Dox KB, Build your own!

[TheProfosist]

i couldnt get my hands on solidworks, so we prob would need his help to make the plate

Would you be able to get the needed measurements for DOX then?

[ishtob]

yes i have a spare poker case

is that what we are to put the final product in?

i was hoping to do the acrylic thing like what lister has been working on, hehe, this is going to end up being a phantom Jr XD, i'll have to do this after finals, which is in 2 weeks

[bloodygood]

Well we need to know if the plate fits inside of a poker case though don't we? Since we all want plate mounted. And WASD is getting in those plate mounts for the stabilizers AND getting in cherry mx switches in the coming month if all goes according to plan.

[TheProfosist]

yes i have a spare poker case

is that what we are to put the final product in?

i was hoping to do the acrylic thing like what lister has been working on, hehe, this is going to end up being a phantom Jr XD, i'll have to do this after finals, which is in 2 weeks

Well I have 2 poker cases lined up and plan to use a PLU case for the Phantom to keep costs down. I would love to do what lister is doing for a acrylic Phantom case but I couldnt come up with the extra money for the case.

Well we need to know if the plate fits inside of a poker case though don't we? Since we all want plate mounted. And WASD is getting in those plate mounts for the stabilizers AND getting in cherry mx switches in the coming month if all goes according to plan.

A plate should fit I dont see why it wouldnt.

[ishtob]

well if we end up going the acrylic stack case, we would need some way to mount the plate.... even with the poker case, are we just going to bolt it down with some spacer between the plate and the PCB or should we try to figure out a way to mount the plate

[bloodygood]

Because as was mentioned before, the plate adds width, and currently a Poker PCB goes to all edges. Unless we were planning on trimming edges of the current PCB so the plate will fit around it to the base of the case.

I suppose if you had the exact measurements inside the Poker + the exact measurements of the PCB you could do something like this fitted to the case so that you don't need to "mount" the plate, just make sure the holes are in the plate also so you can mount the screws to the poker case.

[ishtob]

i was thinking of having a spacer at each screw to go between the plate and pcb to keep the spacing right and also add firmness to the plate

[ishtob]

lister, can i get the DXF file for the plate if possible? i got autocad/autodesk to work on my mac... as long as pris okays it of course

[litster]

The plates are in a zip file posted in the Phantom group buy thread here: http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?23572-Phantom-Custom-Keyboard-Group-Buy-(Order-Only)&p=443852&viewfull=1#post443852

Direct link to the file: http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=33638&d=1322771313

[ishtob]

shoot me... mac autocad is sooo unstable, i get a 3min window to work with the file every time I open it, and it will crash after a few modification -____- so i only got the basics so far, need to still add the hole for the teensy:

[ishtob]

^ the above work too 3 hours

[litster]

Try QCAD here: http://qcad.org/qcad_downloads.html

I use the Windows version.  There is a Mac version.  Trial is free, it stops every 15 minutes or so, but it gives you a chance to save first.  I use the trial version to design the Phantom case and it works very well.

[TheProfosist]

Looking good

I have changed and finalized my dox layout after getting a small change on the Phantom group buy will be posting it soon

[bloodygood]

I still kept my layout as what I posted a while back, I believe that is my final. Could I please get a revised PCB layout for it if that isn't any trouble?



My bottom left Fn key will be the Locking one, all others are normal keyswitches. Thank you very much in advance, I have been terribly sick this past week thus why I haven't been very active on here. I would say last night was the absolute worst I have felt since being sick when I was a kid.

[ishtob]

I'm also considering making going short like your layout bloody, but with the short right shift (I got really used to it now typing with my current dox for >3 weeks.



