mec.Numpad - Homemade Keypad

[afferscheim]

Hi All & Season's greetings !

Let me present you mec.Numpad, a small clicky keypad of my creation.



Features list:

• 22 programmable key switches
• Cherry MX switches (blue on mine)
• clickyprogrammable rotary encoder from Alps with a huge knob (can be pushed down too)
• anodized aluminum enclosure
• 1.5mm steel support plate
• mini-usb connector
• two very small feets to raise it by 10° (if you feel like)
• pwm backlit, but poorly - should've used better LEDs or a different circuit to drive it
• designed and assembled in Switzerland 

Decided to build a numpad to get back to electronic development, didn't want to program anything so I built it around a SK5126445 chip from Sprintek, quite a good chip but a bit tedious to solder without proper equipment (QFN44+1 - 0.5mm pitch) - still managed to get it to work using an industrial heat blower (and a lot of patience) to solder it  .




Nothing crazy in the numpad department, splitted numpad-0 in two to have a fn instead, with numlock this enables four layers of programmation on the keypad - complete overkill for a numpad.



On the right side of the keypad, things are a more interesting, four switches ( initially intended for media control ) and a rotary encoder, I use it for volume control purposes - I designed to get a nice clicky feedback :



Video rotary encoder[chttps://youtu.be/bEPTY0YaYSE



Video back lighthttps://youtu.be/ew9GCYcXM5g

The PCB is "hanged" on the steel support plate by the switches and LEDs' solder joints since I didn't put support on the bottom of the enclosure, the top part is screwed from the bottom of the unit. I also designed some tiny feet to screw on the bottom of the enclosure to raise the keypad a bit.








Of course, It wasn't a perfect run -  I had my lot of fails and lessons learned:

• I always wondered why people would orient the switches with LEDs towards the top... now I know/li]
  
  • CNC Machining is either good or cheap
  • Resistors come in many different packages (even like that: http://www.resistor.tw/photo/resistor/thin-current-sensing-chip-resistor.jpg)
  • Should be more careful when ordering keycaps, row is not just a number 
  • Keycaps 1x2 can be stuck down if the stabilizers are just a tiny bit not flush with the switch stem 
  
  Note: I designed mec.Numpad using the following softwares:
  
  • pcb: Kicad - awesome 3d viewer
  • drawings: librecad & Draftsight
  • solids: Freecad
  
  What I would change in my future builds :
  
  • use supports below the PCB
  • use a fully programmable chip
  • orient the switches towards the top
  • maybe do something more fancy with the enclosure
  • use and encoder with less steps
  
  Guys, let me know your feedbacks about mec.Numpad! Looking forward!

[OldIsNew]

Very cool and looks sharp! I'd say that certainly qualifies as a serious keypad!

[smittysteve]

You know, I really like this. I upgraded an older Das Keyboard to a Das 4 Professional in 2014-ish and loved the scroll wheel, even for something pretty simple like volume. I can see myself using this.

I may have missed it, but have you thought about potential finishes and colors you might offer?

I would also love to see the case grown to replace the feet on the bottom. I’d pick an angle (7ish for my vote) and design the case for it. To pair with high end customs, I’d rather solid metal instead of feet.

Thanks for posting this- I’ll be following the thread and hoping you progress to a buy.

[afferscheim]

You know, I really like this. I upgraded an older Das Keyboard to a Das 4 Professional in 2014-ish and loved the scroll wheel, even for something pretty simple like volume. I can see myself using this.

I may have missed it, but have you thought about potential finishes and colors you might offer?

I would also love to see the case grown to replace the feet on the bottom. I’d pick an angle (7ish for my vote) and design the case for it. To pair with high end customs, I’d rather solid metal instead of feet.

Thanks for posting this- I’ll be following the thread and hoping you progress to a buy.

Thanks!

To be honest, I didn't think about the different possibilities of finish and colors but basically any RAL colors (https://www.windows24.com/images/ral-color.jpg) should be possible if I would find a good mechanics.

Regarding the feet, I couldn't agree more, it seemed a good idea while designing but now I wish I didn't do that 

just one question; where did you get that 7° ?

[afferscheim]

Very cool and looks sharp! I'd say that certainly qualifies as a serious keypad!

Thanks for the support mate!

[Phenix]

thats a great numpad!
I love the volume knob, if i were more skilled i would love to install one in my kinesis build (nirvana style)

[afferscheim]

thats a great numpad!
I love the volume knob, if i were more skilled i would love to install one in my kinesis build (nirvana style)

Thanks !, it is not so complicated to create such circuit, I don't know about the integration in your build, but if you are interested I can share my schematic diagram to inspire you !

You know, I really like this. I upgraded an older Das Keyboard to a Das 4 Professional in 2014-ish and loved the scroll wheel, even for something pretty simple like volume. I can see myself using this.

I may have missed it, but have you thought about potential finishes and colors you might offer?

I would also love to see the case grown to replace the feet on the bottom. I’d pick an angle (7ish for my vote) and design the case for it. To pair with high end customs, I’d rather solid metal instead of feet.

Thanks for posting this- I’ll be following the thread and hoping you progress to a buy.

Thanks!

To be honest, I didn't think about the different possibilities of finish and colors but basically any RAL colors (https://www.windows24.com/images/ral-color.jpg) should be possible if I would find a good mechanics.

