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Inductive phone charger under bottom of top glove in 83-88


Mike Tonon

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So I had an idea... you know those inductive phone chargers, that you just place your phone on and it charges it? Well I had an idea, for the upper glove compartment in 83-88 Ranger and Broncoii dashes. Mount one of those chargers directly underneath the upper glove compartment and put a little switch somewhere nearby, to turn it on an off and then you can just put your phone in the upper dash, flip the switch and it'll charge. Anyone here do this?
 


Spott

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I use my phone for navigation and music while I drive, so having it lay flat in the storage area doesn't work for me. I have a Tylt Vu Car charger/cradle that works quite well and fits a standard 17mm ball mount.
 

Mike Tonon

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I use my phone for navigation and music while I drive, so having it lay flat in the storage area doesn't work for me. I have a Tylt Vu Car charger/cradle that works quite well and fits a standard 17mm ball mount.
I cut grooves in my phone case to fit in my garman gps bracket. I didn't think about navigation or how sometimes I use it to make videos while I drive. But it would be nice just to throw it in that glove compartment and it be charging. I hate dealing with wires!
 

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Just be aware that you have to keep the phone aligned with the charging pad, so you'll need some sort of edge-stops to keep it in place.

For the price, I like the Vinsic brand charging pads from Amazon. They're quite low-profile.
 

Mike Tonon

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Just be aware that you have to keep the phone aligned with the charging pad, so you'll need some sort of edge-stops to keep it in place.
I'd rather not. I'd still want to use this as a glove compartment for whatever, having stops sticking up would look funny and they would vary depending upon the type of phone. So maybe there's one of these chargers out there the size of the bottom of the glove compartment.
 

Spott

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I don't believe such a thing exists. They're generally about the size of a medium phone, because the coils inside must be aligned with the coils in the phone itself. Building one that's (I'm guessing) 14" wide and 6" deep would be very expensive in materials, requiring maybe 20 different coils to cover that area, and rather wasteful, because the phone will only connect to one coil at a time. Also, if the phone slides around, it will have to initiate a new connection to a new coil, then restart charging. They are not designed to have a device in motion across them.

I don't think you're understanding the engineering implications of your plan here. It might be beneficial to go do some product and technology research before proceeding any further.

Also, is your current phone even compatible with wireless charging? Many are not.
 

RonD

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Yes, the phone itself needs to have the "receiver coil" built in, many new ones do, there is a list :)

In 1894 Nikola Tesla invented this so not really new technology, but there are two approaches or methods

Inductive is the one first used, coils have to be very close together and aligned
Resonant is the newer method, allowing larger distance and not as finicky about alignment

And as said current charging pads need the phone coil to be aligned, but...........
No reason you couldn't build a drop in charger, open front with charger in the back so you could access the phone buttons while driving but it would be charging at the same time.

Some cleaver fellow will build it

Some car makers have incorporated charge pads, Dodge Dart comes to mind
 

Mike Tonon

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Playing with the phone while driving is not a good idea. that resonant that you mentioned would be the way to go. The goals of this idea is convenience, safety and organization. That upper glove compartment in the old Rangers is an ideal spot to toss a smartphone and why not charge it while it's in there, without the need of a cord or jack?
 

Spott

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No reason you couldn't build a drop in charger, open front with charger in the back so you could access the phone buttons while driving but it would be charging at the same time.

Some cleaver fellow will build it
The model I use is set up that way, with arms around the sides and a charger built into the back. It leaves the screen and side buttons free, so I can charge while using GPS navigation and similar. http://a.co/gqI145L


@Mike: Unfortunately, while a resonant charger will work at greater distance (up to 30mm, currently) and all Qi wireless-enabled phones can charge from a resonant charger, it still requires the coil in the phone and the coil in the charger to be aligned within 10-20mm laterally, and no more than 35° of rotation. It's still not a "throw it in anywhere on the pad and it will just charge" solution, requiring at least loose alignment and retention.

Also, resonant chargers charge more slowly and generate more heat in the phone (and the charger); it trades off efficiency in order to get more distance. More heat in a device the size of a smartphone, with the kinds of batteries within, is a potential problem.

You've got a good idea, but the technology to implement it has not been developed yet.
 

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