DIY Radio: Hacking a radio for use in developing countries

The DIY Radio is designed to be produced and sold as a flat-pack unit, consisting of three parts. An electronics module, the main body, and a cover. All of these components are designed to fit neatly together, using Velcro to attach the cover, which holds the structure together. The DIY Radio is an extremely cheap unit for use in developing countries. Because it is made of card, the tooling costs involved in the manufacturing are very low. Secondly, it comes as a flat pack unit, meaning storage and transportation cost per unit as extremely low compared to regular radio’s. The radio features two simple dials, to avoid clutter. The user could even mark their favourite stations around the dial. Over all, this contributes to a stylish, yet extremely cheap radio that is battery powered a perfect for users in developing countries who want to be entertained.

You will also see my exploded diagram which shows all the individual components of this radio. 

Materials List:

-1 sheet of high quality A3 card (red)
-1 sheet of high quality A3 card (grey)
-2 1 cm sticks of 12mm dowel
-2 12 mm diameter dials
-1 Sony ICF-S22 radio
-2 12mm strips of Velcro
-1 6mm x 6mm square of Velcro
-1 AA battery case

Tools Required:

-Scissors/ Craft knife. Or a laser cutter if you have access to one
-Micro Screw Driver

Step 1: De constructing the Sony ICF-S22 radio

This step simply requires you to carefully unscrew all the screws in the outer shell and within the battery casing of the radio. Take care when pulling the two halves of the radio apart so you don't pull any wires out, which are hooked onto the casing at certain points. They could quite easily be pulled from the chip board. Once the radio is in two halves, the chip board and speaker can easily be popped out from its mounting points. The battery connections from either end of the batteries also need to be clipped out. The casing is not needed for this radio, just the speaker and the chip board

Comments

[DIY-Guy]

Well, it looks like a perfectly good and strong plastic case has been replaced by a thin cardboard case. I like the flatpack idea but plastic radios already come pre-packaged in boxes. So the packing of little boxes inside a larger box is not really any issue.

I guess very hot and dry climates would be good for such a radio if the plastic were to be endangered by the environment. I'd avoid sending a cardboard radio case to any place with humidity and rain though.

Something to consider for a future design which would be cheaper in a developing country would be to design a fully screen printed radio circuit which has no 3-D components. I don't know if we can screen print all different kinds of electronic components yet, but that would allow for a cardboard radio. (It's rumored that in Japan some cellphones were once printed onto the cardboard of cereal boxes. It was a sales gimmick to get people to sign up for cellphone service on a contract.) Maybe someone can veryify or debunk this....

[State50]

I'm pretty sure that if such a thing were done for promotional use, they would use Surface Mount Devices (SMDs). The circuitboard can be made thin, the components are only 1/32" high (maybe 5/64" for electrolytic capacitors. With digital tuning, you don't have the coil arrays or variable tuning capacitors. You couldn't get the thing to work just printed on cardboard, but you could connect a flexible PC board (high-temperature ribbon cable looking thing) to the cardboard with glue. Definately doable, but unwieldly to use comfortably.

[static]

I know comments are expected to be positive, constructive, but there are those times, when one runs across an instructable that no matter how well intend goes in the wrong direction. First determine the broadcasts bands in the country of interest, and send the the purchased radio as is. In light as another pointed out batteries are a liability. The freeplayenergy radios would be the ones to donate. Particularly the 4 band model, if it's sill available.

[interfazhumana]

Great to developing countries... so they should buy a new one every few months... why always people relate "useless trash" with "hey... send it to developing countries... we're such good people!!!"

[Cyberscann54]

neat design but if this is gonna go to a third world country regular batteries are not the way to go

[fgarrettmunnoch]

very nice simple design. What are your estimated costs for manufacturing this.?
great project.!