I finished the plate for mine, prob will be sending it to emachineshop to see how well they can do it, its like $45 a person + shipping if we we all order the same layout (for 3 plates)
or you can order 1 at a time for $87 each

[ishtob]

I'm also getting this done during my study breaks:


its more a less a phantomJr... unfortunately there isnt much room left for the switch changing holes since Im still keeping hte LEDs in the layout.
lister, i'm wokring ont he modifier row and off-set caps still, so hold tight

[ishtob]

for those of you wondering about the stability of having the large hole for the teensy, the teensy itself will act as that part of the plate, I've moved it slightly so the edge of the teensy pcb will be pressed against the C,V,B and space switches

[bloodygood]

It looks like you did something similar to what I had done to try to add the 15th key. Basically I had tried making one of the switches to replace the backspace part of the top row, and one part of the row below it. But I have to say I am not capable of handling the LEDs to add in there. I just don't know the traces well enough to avoid overlap.

[ishtob]

i made it so the right most key will be the BS, the left one will be in the Fn row above the "+=" key
so either way it will work whether a person wants 1 or 2 keys there, just need to mod the firmware accordingly

[TheProfosist]

Here is my revised layout:

Default Layer


Layer 1


Layer 2


Template for WASD

[bloodygood]

Here is my revised layout:
Default Layer

Show Image

You have a dedicated caps lock key on your default layer where the Ctrl key usually is? I am kind of surprised since I know personally I rarely use it which is why I don't have it on the default layer at all. But maybe that is just me, since I am used to only holding shift to type 3-4 cap letters when necessary. Based on your layout I thought you would want a second Fn key there so that you could one hand change your audio levels / media.

[ishtob]

his FN is next to the left shift, so he has that key free

[TheProfosist]

You have a dedicated caps lock key on your default layer where the Ctrl key usually is? I am kind of surprised since I know personally I rarely use it which is why I don't have it on the default layer at all. But maybe that is just me, since I am used to only holding shift to type 3-4 cap letters when necessary. Based on your layout I thought you would want a second Fn key there so that you could one hand change your audio levels / media.

I dont use caps that often but I do often remap it to do things like press to talk in vent also I already have a Fn key on the left side.

[ishtob]

You can always throw in a random F13 or something in its spot, makes it more hotkey friendly

[ishtob]

sio I'm looking at you guy's layout... we can do a universal plate if we use PCB mounted stabilizer and I can just set a long hole for the shifts kinda like the one they are doing on phantom for the non-orderable "7bit special shift" version of the plate

[TheProfosist]

You can always throw in a random F13 or something in its spot, makes it more hotkey friendly

I still kinda want it as Caps also though so no worries plus the layout is not only for me.

sio I'm looking at you guy's layout... we can do a universal plate if we use PCB mounted stabilizer and I can just set a long hole for the shifts kinda like the one they are doing on phantom for the non-orderable "7bit special shift" version of the plate

i wouldnt mind that but I would prefer plate mounted stabilizers since they will be available.

[ishtob]

i personally would like to see all plate mounted stabs, but the geometry of the cutout makes it impossible to have a universal cutout to accommodate a universal cutout.... either that or we do individual plates for each of you guys, it will jsut cost about double to order those plates as a 1-2 ofs

[ishtob]

i personally would like to see all plate mounted stabs, but the geometry of the cutout makes it impossible to have a universal cutout to accommodate a universal cutout.... either that or we do individual plates for each of you guys, it will just cost about 2x more for us to individually order a plate ($80 for 1 and about $60 ea for 2 vs $40 for 4) and we can even get it powder coat for about $10 more dollars each if we order 4 of the same one

[ishtob]

actually... just thought of something... if I put all of our layout onto 1 CAD file and have it done as one submission, we might be able to have each of our own unique layouts  but pay a lower price..... i'll get it worked out.. i still need to work on those shift key placements you guys want

[TheProfosist]

i personally would like to see all plate mounted stabs, but the geometry of the cutout makes it impossible to have a universal cutout to accommodate a universal cutout.... either that or we do individual plates for each of you guys, it will just cost about 2x more for us to individually order a plate ($80 for 1 and about $60 ea for 2 vs $40 for 4) and we can even get it powder coat for about $10 more dollars each if we order 4 of the same one

I may be able to get them quick will have to check though.

[bloodygood]

With all the varieties it would definitely be more likely we will either need individual plates or at least each to find someone else who wants one. Idea: find a friend who likes your layout, order one for both of you, sell it to him at cost.
Sorry about that profosist, hadn't noticed the Fn key next to shift. I am still darn tired from being sick, still didn't change my surprise to seeing a dedicated Caps Lock key. On the other hand, great place for a locking key perhaps?

