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Developer

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

By nicolebremernash March 24, 2011, 6:43 AM PDT

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Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Altoids tin for MintiBoost workshop

Altoids tin for MintiBoost workshop

ntMembers of Let Them Tweet Cake, a female-only group in Louisville, KY that meets to discuss tech and geek-related stuff, were invited to LVL1 Hackerspace for a workshop on how to make MintiBoosts, battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins. Check out this gallery to see images of yours truly trying to learn some geek skills and build my own MintiBoost!

n

ntIt all starts with an Altoids tin.

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ntPhoto courtesy of Grace Simrall (@greendrv)

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ntFor more details about the project, read my Geekend post MintiBoost workshop for geek women at LVL1 Hackerspace.

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

MintiBoost project workstation

MintiBoost project workstation

ntEach workstation had a soldering iron, a magnifying glass with attached clamps, and a bright light.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Underside of the motherboard

Underside of the motherboard

ntThis is the underside of the tiny motherboard. Each transistor has metal “legs” that are inserted in particular order and direction into holes on the motherboard. The soldering is done on this back side, and then the long wires are snipped short.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Front of the motherboard

Front of the motherboard

ntThe front of the motherboard with four transistors mounted.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Soldering

Soldering

ntSome Tweeps are fast learners and took to soldering very quickly.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Motherboard for MintiBoost project

Motherboard for MintiBoost project

ntThe board gets increasingly full, and by the end it is difficult to squeeze everything in.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

MintiBoost performance test

MintiBoost performance test

ntEach completed MintiBoost was tested for performance. Can you guess which attendee didn’t do hers right? It seems this geek has difficulty with dry solder sockets. Lesson: don’t skimp on the solder.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

MintiBoost project at LVL1

MintiBoost project at LVL1

ntI had to get some help with the soldering, and I never did get the hang of it.

n

ntPhoto credit: Nicole Bremer Nash

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

USB charger in an Altoids tin

USB charger in an Altoids tin

ntWhen it was all done, it gets nested inside an Altoids tin.

n

ntPhoto courtesy of Grace Simrall (@greendrv)

Battery-powered USB chargers made with Altoids tins

Completed MintiBoost

Completed MintiBoost

ntThe battery pack covers part of the motherboard, and the motherboard attaches to a USB port that sits in a cut-out slot on the side of the tin. With the lid closed, the user just plugs any USB device in, and it charges right up.

n

ntI think a good hack on this project would be to use a small photovoltaic pack, like the ones used in making sun jars, and thereby eliminating the need for the batteries.

n

ntPhoto courtesy of Grace Simrall (@greendrv)

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By nicolebremernash
Nicole Bremer Nash is Director of Content and Social Media for HuTerra, where she uses SEO and social media to promote charitable organizations in their community-building and fundraising efforts. She enjoys volunteering, arts and crafts, and conduct
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