In this instructable I'll show you how I designed and 3D printed a pair of suction cup mounts for the Nintendo Switch, I designed these to be able to comfortably play my Switch on long flights. After contemplating different ideas I settled on relying on there being a built-in screen in the seat on my flight. So far I haven't been able to test this in-flight, but I have tested it in numerous places. While I haven't used these in-flight I have carried them through a couple air ports during some recent travel....in my pockets! This is a very compact and neck-friendly way to play Switch at 30,000 feet or slapped to a YYZ iPad during layovers. Or even on your tablet if your seat doesn't have a screen. After testing, one suction cup is likely enough, but there's no kill like overkill.

Supplies

1) Suction cups

2) 3D Printer

3) Filament

4) CAD software

Step 1: Take General Measurements of the Switch

To get the general dimensions I measured the thickness and height of the Switch to get the general outline of the mount. In this phase it is also important to know the spacing for the power and volume buttons and the gap between Joy Con and cartridge The smaller value is the maximum width of the mount portion that wraps around the Switch.

Step 2: Design the Socket for the Suction Cup

We will need about four dimensions from the suction cup.

1) The diameter of the cap (Green)

2) The diameter of the stem (Red)

3) Height of the cap (Yellow)

4) Height of the stem (Blue)

Based on these designs we will design a thermometer shaped hole for the suction cup to fit into. The round base of the shape should have the same or larger diameter as the cap of the suction cup.

Next, the slot should have a width slightly larger than the diameter of the stem and should also be much smaller than the cap diameter.

Adjust length of the slot so that there is no danger of the suction cup slipping through the entry-hole.

As for thickness the "plate" that your slot is made in should be about the same thickness as the stem height (blue) to allow the suction cups to have some grip.

To make sure the entire suction cup can fit into the slot, the cavity for the suction cup should be deeper than the cap height (Yellow)

Step 3: Print!

That sums up how I went about designing this project.

Print instructions:

Material: Anything not flexible, I used PLA

Orientation: On it's side, I know that's extra support but the suction cup slot is the most important part of the print and with my printer, that meant printing the mounts on their sides. They took about five hours to print.

Thanks for reading!