Winter Weather Face Shield With Defogger Fans

Mark 1 Winter Face Shield

Looking for a way to protect my face from harsh winter conditions, without enduring damp scarves pressed against my mouth or the excessive, mummy like, wrapping of my head, I created headgear with a magnetic visor that is defogged by tiny 5 volt fans.

This instructable will guide you through the process of making a Mk. 1 Winter Face Shield. As a fair warning, it is an involved project that involves programming, sewing, and some various fabrication and building. This process is much easier if you have access to a shop space with tools like table saws and belt sanders. If all you have are some hand tools and a back porch to work in, various details can be scaled to fit your capabilities. We can still do this.

Broken into multiple sections, this project consists of: "Circuit Building and Programming","Patterning & Sewing", "Forming the Visor" and "Assembly". Look for the materials list, with links to where to get them, at the beginning of each section.

Being only a 4 week process during the school semester from inception to fabrication, I feel compelled to share my idea and process with you in it's initial phase, excited to see what variations and ideas everyone brings to this project.

Have fun!

Step 1: Circuit Building and Programming

Tools:

• Laptop (with Arduino software installed)
• Soldering Iron
• Helping Hands (non-essential, but makes soldering easier)
• Micro USB to USB cable

Materials:

• 2x 30cm, 5v brushless fan, for defogging. (I used these.)
• Arduino Uno board, for prototyping (basic kit includes all the supplies necessary to get you started.)
• Solderless Breadboard
• Round Force Sensitive Resistor or alternative button. (sensor I used as a button due to it's slimness, available here.)
• Adafruit Pro Trinket v5 board, used for shrinking down circuit, which keeping it re-programmable. (If you feel comfortable, you don't need to use the Arduino Uno board to prototype, you can just straight to the Pro Trinket, which is available here.)
• LiPo LIon backpack that allows you to charge and power the Pro Trinket (here!)
• 2x PN2222 Transistors
• 2x 1N4001 Diodes
• 2x 220 ohm Resistors
• 10k ohm Resistor
• 3.6v 2200 mAh cylindrical lithium Ion battery (here.)
• Protoboard to build your final circuit on.
• Solder

NOTE: You may want to leave out wiring the fans in place, because when you assemble the visor you'll need to run those wires through hose later on.

If you are new to Arduino and Coding, it may help to do a few basic tutorials before diving into the project.

1) Attach Adafruit LiPo LIon backpack to Adafruit Pro Trinket 5v according to the instructions on the site here.

2) Follow the circuit diagram provided above! The diagram shows the circuit connected with a Pro Trinket, but whether you start on the Arduino Uno or the Pro Trinket the pins you use (3, 4, 5v, G) stay the same.

3) Note that the direction of the transistor and diode matters!

4) Now we can start programming. This code checks a pull down resistor to know when to start the fans. It also uses "debounce" to time when the chip checks for a press on the switch to ensure a clean read. To find out more about "debounce" check here.

5) Below is the code with comments. A copy of the Arduino code is attached as well:

6) Upload the code to the board and give it a try! When you are ready, if you have not already, port the code to the Pro Trinket and solder your components in place. Soldering tutorials is here in case you need it.

7) You can see from the image above that I went through 3 generations of circuit configurations, each time trying to get it smaller then the last one.

Step 2: Forming the Visor

Tools:

• Heat Gun
• Thick Gloves
• C-clamps, or other clamps that give a tight grip.
• Straight and flat pieces of wood that is at least slightly wider than your piece of plastic.
• Work Table that C-clamps can get around.
• Band-saw or jig saw, or jewelers saw. Anything that can cut through the plastic.

Materials:

• Arcylic (I choose translucent grey plastic)

Note: The acrylic gets real hot before it starts to bend, to get some thick gloves just in case you need to touch a hot part. ALSO, I'll be making the visor by making simple bends in the acrylic to avoid the need to thermo-form my plastic.

1) Measure the plastic to your face and choose a visor type.

2) Draw out your visor template on the side of your acrylic.

3) Cut out any extra material you don't need in your design.

3) Line up the line with the piece of wood and start heading that line evenly.

4) Be patient, and heat both sides evenly until the plastic starts to bend.

5) Guide the bending until you get to the proper angle based on your design an face shape.

Step 3: Patterning and Sewing

Tools:

• Sewing Machine
• Head Form
• Fabric Scissors
• Large Sheets of Paper to draw patterns on.
• Lighter to singe the ends of the Webbing.

Materials:

• Outdoor Canvas
• Batting
• Fleece
• Webbing
• Webbing Slides
• Velcro

Note: Since everyone's head is different, it's would be best if you made your own patterns by wrapping them around your head, but be careful!

1) Cut the patterns out! You can reference the pictures for a general shape, but it will really depend on your individual head shape and how much support you need.

2) After cutting out the patterns, trace and cut those patterns on each of your three materials (outdoor canvas, batting).

3) Later all the materials together and either by hand or using the sewing machine, stacking the layers in this order: outdoor canvas, batting, fleece.

4) Once every thing has been sewn together in their respective layers, use the webbing to create a trim around the outside, by folding it in half along the edge and sewing it along the perimeter. SINGE the ends of the webbing before you sew it to stop it from falling apart.

5) After I finished, I realized that I needed more support to hold the visor, so took some scrap material and webbing and made a top-of-the-head strap

Step 4: Assembly

Tools:

• Hot Glue Gun

Materials:

• All the parts you have assembled so far: visor, circuit, canvas headgear
• Velcro
• Clear Plastic 1/8th Hose
• Electrical Tape

1) Hot glue the fans in visor in a place they fit comfortable while your face is in it.

2) Sew Velcro to top-of-the-head strap and match the position on the visor, and attach the corresponding Velcro with hot glue to the inside of the visor.

3) Run wires from fans to one side of the visor, securing it along the way with electrical tape.

4) Run the ends of the fan wires through the hose.

5) Attach those ends to your circuit board following the circuit diagram.

Step 5: TADA!

Disclaimer: This visor was just designed to shield you face from mild weather conditions such as wind and rain. It is in no way, shape or form, meant to protect your head, face or any other part of you from bodily harm.

Enjoy!