastic, which seems to help prevent the phone from slipping. Once I install the magnets, there should be no slipping, though. I have charged my phone using two different Spigen cases and had no issues. I have seen a few people online complain that their charger didn't work right or that you have to put your phone in the exact position for it to work; this is not my experience at all. As long as you are centered, you are fine. It isn't difficult to center the phone, because it is almost the same size as the charger. Again, none of this will matter once the magnets are in place underneath the top.
Saturday cannot come soon enough!
If someone has already posted this, please do not flame me. I will admit in advance that I was too lazy to look.
Completely unrelated bragging: My Spigen glas.t didn't have any issues, and it looks perfect.

Reserved
Here are the pics, a day earlier than originally expected:
What you need:
Cheap eBay wireless charger (link above)
Magnets (link above)
Tape
Super glue
Pencil or pen (pencil recommended)
Some sort of paint or white-out to use as a marker
1. I placed the phone in the correct position to charge. I then traced a soft line around the top and bottom edges of the phone. The pen came off afterwards, but I'd suggest using a pencil.
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2. I popped the top of the charger off. Using my tracing from earlier, I was able line-up the phone in the appropriate position and flip over the top with the phone sitting underneath. I placed the magnets on the underside of the case, and they naturally lined up with the magnets in the phone. Then I traced around the magnets. After tracing, I flipped each one over and applied super glue. I flipped them back and held each for a minute or so. Flipping them the right way is important, because you don't want to screw up the polarity. After the glue dried, I applied a second magnet to each one. You do not need to glue the second magnet. Trust me. The green paint was used to see if the magnets were touching the coil, and if I would need to apply tape.
3. I taped the areas that the magnets touched. Yes, that is duct tape. Whatever.
4. I tested the strength.
5. I put it back together.
I forgot to take a picture of it charging. It charges, even with a case.
That's it.
Note: I thought it would also be cool to use this idea for a car charger in one of those universal phone mounts. The phone slides when you hold it upright. If you glue on a piece of plastic or rubber as a small lip, it should work.If your mount has a lip underneath, that might also work.

Waiting for pics
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Pics please. I bought it to try to put it inside a car mount. I'm curious to see what the insides look like (dimensions).

postm said:
Pics please. I bought it to try to put it inside a car mount. I'm curious to see what the insides look like (dimensions).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The magnets will actually be here tomorrow, Friday. I ordered them at like 9pm last night, shipping from Canada. They were in South Carolina by 1pm today, and will get to me tomorrow. Gotta love Amazon Prime!
I'll try to document everything, but really there shouldn't be much to it.

postm said:
Pics please. I bought it to try to put it inside a car mount. I'm curious to see what the insides look like (dimensions).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I purchased one and cracked it open with the intent of somehow putting it inside my carmount just like you said. Inside, the actual components take up very little space. I started a new post to get everyone's ideas about this:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2537415
Im looking for affordable options just like the rest of you guys. Hopefully we can come up with something good.

I added pictures and instructions.

Has anyone else done this mod?

There's been no negative effects on the phone from those magnets? I just don't know the strength of the ones int he official charger so the thought of magnets in general sounds bad to me.

pyrobob said:
There's been no negative effects on the phone from those magnets? I just don't know the strength of the ones int he official charger so the thought of magnets in general sounds bad to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using it since Friday, with no issues. If you are worried, use a single magnet in each position, instead of doubling up. The magnets are strong, but they aren't that strong. If you try to use the charger to hold the phone upside-down while using a case, it will not hold. Notice in my picture that I am not using a case, but I typically have one on my phone, even while charging. I haven't tested how long it takes to charge the phone to 100%, because typically my battery isn't depleted (<15%) until I'm ready for bed. When I get up in the morning, my phone is good to go.
Since the phone does have magnets already, I assume that it is shielded. I'm not worried.

korngames said:
I've been using it since Friday, with no issues. If you are worried, use a single magnet in each position, instead of doubling up. The magnets are strong, but they aren't that strong. If you try to use the charger to hold the phone upside-down while using a case, it will not hold. Notice in my picture that I am not using a case, but I typically have one on my phone, even while charging. I haven't tested how long it takes to charge the phone to 100%, because typically my battery isn't depleted (<15%) until I'm ready for bed. When I get up in the morning, my phone is good to go.
Since the phone does have magnets already, I assume that it is shielded. I'm not worried.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great job. I might have to put magnets in my Frankenstein wireless car charger mod too lol.

killabee44 said:
Great job. I might have to put magnets in my Frankenstein wireless car charger mod too lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!

awesome stuff man. going to have to make one with out a doubt

This thread is currently not as highly ranked as the "[HOWTO] Make your own magnetic qi car charger dock," but I think it's way more impressive thanks!