[bloodygood]

actually... just thought of something... if I put all of our layout onto 1 CAD file and have it done as one submission, we might be able to have each of our own unique layouts  but pay a lower price..... i'll get it worked out.. i still need to work on those shift key placements you guys want

Is mine exceptionally complex? I thought the only change from a standard 61 key for mine was the 2 keys instead of a backspace. But I am definitely looking forward to being able to build this new keyboard soon. I wonder if we will be able to have it ready before the new year. If WASD gets his parts in soon then that might just be a possibility.

[ishtob]

your just differs from mine in the right shift, where you only have 1 key. I'm trying to get a universal PCB done so you can do that and I still need to pull up my old poker pCB to measure out he right shift location

[ishtob]

that then get the plate done... its just finals season and I only do like 30min of this a day during study breaks

[bloodygood]

that then get the plate done... its just finals season and I only do like 30min of this a day during study breaks

It is always important to focus on studies and there isn't really a rush if the keyboards don't get done until later. I know I am still working on my studies also for finals coming up next week too. After that things should finally cool down a bit and then there should be more free time until Christmas season kicks into full gear.

[ishtob]

yea but i wont be home for xmas i'm going to see how much i can get done the 2 days between the end of finals and my xmas break

[ishtob]

like how the pharmacy student is making keyboards?

[TheProfosist]

Im working on getting plates at the moment looks like its going to be much cheaper than the place ishtob was looking.

[ishtob]

where are you looking?

[TheProfosist]

where are you looking?

Looking at getting them through the phantom group buy posssibly though still working on it.

[ishtob]

I feel that we should combine our efforts with them

[TheProfosist]

I feel that we should combine our efforts with them

I dont how much is worth combining as we are very small in number and will soon be able to get almost everything we need from WASD.

[TheProfosist]

I know that you have been busy ishtob but how are the pcb and plate designs comming along?

[ishtob]

having some issues fitting some keys... I just dont have time at the moment to play around with it to find a solution

[Dox]

Hey ishtob, have you considered using filled plane to simplify the design with the LEDs?
Here is what I plan on ordering to give my current DOXs some light and remove the internal wiring.
[ Attachment Invalid Or Does Not Exist ] 34605[/ATTACH] [ Attachment Invalid Or Does Not Exist ] 34604[/ATTACH]

[ishtob]

aite, made some progress during study breaks on the dox... i got the offset caps and the modifier row done, problem at the moment is that I cant do a lon oval shape with the PCB software i'm doing, so all the offset modifiers would need to have the centerpost drilled by the user, good news is all LED should still work, even the caps (I setup a second LED spot there so that the LED would still be roughly centered. it also incorporates all the stuff you guys want except for 2 things:
- 7x space bar that the 1.5x modifiers row uses
- the ISO short shift that profosist requested

currently it will work with either plate mount or PCB mount, again holes would need to be drilled for the 1.5 modifier row

[ishtob]

Hey ishtob, have you considered using filled plane to simplify the design with the LEDs?
Here is what I plan on ordering to give my current DOXs some light and remove the internal wiring.
(Attachment Link) 34605[/ATTACH] (Attachment Link) 34604[/ATTACH]

I have considered it.. but didnt know how to do it

plus i'm cheap trying to do it all in 2 layers to save cost

[ishtob]

very nice job btw dox. that looks so much more professional than mine

[Dox]

Thanks, fitting multiple layouts would probably create "islands" in the planes but it should be doable.
Try it, just click on the filled plane icon (under the rectangle) and it will give you a prompt to check the help file. It's easier than it looks! I started by wiring it all like you and then converted it in about 30min.
You could probably use smaller traces too to make it look less cluttered. I'm planning to use 0.01" traces on this one. Keeping all traces strait or at 45 degree angle helps with the look too.

[ishtob]

i'll give it a shot when finals are over

at the moment I've got Bini and prof both wanting a specific layout that isnt already implemented