Worklog [2023 Contest Entry] TRiiNITRON

[Flipcrazy]

Hey guys, looks like it's competition time. So here's my entry, the TRiiNITRON. Behold, this proof of concept.

Ok ok, so what is it that I'm wanting to accomplish. Simply put, I want to make my own version of the LaserBear Industries iPad lcd crt case, which houses a built in Wii, four Gamecube controller ports, a sensor bar and 25000mAh of batteries for maximum "portable" Dokapon Kingdom and Smash Bros gameplay.

My full list of planned features include.

• A display using a 2840 x 1536 resolution, 9.7 inch iPad 3/4 display. It may not be a 480p integer scale, but at that high of a resolution it still looks incredible
• Relocated Bluetooth module for Wiimote connectivity
• A built in sensor bar above the screen for easy Wiimote pointer functionality
• 4 Gamecube controller ports underneath the screen, with tv control buttons to either side of the controller ports
• 2 speakers for stereo audio
• Relocated Mx chip for RTC functionality
• Clean digital video to the screen using an AVE-HDMI kit, with HDMI
• 5 5000mAh 21700 cells for a total of 25000mAh of battery capacity (because 6 of em would make this thing illegal to take on a plane)

Now, this will come wit some challenges, such as the fact that I don’t know how to 3D model, but I'm sure with a few tutorials I can whip something up in Tinkercad. My 3D printer is also having some issues that need resolved... One thing at a time here.

I'll be documenting my progress here, in this thread. Will I succeed, will I fail, will this go better than that time I tried to learn Python in high school? God I hope so. Let's do this.

 

[Flipcrazy]

Got a rough design for the front of the case laid out in MS paint, decided to split the GCC ports into two groups of two, one on the left and right of the bottom edge of the tv. I moved the speakers to the left and right sides of the screen to make it closer resemble my actual Trinitron as well. Here's what I've sketched out so far.

I'm gonna use this as a basis for my design in Tinkercad, figured designing the front of the case first would allow me to get used to modeling in Tinkercad and how it works before moving on to the more complicated back side where all the internals mount

 

[Flipcrazy]

Day 1: Got the front mostly designed. So far I have all the proper holes cut for everything except for the sensor bar leds. the USB sensor bar I'm planning on harvesting parts from should be here tomorrow, so I'll take more measurements then. I decided to make the speaker grill resemble my actual Trinitron, so I added a bunch of holes. I would have made the holes smaller, but anytime i tried to make them smaller, they were so numerous that Tinkercad would crash. Tomorrow (aka today after I sleep), I will focus on creating the screw posts, and the indent for the iPad 3 lcd

 

[Flipcrazy]

Day 2. 3? Technically the same day as the previous post, but that was at 12:04 am, you know what , day 2, yeah: Unfunny jokes aside, I decided to work more on the front today, specifically the backside of the front screen. It then quickly came to my attention that I should have started with this first, because now the measurements for the iPad screen were too big for the case I created. Whoops. So, one redesign later and I'm back where I started, only this time things should (theoretically) fit. I'm gonna be borrowing my buddy's 3d printer which has a bigger print bed than my ender 3 pro, even if not by too much. The extra space should allow me to more easily print out test prints. Anyways, once I get these test prints done and confirm that the parts all fit in the front, then I'll move onto the back. until then, here's some closer looks at the front end of the case.

 

[Flipcrazy]

Day 5:
Peter. The h̶o̶r̶s̶e̶ screen is here. (Ashida for scale)

The speakers also got here. Haven't tested them yet, but I'll get around to it. I did get around to printing off some test fits, and while my hotend got clogged halfway through, it did print out enough for me to know that the GameCube controller sockets will fit

 

[Flipcrazy]

Day 8: I've started planning out the back half of this case, and where all the electronics are going to go. Many old CRTs have a bump in the back for the end of the electron beam to sit in, this bump is where I plan to mount the Wii and it's cooling hardware. Below is a very jank MSPaint diagram of my current plans for the layout. I'm hoping that the 5 21700 cells will provide enough weight to keep this thing sitting flat, though if not I can always add metal weights to the bottom.

 

[Zini]

It all looks good but I don't see a Wiimote pair button on your case lol

 

[Flipcrazy]

It all looks good but I don't see a Wiimote pair button on your case lol

That's because I... forgot to add one lol. Thanks for catching that