MaxRabbit said:
This thread is currently not as highly ranked as the "[HOWTO] Make your own magnetic qi car charger dock," but I think it's way more impressive thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. This is an easy mod, and I wanted to share it with others.

Definitely a better mod! Doing this as soon as i get my hands on a wireless charger
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

beazie0885 said:
Definitely a better mod! Doing this as soon as i get my hands on a wireless charger
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IDK that this one is better, that other mod looks awesome.

Cheap+less time+easy= better IMO
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

korngames said:
Here are the pics, a day earlier than originally expected:
What you need:
Cheap eBay wireless charger (link above)
Magnets (link above)
Tape
Super glue
Pencil or pen (pencil recommended)
Some sort of paint or white-out to use as a marker
1. I placed the phone in the correct position to charge. I then traced a soft line around the top and bottom edges of the phone. The pen came off afterwards, but I'd suggest using a pencil.
2. I popped the top of the charger off. Using my tracing from earlier, I was able line-up the phone in the appropriate position and flip over the top with the phone sitting underneath. I placed the magnets on the underside of the case, and they naturally lined up with the magnets in the phone. Then I traced around the magnets. After tracing, I flipped each one over and applied super glue. I flipped them back and held each for a minute or so. Flipping them the right way is important, because you don't want to screw up the polarity. After the glue dried, I applied a second magnet to each one. You do not need to glue the second magnet. Trust me. The green paint was used to see if the magnets were touching the coil, and if I would need to apply tape.
3. I taped the areas that the magnets touched. Yes, that is duct tape. Whatever.
4. I tested the strength.
5. I put it back together.
I forgot to take a picture of it charging. It charges, even with a case.
That's it.
Note: I thought it would also be cool to use this idea for a car charger in one of those universal phone mounts. The phone slides when you hold it upright. If you glue on a piece of plastic or rubber as a small lip, it should work.If your mount has a lip underneath, that might also work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi
Can you confirm whether if it stops charging after the phone gets fully charged ? or it just continues ?
thank you .

What USB charger are you using with this Qi Pad? If I recall correctly this one needs 1.5A input in order to output at 1A. I just ordered a couple from the ebay page you linked to but now I need to find some AC adapters to go with them.

Nexus 5 universal magnetic Qi Car Mount

Hi all,
I looked up a long time to find a magnetic Qi car charger, but couldn't find one.
So i decided to built one on my own.
It's just an little adapter to connect a Qi Charger with an universal car mount and stick some magnets on it.
I'm not responsible for any damage to your phone or Qi Charger, or not working mounts!
What you need:
- Qi Charger BC252W
- Adapter
- universal car mount
- thin cardboard (500µm - normal for candy packing) or plasti dip
- Magnets
- superglue
All together about 70€
more about the Magnets:
the easiest setup with good strength should be 8 magnets of 6x4x2 mm.
That's what I'm using atm without a bumper.
Because I don't have a bumper I can hardly tell which magnets will be the best for this. When I tried with a chipcard 8x4x3 mm looked pretty good, but didn't try the effects on the charging current.
The Adapter is 3D printed online at sculpteo and I published it there sculpteo and at shapeways.
That's how it looks like:
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For mounting to the glas I used Car Mount 1. But you should be able to use any mount with this universal connection interface like Car Mount 2, Car Mount 3, Car Mount 4 or Car Mount 5
The new special thing is, that the Nexus 5 is build to fit with a magnetic interface on a Qi charger.
Because of this there shouldn't be any problems with the magnetic field. While testing everything works fine.
Source: ifixit
How to build:
- get a flat screwdriver and remove the upper rubber of the Qi charger with the glue
if you are using 2mm tall magnets stick the cardboard under the rubber. When using 1mm tall magnets the cardboard should placed under the magnets.
- imagine a square and stick the magnets with your glue at the corner, so they look 1mm over the inner ring
put some attention that an edge look to the micro usb port
- cut the rubber in pieces so it fits between the magnets
- stick the pieces with glue between the magnets
- fit up the Qi charger on the adapter (if it's not strong enough use some glue and please tell me)
then it should look like:
using this now for several month and it works great!!! fine charging and no drop (german streets)
Here is a video of how i shake it and how easy it is to mount and dismount!
If you like it, show it to me and spend a beer or two
Edit:
Cheap Version:
didn't test on my own!
what you need:
- Qi Charger BC252W
- superglue, maybe a powerstrip
- universal car mount
- magnets
- thin cardboard (500µm - normal for candy packing)
All together about 40€
How to build:
- remove the upper rubber of the charger
- stick the magnets to the Qi charger. For this imagine a square and stick them to the corners,
so that the magnets look about 1mm over the inner ring
- cut the rubber in pieces so they fit between the magnets
- stick the rubber on the cardboard, and cut them off and stick them between the magnets
- cut off the 4 hooks of the mount, so there is a plane surface
- then stick the Qi charger with the powerstrip or with superglue to this plan surface

