As many of you would have also encountered, the power supplies and/or cables for a lot of dashcams are too short. As an example, the Mini 0803 has a 3m power cable which is fine if your 12V socket is in the dash, but many cars these days have the 12V socket in the console between the front seats.
The full writeup with photos is available as a 6 page PDF, which is attached. Prices mentioned in there are Australian Dollars.
Overview
The build is based around the Hobbywing 3A UBEC, details of which can be found at http://www.hobbywing.com/product_show.asp?id=209. The hobbywing UBEC is a low interference device, small and light, and primarily aimed at remote control aircraft.
Parts
The parts used were all purchased from eBay, with the parts coming around the AUD$30 mark (when purchased circa Dec 2014/Jan 2015). This is comparable to many of the commercial, plastic-case equivalents available. I'd tried one of these, but it created a lot of FM radio interference. Parts were:
I’ve been using this for several weeks, with no problems. The unit runs only slightly warm, there is no FM interference I've noticed at all, and it supplies enough power to charge my Samsung S3 & iPod Touch. No other suppression has been needed.
Extra 'Feature'
I also wired an additional 12V socket, from which I'm running a cheap and cheerful FM transmitter (http://www.jaycar.com.au/Sight-&-So...r-with-MP3-Player-and-remote-control/p/AR3136) – I can plug the iPod into this (or just plug a USB key into it but can only navigate by track / folder with no ID3 tag access). Don't believe the packaging – it says max 4GB USB, but I've been using it with a 16GB.
Alternatively, I could plug the Mini 0803 power lead into this. I may still purchase a second socket so I can do this. That was also part of the reason for going with the terminal block on the 12V side – to make it easy to do this.
Recommended Changes
I’d look to change is to reduce the number of cable glands by feeding as many cables through as possible. Ideally I’d put all the USB plug cables through 1 gland.
The full writeup with photos is available as a 6 page PDF, which is attached. Prices mentioned in there are Australian Dollars.
Overview
The build is based around the Hobbywing 3A UBEC, details of which can be found at http://www.hobbywing.com/product_show.asp?id=209. The hobbywing UBEC is a low interference device, small and light, and primarily aimed at remote control aircraft.
Parts
The parts used were all purchased from eBay, with the parts coming around the AUD$30 mark (when purchased circa Dec 2014/Jan 2015). This is comparable to many of the commercial, plastic-case equivalents available. I'd tried one of these, but it created a lot of FM radio interference. Parts were:
- 12V plug
- Hobbywing 3A Switch Mode UBEC
- USB type A female socket
- Diecast Enclosure
- Cable Glands
- Drill holes in the enclosure to fit the cable glands – start small & progressively drill out to size. Use the glands to guide spacing and placement. Fit the glands.
- Ensure the UBECs are set to 5V output – This is done via the little blue ‘plug’, just make sure it's not on 6V.
- Select your wiring connection method – Terminal blocks or soldering. There are pros and cons for each, see the PDF for details. I went with terminal block on the 12V side, and solder on the 5V side.
- Connecting the 12V Wiring – Don't forget to feed it through the cable gland & nut before connecting.
- Connecting the 5V Wiring – For USB power, we only need the +5V and ground wires. These are pins 1 and 4. Refer http://pinouts.ru/Slots/usb_pinout.shtml for more details. Again, make sure you feed the wires through everything (gland, nut, heat shrink, etc) before soldering.
- Testing – Plug the unit into a 12V power supply, and use a multimeter to test the voltage, amps, and polarity. The readings for mine was approx. 5.2V, 2.4A.
- Closing Up – Tighten the cable gland lock nuts, a bit of fiddling to arrange the UBECs and wires in the enclosure, and screw the lid on.
I’ve been using this for several weeks, with no problems. The unit runs only slightly warm, there is no FM interference I've noticed at all, and it supplies enough power to charge my Samsung S3 & iPod Touch. No other suppression has been needed.
Extra 'Feature'
I also wired an additional 12V socket, from which I'm running a cheap and cheerful FM transmitter (http://www.jaycar.com.au/Sight-&-So...r-with-MP3-Player-and-remote-control/p/AR3136) – I can plug the iPod into this (or just plug a USB key into it but can only navigate by track / folder with no ID3 tag access). Don't believe the packaging – it says max 4GB USB, but I've been using it with a 16GB.
Alternatively, I could plug the Mini 0803 power lead into this. I may still purchase a second socket so I can do this. That was also part of the reason for going with the terminal block on the 12V side – to make it easy to do this.
Recommended Changes
I’d look to change is to reduce the number of cable glands by feeding as many cables through as possible. Ideally I’d put all the USB plug cables through 1 gland.
Last edited: