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Step 6The Results
And, now I have a magnetic power cord.
Again, the dongle is a bit long, but as you'll see in the brief video of the connector in use, it is still effective. The magnets are pretty strong, each exerting about 5 pounds, so you could still drag the laptop off the table if you pulled slowly, but then, there is no worry that the connection is just going to fall out. And, in reality, most of the accidents happen from sudden tugs rather than sustained pulls. And as you can see, sudden tugs barely affect the computer at all.
As a bonus, the LEDs work very well as they are super bright and are an effective indicator that the connector is supplying power to the plug (I did get caught on my initial tests in that I pulled the connector straight away from the computer and the plug disengaged enough that when I connected the magnetic connector, no power went to the computer. Not the fault of the connector, though).
In the videos you can see the LEDs extinguish when the connector is apart. You will also see how the connector attempts to align itself, and how, if it is not aligned, no current is flowing to exposed terminals. Safety first!
Thanks for taking a look.
Approximate cost for this project:
Casting Epoxy - $13
Candle Wax - $4
SMD LEDs - $0.26
SMD resistors - $0.18
Heat shrink - I have a bunch of this, but radio shack also sells some for about $3, might be cheaper to get it at Lowe's, though
18 ga wire - I already had it, but you could get a spool for $3 at radio shack
brass terminals and nails I already had these too, and most should be able to find something conductive that would work for free
Total cost (for me) : $17.44 and I still have more than 75% of both the epoxy and wax left!
This instructable was inspired by the Thinksafe instructable by "breath". Thanks for the idea!
Again, the dongle is a bit long, but as you'll see in the brief video of the connector in use, it is still effective. The magnets are pretty strong, each exerting about 5 pounds, so you could still drag the laptop off the table if you pulled slowly, but then, there is no worry that the connection is just going to fall out. And, in reality, most of the accidents happen from sudden tugs rather than sustained pulls. And as you can see, sudden tugs barely affect the computer at all.
As a bonus, the LEDs work very well as they are super bright and are an effective indicator that the connector is supplying power to the plug (I did get caught on my initial tests in that I pulled the connector straight away from the computer and the plug disengaged enough that when I connected the magnetic connector, no power went to the computer. Not the fault of the connector, though).
In the videos you can see the LEDs extinguish when the connector is apart. You will also see how the connector attempts to align itself, and how, if it is not aligned, no current is flowing to exposed terminals. Safety first!
Thanks for taking a look.
Approximate cost for this project:
Casting Epoxy - $13
Candle Wax - $4
SMD LEDs - $0.26
SMD resistors - $0.18
Heat shrink - I have a bunch of this, but radio shack also sells some for about $3, might be cheaper to get it at Lowe's, though
18 ga wire - I already had it, but you could get a spool for $3 at radio shack
brass terminals and nails I already had these too, and most should be able to find something conductive that would work for free
Total cost (for me) : $17.44 and I still have more than 75% of both the epoxy and wax left!
This instructable was inspired by the Thinksafe instructable by "breath". Thanks for the idea!
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