Which glue did you use to stick the magnets to the plastic?

that's really wonderful....really like the way you have utilized the things...good job man....:good:

[Headcrash] said:
Which glue did you use to stick the magnets to the plastic?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
normal superglue
should be liquid, dry out and stick to plastic

Nice mount !
I got 2 questions before I maybe try to do this :
- Would this work with the official bumper case ?
- I plan to use a NFC chip to activate several things when I put my phone in my car. The chip would be located on the car mount. Would the Qi + Magnets + NFC combo work together or should I expect some problems (I could workaround the need for the NFC chip on the car mount, but I'd prefer this chip on it)
BTW, that's the damn thing I was looking for everywhere without any success. If I manage to make it and get it working some day, you'll deserve a beer for sure.
EDIT : Third question, about the BC252W, which I didn't know before. I could see that it uses a 1,5 A current which seems good. However, do you know if it keeps the phone charged once the battery is 100% full ? I could not find the answer.
Thanks in advance.

Ano59 said:
Nice mount !
I got 2 questions before I maybe try to do this :
- Would this work with the official bumper case ?
- I plan to use a NFC chip to activate several things when I put my phone in my car. The chip would be located on the car mount. Would the Qi + Magnets + NFC combo work together or should I expect some problems (I could workaround the need for the NFC chip on the car mount, but I'd prefer this chip on it)
BTW, that's the damn thing I was looking for everywhere without any success. If I manage to make it and get it working some day, you'll deserve a beer for sure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have a case, so I tried with a stack of two chip cards. The N45 8x2 magnets are to weak to hold your phone secure, but when I receive the N52 8x1 I'll try again, cause they are much more stronger.
The range of the charger is about 1cm and the range of a NFC card is 3cm. When Qi gets enabled it will disable NFC, but when you don't move to fast, it will first recognize the NFC tag first and later the Qi charger.
Ano59 said:
BTW, that's the damn thing I was looking for everywhere without any success. If I manage to make it and get it working some day, you'll deserve a beer for sure.
EDIT : Third question, about the BC252W, which I didn't know before. I could see that it uses a 1,5 A current which seems good. However, do you know if it keeps the phone charged once the battery is 100% full ? I could not find the answer.
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also couldn't fine, so i decided to build one
Qi is a charging standard, so it should not depend on the device and from what I see it holds the 100% better then my original charger

excuse me sir =)
but...
no more pics of the process?
and even if not
which magnets did u use? did u get those from Ebay as well?

Caniv said:
excuse me sir =)
but...
no more pics of the process?
and even if not
which magnets did u use? did u get those from Ebay as well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no sorry. Haven't done more...
what of the "How to build" is not clear?
when you see the charger unmodified and then the modified picture, I think you know what to do.
But let me know, if you are not sure at a step.
I bought them at a webpage for those magnets.
when you search for "n45 magnet 8x2" in google you see them.
But I think the "N52 magnet 8x1" are better, so I ordered them at ebay, but they are still not here.

My car mount only offers a 1" rubber ball ("B" size), like the one on this product.
I could maybe find an adaptator, but I wonder if it would be possible for me to alter the 3D model of your adapter to make such a "B" size ball protrude instead of those little holes, without making it breakable. I haven't got any skills in 3D modeling...