Regarding the feet, I couldn't agree more, it seemed a good idea while designing but now I wish I didn't do that 

just one question; where did you get that 7° ?

I am now thinking about a module to bolt instead of the feet, I want to make it heavier, I will keep you all posted !

[menuhin]

Great Numpad!

... designed and assembled in Switzerland  ...

Does it imply that the parts are manufactured in China / Germany / Eastern Europe / Southeast Asia?
And there is a possibility of groupbuy?

[afferscheim]

Great Numpad!

... designed and assembled in Switzerland  ...

Does it imply that the parts are manufactured in China / Germany / Eastern Europe / Southeast Asia?
And there is a possibility of groupbuy?

Hi there,

Thanks ! and Yes, you are correct - the electronic parts are coming from USA mostly and Germany (switches) - the enclosure and PCB was manufactured in China - and finally I soldered everything on the board and installed it in the enclosure.

So far no groupbuy possibilities as this is only a prototype - but it might come in the future 

[menuhin]

Great Numpad!

... designed and assembled in Switzerland  ...

Does it imply that the parts are manufactured in China / Germany / Eastern Europe / Southeast Asia?
And there is a possibility of groupbuy?

Hi there,

Thanks ! and Yes, you are correct - the electronic parts are coming from USA mostly and Germany (switches) - the enclosure and PCB was manufactured in China - and finally I soldered everything on the board and installed it in the enclosure.

So far no groupbuy possibilities as this is only a prototype - but it might come in the future 

Quite curious how much in total was spent to create this prototype - and how much the enclosure and anodizing work cost.

I really like particularly the design decision to have that 2x2 cluster instead of the usual arrow key cluster, which make the whole module more lean and streamlined looking.

[afferscheim]

Quite curious how much in total was spent to create this prototype - and how much the enclosure and anodizing work cost.

I really like particularly the design decision to have that 2x2 cluster instead of the usual arrow key cluster, which make the whole module more lean and streamlined looking.

I don't have a very clear accounting so far, but I am working on it - however, the enclosure was manufactured and anodized for 155USD (shipping included) but i do not recommend this vendor for high end products.

Thanks for the good words though!

[Avalai]

I would jump on a GB of this in a heartbeat. It looks like the only numpad I'd ever need! I look forward to seeing where you take it.

To add my opinion to the discussion of the angle, I wouldn't want to go much above the 7° mentioned above. Building some angle into the case would look smooth, but I would find it more useful if it were completely flat, and I have the option to add feet. It might not look as nice, but I think the option to angle it or not would allow it to be used in more situations.

All that to say, I'd probably buy it either way. It looks super useful no matter what the angle is!

[hydrochloride]

Definitely waiting for the group buy!

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk

[afferscheim]

I would jump on a GB of this in a heartbeat. It looks like the only numpad I'd ever need! I look forward to seeing where you take it.

To add my opinion to the discussion of the angle, I wouldn't want to go much above the 7° mentioned above. Building some angle into the case would look smooth, but I would find it more useful if it were completely flat, and I have the option to add feet. It might not look as nice, but I think the option to angle it or not would allow it to be used in more situations.

All that to say, I'd probably buy it either way. It looks super useful no matter what the angle is!

Thanks ! I am also not sure about this option; I love the idea of the possibility to tilt it or keep it flat but at the same time I also think that the feet don't look so nice 

Definitely waiting for the group buy!

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk

Thanks, I will update this thread in case it happens.

[MikeTheTiger]

I have no use for this...but I need it badly. 

[afferscheim]

I have no use for this...but I need it badly. 

Thanks 

[corygrapher]

Totally in for this if there's a group buy.

[Buems]

I'm keeping an eye out for updates.
This looks great!

[Phenix]

would be really awesome if you could help me get that rotary encoder to work..
as far as I got it you essentially scrapped the "anolog" design and "just" declared right/left/depress to actual codes which are integrated in the matrix?

My build is just the hardware side which I am confident to succeed - Im more worried about the electronic side..
I guess I can hook the knob to a teensy or a ProMicro?
which knob did you ordered in specific?

[afferscheim]

Hello there,

Sorry for the delay, I used an Alps encoder, there is no need for a particular one, the idea is to translatr the two phased of the encoder into single impulses.

I used a d-latch circuit, but you can use any design that suits you.

I am designing an upgraded version and will update soon.

Sent from my BBA100-2 using Tapatalk

[afferscheim]

Thank you all for voting - wasn't aware that I got selected and learned today that I won KotM December 2017 

See you soon for the next steps !

[UsualSuspectXXX]

Thank you all for voting - wasn't aware that I got selected and learned today that I won KotM December 2017 

See you soon for the next steps !

Congrats man! Can't wait to see what comes next for this project.

[emenelopee]

Thank you all for voting - wasn't aware that I got selected and learned today that I won KotM December 2017 

See you soon for the next steps !

Oh, look at that, I also didn't know I was in the running! With an unfinished board! Also that KotM was a thing! But mostly congrats!

I'll need to ask you about the dial - I was thinking of doing something similar on my board by I have no idea how to wire something like that.

[TonyD]

+1 congrats for winning KotM

Looking forward to seeing some updates

[tenfour]

This is amazing. Things like this make me wish audio software had a unified way of utilizing such knobs. It would kill me to have this beauty and still have to awkwardly tweak effect parameters with a mouse.