Case Assembly
We designed a case for TinkerRTK that works with any combination of TinkerNav and accessory boards and uses our 3.2 inch TFT LCD screen with touchscreen attached to a PCB board and including a flat ribbon connector to connect to the TinkerNav base board. The files are available to print yourself or use a service like JLC to have the designs printed for you for less than $20. The prints pictures are from JLC’s using their SLA black resin.
To build a case you need:
- TinkerNav base board of your choice (PX1125R or PX1122R)
- Optionally you can add either the TinkerSend – LoRa or the TinkerSend – Mobile radio
- TinkerCharge to connect and charge the battery
- TinkerRTK touch screen
- TinkerRTK case 3D printed
- 2 SMA to U.FL connectors (come with TinkerNav and TinkerSend)
- 2 cell 3.7 volt 18650 type lithium ion battery with JST type connector
- 8.5 X 13.5 mm rocker switch (such as these)
- Optional 7 mm silicon stopper (such as these)
Ensure all power is disconnected from the TinkerNav board. Connect the flexible cable (which connects TinkerNav to the touch screen assembly) prior to mounting the TinkerNav board. The exposed leads should be facing down towards the board.
The TinkerNav board mounts using a single screw. You can then plug in the TinkerCharge board and a radio, if you chose to use a radio other than the ESP32-C3 on TinkerNav. Ensure that the arrows on the plugin boards align to the arrows on TinkerNav.
Install the rocker switch by pushing it firmly into the case.
Cut the red positive wire from the battery and strip both ends of the wire at the cut. Solder the stripped wires to the rocker switch leads.
Mount the SMA to U.FL adapters to the GNSS and, optionally, the radio ports (labeled on the case) and connect to their locations on the boards.
Mount the touchscreen with PCB to the top of the case. Check that the full screen is visible from the front, if a portion of the screen is missing rotate the screen 180 degrees.
Finally, connect the flexible cable to the touch screen and connect the battery connector to the li-ion connector on the TinkerCharge board (not the solar connector).
Power on the display and boards using the rocker switch.
Software examples for using the display board with TinkerNav are at our <GitHub>.
Touch Screen
The touch screen assembly includes a 3.2 inch TFT screen with touch sensor that is mounted to a PCB board that includes required components and flexible cable connector. The schematic for the circuit board is below.