Ano59 said:
My car mount only offers a 1" rubber ball ("B" size), like the one on this product.
I could maybe find an adaptator, but I wonder if it would be possible for me to alter the 3D model of your adapter to make such a "B" size ball protrude instead of those little holes, without making it breakable. I haven't got any skills in 3D modeling...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here it is:
sculpteo
shapeways
But you should coat the ball with some anti slip painting.
Edit: Just saw another thread and they are using Plasti Dip
And I don't need to say, that it's not tested
So if you like it...

Craiq said:
Here it is:
sculpteo
shapeways
But you should coat the ball with some anti slip painting.
Edit: Just saw another thread and they are using Plasti Dip
And I don't need to say, that it's not tested
So if you like it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's exactly what I needed. :good: Thanks !!
I ordered most parts already, when I get them, I'll try to build this DIY device.
If I manage to make it work, I'll probably post my own pictures of the process, along with the beer.

Nice work. I was thinking of doing the same thing with the same charger. Still waiting for magnets though.
Any heat issue with this magnet arrangement? I'm not sure about the exact coil location for this charger, but I assume the magnet overlaps with the coil a little bit.

kmckmc said:
Nice work. I was thinking of doing the same thing with the same charger. Still waiting for magnets though.
Any heat issue with this magnet arrangement? I'm not sure about the exact coil location for this charger, but I assume the magnet overlaps with the coil a little bit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah it overlaps. the coil has the diameter of the inner ring, but there is no heat issue at all. It's warm, but not to much.

There's a project on Indiegogo that's similar to this:
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-air-dock
I think the fact that multiple people are starting to do this proves it's a good idea.

horatiopositronic said:
There's a project on Indiegogo that's similar to this:
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-air-dock
I think the fact that multiple people are starting to do this proves it's a good idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not magnetic. It's "just" a sticky layer, so when it's to dirty it wont work

Craiq said:
That's not magnetic. It's "just" a sticky layer, so when it's to dirty it wont work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, he specifically mentions including magnets for the Nexus 5 and 7 in his video, since the back of the N5 isn't shiny. He also has an update showing the Nexus 7 sticking to the magnets.

Any chance you'd give us the .stl file for the mount clip? I have access to a 3D printer and would love to print something practical for once.

Hello,
I finally got the 3D-printed part and the Qi charger. They both fit very well together.
However, I ordered and got some 8x1mm N52 magnets, but they don't hold the phone very well. They stabilize the phone horizontally (not a lot) but can't hold it vertically. My phone got a case (the official bumper) but I tried without this case and it still doesn't hold the phone well. They're less efficient than magnets inside the new Google Qi charger (which can't hold a phone vertically though).
It has nothing to do with your video in the first message. BTW I could record a video of my magnets to show how they perform if needed. So I wonder if my magnets are bad (and if they're really N52)...Did you try your N52 magnets ? If they work, where did you order them ?
Could this be related to the fact that my magnets are 1mm thick instead of 2 ? I doubt it because I tried to stack them (I ordered 20 of them) but it wasn't enough to really hold the phone, even when I stacked 4 x 5 of them.
Thanks in advance.
EDIT : I tried magnets before gluing them on the charger, so I didn't ruin it. So I still wonder if I should order the same magnets from another provider or try ordering thicker magnets.

Ano59 said:
Hello,
I finally got the 3D-printed part and the Qi charger. They both fit very well together.
However, I ordered and got some 8x1mm N52 magnets, but they don't hold the phone very well. They stabilize the phone horizontally (not a lot) but can't hold it vertically. My phone got a case (the official bumper) but I tried without this case and it still doesn't hold the phone well. They're less efficient than magnets inside the new Google Qi charger (which can't hold a phone vertically though).
It has nothing to do with your video in the first message. BTW I could record a video of my magnets to show how they perform if needed. So I wonder if my magnets are bad (and if they're really N52)...Did you try your N52 magnets ? If they work, where did you order them ?
Could this be related to the fact that my magnets are 1mm thick instead of 2 ? I doubt it because I tried to stack them (I ordered 20 of them) but it wasn't enough to really hold the phone, even when I stacked 4 x 5 of them.
Thanks in advance.
EDIT : I tried magnets before gluing them on the charger, so I didn't ruin it. So I still wonder if I should order the same magnets from another provider or try ordering thicker magnets.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
Great to hear that somebody tried it and the adapter fit well
Yes I tried 8x1 N52 magnets and find out that they have the same strength my 8x1 N45 had.
So I contacted the vendor and he told me there is no big difference. At least they where exactly the same, just sold different.
When I looked more into it I found a formula:
Strength = magnetisation x volume
N45 8x1 = 2262
N52 8x1 = 2614
N45 8x2 = 4524 <- used in video
N52 8x2 = 5228
So yes you need the 8x2 magnets to get the power.
When you use the bumper try the N52 8x2 magnets.
If they hold it with the bumper please tell me
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That's strange because even when I stack 2 (or more) of my 8x1mm, so it becomes a "8x2mm" magnet, it still isn't powerful enough. My magnets are maybe defective.
I don't know if ordering magnets of bigger diameter (> 8 mm) might help.
When I order neodymium magnets, most of the price is freight so I'll probably order a lot of different sizes to try them all. I'll post news when I'll get them.

