Introduction: Canon CB-2LYE Replacement NB-6L USB Battery Charger

By

I own a super zoom Canon SX 540HS point and shoot camera and this its CB-2LYE charger and NB-6L battery. The charger runs on 240V AC and due to its size, it is not possible to carry it with the camera bag. During my recent out station visit to Chandigarh, I forgotten to take it with me. I just packed my camera bag and when I reached there I realized what I have forgotten. The battery had just enough charged left so that I can take a few shots and after that I stuck with a dead battery. At that time I realized that there has to be a charger which should be so small that can be kept inside the camera bag and it should also run on mobile chargers and power bank, which are readily available everywhere.

I searched a lot but could not found any ready made ones. So I decided to make a charger which can charge the battery using power bank or mobile charger.

Step 1: Charger Board and Forex PVC Foam Board

I have a USB 5V 1A 18650 Lithium Battery Charger laying around which costs ~0.70 USD or 50-60 INR on amazon or aliexpress. It has input charging voltage between 4.5v-5.5v and output charging around 4.2v, Charging current is 1A and has Blue and Red LEDs as charging and full charged indicators.

I used Forex PVC Foam board material for prototyping. It is easily workable using paper cutter knife. I carved two cavities one for battery and one for charger PCB.

Step 2: Charger PCB to Battery Contact Points

I used two old gold plated contacts salvaged from old hard disk. You can use any metal strip made of copper or steel. The charger output is wired to the contact plates. And it was working like a charm. A charger which can be kept inside my camera bag. Now the battery can be charged using any mobile charger or power bank.

Then I realized that the project should look more professional and decided to built a 3D printed plastic case which should cover the exposed PCB also. Next step was to replicate the Forex board model on a TinkerCAD.

Step 3: Modeling on TinkerCAD

The screen shot shows the model designed on TinkerCAD (https://www.tinkercad.com/things/dZUEvYf5TXl )

Step 4: 3D Printed Case

The finalized model on TinkerCAD is printed on Ultimaker 3D printer using PLA material.

Step 5: Battery Snug Fit

I realized that the dimensions used to design the battery cavity is so tight that it is not possible to remove battery after inserting it. I stuck a piece of satin rope to leverage the battery from its cavity.

Step 6: Contact Points

The contacts point were precisely marked and glued to their places.

Step 7: PCB Attachment and Conection to Contact Points

The charger PCB was screwed to its place using two micro screws. The wires were run through the designed wire cavity upto contact points and soldered to their respective terminals. (for proper polarity, make it sure twice or thrice when soldering)

Step 8: Covering the Exposed PCB

The exposed charger PCB is covered using a white 2mm acrylic board which also diffuse the Blue and Red LED light. The acrylic board was secured using four micro screws.

Step 9: Comparison and Conclusion

This is the final model. Just see how small now the battery charger is. Now I can carry battery charger inside my camera bag and charge the battery anywhere using mobile charger or a power bank.