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Stylish desktop ESP8266 weather station

The design and manufacturing process of a stylish desktop companion based on Adafruit’s 2.4” TFT Feather Wing and Feather Huuzah ESP8266

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The aim of this project is to manufacture a stylish and fully programmable desktop companion by blending together modern electronics and a custom laser-cut wooden enclosure.

The device is based on Adafruit's Feather Huzzah esp8266 and the 2.4" TFT Feather Wing. The enclosure is desigen using Fusion360 and cut out of birchwood using a 140W laser. 

This whole project is based on adafruit's guide which you can find here https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-feather-huzzah-esp8266/using-arduino-ide, my only improvement beign the wooden enclosure. 

The process

1.Sketching 

This step is rather crucial and it implies a few minutes in which im trying to decide what i will do and envision how the final product will look( mind you, more often than not the final product looks nothing like the starting idea but without this step, no idea will be able to materialize).

2. Measure the "guts" of the device

In this case, i have measured all the needed dimensions of the electronic system used

3. Create a rough 3D model of the electronics so you can base the enclosure design around that

4. Create the 3D model of the enclosure using sheet metal (it allows unfolding) and export it as .dxf

5. Create a rounded box using Boxes.py(a free tool - https://festi.info/boxes.py/FlexBox?language=en) and use the lattice hinges generated by this piece of software in your design. In the past, i have used to unfold all the bends of my design, generate the lattice hinges manually, extrude them as surface, thicken it and extract it from the target body ( it usually ends with fusion360 crashing) but now i am wiser and i simply add them in my go-to vector manipulation software (see? i have just saved you a few good hours)

6. Use any vector manipulation software like Inkscape(free) or Adobe Illustrator(paid) to add  lattice hinges to your design and get it ready for laser-cutting.

AutoCAD DXF - 401.55 kB - 08/27/2020 at 19:33

Download

  • 1 × Feather HUZZAH ESP8266
  • 1 × Adafruit 2.4" TFT Feather Wing
  • 1 × 2000mAh Rechargeable Battery
  • 1 × Micro-USB Cable

View project log

  • 1
    Program the ESP8266 usingFthe instructions provided by Adafruit

    The instructions may be found at https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-feather-huzzah-esp8266/using-arduino-ide followed by https://learn.adafruit.com/wifi-weather-station-with-tft-display/overview?view=all. Remember to download the libraries using only the links provided on the website instead of manually searching for them in the Arduino IDE ( some names have been changed and this can lead to errors). 

    Ensure that the settings.h file is in the same folder as esp8266-weather-station-color.ino and configure your SSID and Password. After all this is done, head to https://openweathermap.org/ , create a free account and generate your API key that you will insert in the "OpenWeatherMap Settings" section of the settings.h file. Now just plug in your ESP8266, wait for it to connect to WiFi ( i had to reboot it around 3 times before it finally connected), follow the instructions displayed on the screen and you should be good to go.

  • 2
    Download the DXF made available in this project
  • 3
    Cut the enclosure from the desired material of 3.6mm-4mm thickness

    In my case, i have used "4mm birchwood" that was actually 3.6mm thick after a careful measurement.

View all 4 instructions

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Discussions

Mike Szczys wrote 08/31/2020 at 18:54 point

Such a clean little kiosk. I like how the edging comes together on the top, adds a lot of interest where hiding that seam away wouldn't.

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Dan Maloney wrote 08/28/2020 at 00:00 point

I like the simple icons - easy to zero in on the info you need. Nice job!

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Swoosh Mihu wrote 08/31/2020 at 15:10 point

Found them amazing aswell!

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