[Teardown] Google official wireless charging pad dissassembly

Hey guys.
I recently stumbled upon some magnetic docking problems with my Nexus 5, so I wanted to know how the charger from Google managed to hold the phone very well. I looked for a teardown of the charger but I found none, neither in XDA nor by a Google search. After hesitating because of the warranty, my curiosity was stronger and I disassembled mine.
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The little beast, up and down. There is adhesive rubber on the bottom.
I had no idea about where to start until I discovered how the Nexus 4 charger was disassembled, so I removed the black rubber band on the bottom of the charger. There are 4 screws under it, they're easily removed with a Torx 5 screwdriver.
I love tools from iFixit guys.
The plastic part is then pulled and reveals the main charging board. This board must be carefully lifted because of 4 wires that go under the metallic part, especially the 2 copper wires which seem to be very thin. The board is above a metallic chassis and hides what seem to be 4 magnets.
The main charging board.
The main charging board, with 4 wires going under the metallic part. Notice the 2 little copper wires.
The metallic part. Notice the odd shape (cuboid) of what seems to be 4 magnets.
I couldn't extract the magnets from there, so I had to pull the metallic part. It wasn't easy, even when I understood that it was glued to the black glass panel. It's handy to start with holes designed for wires to separate the metallic part from the glass. WARNING : The glass is actually transparent and there is black paint on it. The paint is under the glass when you look at the (not disassembled) charger. It is VERY EASY to do some scratches, as I've done, when separating the metal part from the glass. Try to avoid it if not needed, else do it with caution.
Using a thin and resistant tool starting from holes for wires makes it easier.
Nice scratches. Meh. I'm gonna use some black paint. If you do this, be careful with the black paint on the glass.
Loads of glue, but nothing impossible to break. You can see the glass, from this point of view the black paint is above it.
We can see the charging coil now, and 4 slots for magnets. Each magnet is held by a black plastic thing. Be aware of the little white plastic part that may fall discreetly, it's used to guide the red light of the charger's LED.
At the left, the charging coil and slots for magnets. At the middle, magnets and black glass. At the right, big piece of black plastic removed at the beginning.
At the left : the little guy trying to escape. At the middle : the place where it belongs to. At the right : same spot with the part inside.
Magnets and their plastic support are bound to the glass only by glue. They come together when you try to extract one of them.
They easily come. Together. No way to extract only the magnet. Luckily you can freely move them, and then use the magnets slots as guides when remounting the charger
Then...surprise ! Each "magnet" is actually made of 3 different pieces. It is very instructional about magnet configuration required to build an optimized magnetic dock. Most people use a single magnet. It isn't completely efficient because metal plates in the Nexus 5 behave oddly and Google had this in mind when designing the charger. There are 2 magnets, attracting the external part of the phone's metal plates, while not covering the coil with their magnetic field. The 2 magnets are glued to a ferromagnetic metal part, and to some black plastic.
One magnet is magic. Two magnets are pure awesomeness.
This wouldn't really be a good topic without a perfectly photoshopped picture, which should be useful to understand how those magnets are held together and how they attach to the Nexus 5. This picture is a bit outdated and wrong, replace "Cuboid magnet" by "Cuboid ferromagnetic plate". Oh and there is no repulsion from the center of course
Sorry for the crappy pictures, I don't have a lot of skills in teardowns.
I hope this will be helpful for you.
EDIT : When you remount your charger, at the end, when you put back the black plastic part to screw it, don't forget the little LED. Try to power on the charger to see where the light goes, because the plastic part got 4 sides but only one of them got the little hole in black paint for the red light.
EDIT² : I got an explanation about how were those magnets working by Craiq, and I checked everything on my own Google charger. Here is his picture, it's self-explanatory.

