Week 26 of 2024 was overall quite an eventful week.
Projects
Software
Software development has been minimal.
The Website
I have rewrote a significant part of the backend code of the website late in the week.
I have finally implemented the redirect middleware for Actix Web. The middleware checks if the requested URL has a trailing slash, if it does not, it redirects to a URL with the trailing slash then the middleware checks if a redirect for the URL is defined and redirects if so.
Pixel Fonts
This week, I have only done edits to the Pixel series fonts when needed.
Hardware
MediaCow Touch 1
On June 27, 2024, I have took apart MediaCow Touch 1 and removed some parts I did not need anymore. First, I carefully removed the lithium-polymer battery then desoldered the wires from the button panel to the Teensy LC in order to remove the Teensy as it would no longer be required. After that, I took off the aluminum bezel and cut some of the rubber padding that stuck out in front of the display edges and cleaned the display. I soldered two wires going from the pins on the power button to the middle button on the button panel, there was no way to reroute the power button to a GPIO pin as the power button connected directly to the PWRON pin on the AXP803 PMIC.
I am going to turn MediaCow Touch 1 into something sort of like a desktop media player or digital photo frame. This would allow the device to continue to be useful.
I may or may not switch the Android 7.0 operating system for a desktop Linux distribution. If performance continues to be poor with Android, I would consider building a Linux image for the device.
At the beginning of the next week, I have turned a micro USB cable into a power cable with jumper connectors to connect directly to the 5V and GND pins on the Banana Pi M64. This same method was used in November 2020 to flash Android onto the board. I cannot seem to find a USB power supply that can supply enough current to run the board and display. I do not have any 5V power supply that has the right barrel connector to plug into the 5VDC input on the board so supplying power via the GPIO is required unless I get a power supply from Banana Pi.
MediaCow Touch 2
On June 28, 2024, I received an email from DHL about a shipment that I presume is the development kit for the LattePanda Mu.
Challenges
The main things that has held me up this week in development are the battery and the display.
Display
As of June 30, 2024, mechanical drawings for the DFRobot/LattePanda 11.6" eDP display do not include the measurement of the distance between the connectors and the horizontal edge of the display. This measurement is crucial for designing the case. The case must be designed before the PCB as the case defines the size of the PCB.
On June 30, 2024, I ordered the 11.6" eDP touchscreen display and two different types of heatsink for the LattePanda Mu. This was done so I would have the LCD to measure by hand while being able to demonstrate using the display with the Mu. The order was US$~155 so I am making a commitment to the project.
It is most likely that the LCD panel itself is from BOE which from my experience, BOE IPS technology has caused me eye strain with prolonged use while Samsung and Innolux panels have not.
Battery
Currently, the requirement for the battery pack is that it has a 4S configuration (four cells in series). Finding a battery charger IC was simple however finding a fuel gauge IC has not. It seems that many laptops use battery packs with the fuel gauge built-in.
So far, it has been difficult to find a 4S battery pack that has the fuel gauge IC and protection circuitry that are not made for a specific, existing laptop or for RC vehicles.
Personal
I have done well this week in personal development.
Starting June 25, 2024, the break from Instagram has ended so I dug out the iPhone XR that I use for social media. I was able to install Discord on the phone too so I do not have to use it on my main phone.
The iPhone has so far played a critical role in the development of MediaCow Touch 2 by being used for online research and communication.