Hey great thread ! But seems that a few pics are broken ...won't load on tapatalk (mobile) and my laptop. Hopefully its not just me
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

zolo185 said:
Hey great thread ! But seems that a few pics are broken ...won't load on tapatalk (mobile) and my laptop. Hopefully its not just me
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right, I uploaded pictures on XDA and made links of them but this doesn't seem to work much. I'll host them on an external service and edit my post.

Ano59 said:
You're right, I uploaded pictures on XDA and made links of them but this doesn't seem to work much. I'll host them on an external service and edit my post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kool. Glad to see such a quick reply. And for the pics that are there ...they're pretty great and your detail much appreciated. Good job :good:
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

zolo185 said:
Kool. Glad to see such a quick reply. And for the pics that are there ...they're pretty great and your detail much appreciated. Good job :good:
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
Pictures are now uploaded on Imgur, there isn't any trouble displaying them anymore. There are still XDA thumbnails at the bottom.
I should write and post another topic soon, which is about replacing the metal plates in the Nexus 5 by...magnets. Then official charger docks less efficiently but you may modify it too (I'll try it) and with magnets inside, making custom chargers is incredibly easier.

Updated the topic thanks to Craiq's explanations and to my own further testing.
By the way, I don't recommend replacing Nexus' metal parts by magnets, I tried it but I got disappointed by the heat produced by wireles chargers after this mod so I put back the metal plates. However this teardown is still useful to understand how current custom chargers designs are sub-optimal and how to improve them (at the expense of magnets size increase).

Is the charging coil in this charger any different than the genetics out there? Wasn't sure if there was a quality gap in qi coils.

thfreedumb said:
Is the charging coil in this charger any different than the genetics out there? Wasn't sure if there was a quality gap in qi coils.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The coil in Google's charger is smaller. There is also an additional inner "copper coil" (it doesn't seem to be insulated). I have no idea what it is for, the 2 copper wires mentioned in my first message come from the coil to the charging board. They are close together which is strange because with no insulation they can easily make a shortcut, at least if you think of this inner coil as a traditional electrical circuit.

Thanks for the teardown! I was wondering what they did, and why.
Is there any safe way to improve the strength of the magnetic field provided by the permanent magnets? I had a really dumb moment, and actually glued a metal plate to my phone's case, which made it stick to the charger much better but completely absorbed the weak inductive field needed to handshake the Qi process. If charging had started, I assume the plate would have gotten very hot. Obviously, I undid my mistake before anything permanent happened.
But I'm still looking for a way to improve the strength of the retention. I could glue some very small metal disks (washers or something) to the inside of the case, to give the original magnets something closer to attract. I could replace the original magnets with something N52.
My reason for all this is to improve the stability of the phone against the charger when the whole assembly is in a vertical position (say, in a car, or mounted to a wall).

What sizes of the Magnets does the Google Charger use? I would like to buy the same size with a larger pull force - so go for something like an N52?

Pandages said:
Thanks for the teardown! I was wondering what they did, and why.
Is there any safe way to improve the strength of the magnetic field provided by the permanent magnets? I had a really dumb moment, and actually glued a metal plate to my phone's case, which made it stick to the charger much better but completely absorbed the weak inductive field needed to handshake the Qi process. If charging had started, I assume the plate would have gotten very hot. Obviously, I undid my mistake before anything permanent happened.
But I'm still looking for a way to improve the strength of the retention. I could glue some very small metal disks (washers or something) to the inside of the case, to give the original magnets something closer to attract. I could replace the original magnets with something N52.
My reason for all this is to improve the stability of the phone against the charger when the whole assembly is in a vertical position (say, in a car, or mounted to a wall).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've just tried installing 10mm/1mm N52 magnet disks in my Note 3's case in order to be able to use my Nexus charger as a car charger/dock. First off the magnets are disturbing the screen layer for pen input causing the area around the magnets to be distorted when trying to write using the pen.
Also, I tested the magnetic attraction difference to my phone with a naked Nexus 5, and the Nexus definitely has a stronger attraction to the charger. This makes sense as my magnets are attracted to one magnet and repelled by the other in the charger, whereas the Nexus 5's medal disks/plates are placed in the middle of the magnets and are attracted by both. FYI my magnets have been placed to optimally attract one of the charger's magnets (43mm center to center).
I'm now trying to find some Nexus 5 metal disks/plates equivalents. I understand these are 6mm diameter disks, but don't have any other info. Does anyone know any more specs on these or where to source these easily? I'm thinking 6mm/1mm steel disks that I might be able to find in a hardware store or similar. Can't find anything on eBay. Any thoughts?

sireddie said:
Also, I tested the magnetic attraction difference to my phone with a naked Nexus 5, and the Nexus definitely has a stronger attraction to the charger. This makes sense as my magnets are attracted to one magnet and repelled by the other in the charger, whereas the Nexus 5's medal disks/plates are placed in the middle of the magnets and are attracted by both. FYI my magnets have been placed to optimally attract one of the charger's magnets (43mm center to center).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
very interesting thread.
looks like the google charger is almost a clone of palm`s touchstone. The touchstone has the same "2 magnets 1 metal between" thing as the google charger.
See the old S3 touchstone tread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=34084651&postcount=210
the best way you can handle the two different polarities is to use two smaller magnets in the back of your phone.
one with + and one with - .
when you connect the two magnets in your phone oder case with the smaller side together you will reach the max attraction.
like i did on the s3.

I'm also very interested in the size of the magnets inside the charger.

Great teardown, ill be using this info to use a nexua charger for the N6, hopefully remiving the magnets and liftinf the coil closer ti the glass will solve the issue.

Wood Magnetic Qi Wireless Charger

So, a few months ago I came across this DIY post by kidgenius, and my inner artist totally got inspired. Thanks, kidgenius! I have decided right then and there I want to design and make one myself. I am a 3D animator by trade, so design and modeling the charger in the computer is really simple for me. To actually make it, besides the basic on-the-fly-engineering that most handy person are capable of, I have basically no experience in engineering, machining of any sort. Greatest thing we have now I consider to be the internet. In a few basic search terms, I was presented with more reading material than I can digest in a short amount of time. So for the following 2 solid weeks, I was learning as much as I can about the whole range of topics in order to continue this project.
Now, five months later, after spending the amount of money would usually invoke the Hulk in most spouses on machines, tools, softwares and materials, I have finally something to show for.
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Charging
Charging horizontally
Ok, shameless plug time. Hoping to recoup some of the cost of this project, and to provide a product hopefully some may also like, I've put two different designs of the chargers on my Etsy store. These chargers take about 2-6 hours of setup and machine time and about an hour of hand finishing here in Illinois, USA. If you have any comments, I'd love to hear what you guys think.

Dude that's awesome. I'd buy one but, my wife would kill me for spending that much on a charger. On another note, I grew up in AH, BG class of 98. Out in Glenview now.

Lokke9191 said:
Dude that's awesome. I'd buy one but, my wife would kill me for spending that much on a charger.
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same

This looks great. Is it just the wood design that is different between the 2 chargers?
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app

Thanks. Very nice town. I used to work there while I was in college.
EDIT: Apparently, I need to work on my reply skill on xda. This is to Lokke9191.

petemills8 said:
This looks great. Is it just the wood design that is different between the 2 chargers?
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Free mobile app
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Yeah, I started with the design with all the non-parallel edges, angles and concave surfaces, and it turn out to be really difficult to machine. So I have simplified to a design that's a bit easier to make but still keep the same general look and feel. They both function the same as a nexus 5 charger.

Oh man that is beautiful! May I ask, what QI charger did you use in this stand? Did you take the Nexus Wireless Charger and embedded it in wood or the coil+circuitboard from the other thread?
The QI standard accepts a 5 mm looseness between the phone and the base, how did you take this into account?
How are the two pieces attached (the base and the slope), i.e. does it last?

Man this charger is awesome!
but very expensive

FapMaster784 said:
Man this charger is awesome!
but very expensive
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Dude, it's hand-made. What were you expecting?

Geo2160 said:
Dude, it's hand-made. What were you expecting?
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Thank you for understanding. Each one actually take me 3-4 nights from start to finish, and each one is made to order. After the material cost, I make less than minimum wage per hour on these. I do them because they are the product of love. If I have to make hundreds of them, I will probably find help in mass produce them and adjust the price accordingly.

gvoima said:
Oh man that is beautiful! May I ask, what QI charger did you use in this stand? Did you take the Nexus Wireless Charger and embedded it in wood or the coil+circuitboard from the other thread?
The QI standard accepts a 5 mm looseness between the phone and the base, how did you take this into account?
How are the two pieces attached (the base and the slope), i.e. does it last?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Taking an existing charger and putting it in the wood would make it too far from the phone and will not charge well. I follow kidgenius' thread and came to a very similar way with the magnets, coil, and circuit board. This is actually a lot of prototyping and test to get this distance correct. Without the magnets it will be a lot simpler.
Originally I designed to have dovetails like how you would usually to a wood joint. But in order to have a more seamless look to it, I've changed it into them to have multiple faces at different angle as the contact for force distribution at multiple axises. On top of that, There are holes drilled through the back top piece that line up with holes on the bottom piece. Then I bolt them together right after applying adhesive at those previously mentioned faces, so the bolt action act as a self clamp for the 2 parts. I'd say they are quite strong. I have a tendency to over engineer.

BruceCLin said:
Taking an existing charger and putting it in the wood would make it too far from the phone and will not charge well. I follow kidgenius' thread and came to a very similar way with the magnets, coil, and circuit board. This is actually a lot of prototyping and test to get this distance correct. Without the magnets it will be a lot simpler.
Originally I designed to have dovetails like how you would usually to a wood joint. But in order to have a more seamless look to it, I've changed it into them to have multiple faces at different angle as the contact for force distribution at multiple axises. On top of that, There are holes drilled through the back top piece that line up with holes on the bottom piece. Then I bolt them together right after applying adhesive at those previously mentioned faces, so the bolt action act as a self clamp for the 2 parts. I'd say they are quite strong. I have a tendency to over engineer.
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Is the charger tolerant of phone cases? That is, will the magnets still hold and is the charge rate acceptable?

Boomslang_x64 said:
Is the charger tolerant of phone cases? That is, will the magnets still hold and is the charge rate acceptable?
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I can't say it is. I did a lot of testing with different cases. In the end it's just no consistently enough to claim as such.

BruceCLin said:
Taking an existing charger and putting it in the wood would make it too far from the phone and will not charge well. I follow kidgenius' thread and came to a very similar way with the magnets, coil, and circuit board. This is actually a lot of prototyping and test to get this distance correct. Without the magnets it will be a lot simpler.
Originally I designed to have dovetails like how you would usually to a wood joint. But in order to have a more seamless look to it, I've changed it into them to have multiple faces at different angle as the contact for force distribution at multiple axises. On top of that, There are holes drilled through the back top piece that line up with holes on the bottom piece. Then I bolt them together right after applying adhesive at those previously mentioned faces, so the bolt action act as a self clamp for the 2 parts. I'd say they are quite strong. I have a tendency to over engineer.
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Click to collapse
It's always good to over engineer a little bit
What about trickle charging, does the board support it? And how fast is it charging from empty to full? Most QI's does it in about 2,5 hours.

gvoima said:
It's always good to over engineer a little bit
What about trickle charging, does the board support it? And how fast is it charging from empty to full? Most QI's does it in about 2,5 hours.
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I am pretty sure all modern Li-Ion batteries in smart phone do not want trickle charge. If you mean by if when it's full, will it stop, the answer is yes. It work just like the ones from google. At least for N4 and N5, the charging is controlled by the phone itself and not the charger. As far as the speed of charging goes, that's a very good question that I have not fully tested on. I will have to try to see what the difference between using a wall charger and a usb port. An initial guess is that It will be about the same behavior like the google ones, which is slower on a usb port.

Would you be willing to build one with a small shelf/lip on the bottom to hold up devices that don't have the metal discs in? Specifically a Note 2? I would be happy to draw up where the wireless charger sits on the back of the device and mail it over.

rubin110 said:
Would you be willing to build one with a small shelf/lip on the bottom to hold up devices that don't have the metal discs in? Specifically a Note 2? I would be happy to draw up where the wireless charger sits on the back of the device and mail it over.
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Sounds pretty doable. I can probably design one to work with it if you can provide the correct measurements. Email me a drawing and I can check first if the coil location can work with note 2. Also, any preference what the ledge you want to look like, or it's up to me to design something look nice?

Drop me an email an we'll talk. http://rubin.starset.net/id

this looks awesome!
how is the fone attached to the stand btw??

rollerdyke44 said:
this looks awesome!
how is the fone attached to the stand btw??
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Thank you. It's sort of like miter with rabbet joint with 2 countersunk screws for extra strength.

Develop Bugs

welcome