Another DIY GPS logger approach

My Ali Express QI charge board used in previous setups could not be ordered anymore, so I had to look for an other one.
I found this little setup which fits under the battery with 2mm height.
nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005006387536716.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.26.564b79d2KWHWm1&gatewayAdapt=glo2nld
I use the 25mm circular one.
It even has a 1S charge function onboard just like the Lilygo's. Just in case your board onboard TP charger is broken.
It also has a 5 Volt output to go to the Lilygo.

Paco

Thank again Jan
Im designing a case for the T board with a 1800 batt, so did all the reading but I wonder if there is a reason why you guys always use a clear cover on top, can the screen just be poured over and leave a protective resin layer of about 2mm? does it crack or something or is it just for a better look..?
Also saw Flex using the small cristal reed switch. I have them but also bought the plastic ones (4x18mm) bit bigger, but by the comments I thought they were more robust. I see the cristal are very fragile but if they work fine over time may be better, do they have any issue?
thanks & regards, Salvador

The first picture shows "Connected", so some device (your phone ?) was connected to the ESP32AP. Then you can set the configuration, and set your SSID. OTA is not possible in ap-mode. Remember, a phone will not accept IP adresses, you have to switch off "mobile data".

I have my unit working, but I need some help. For some reason the tboard is not saving any track, they should appear in the files page, right? Also can't change the top values of the screen with the short touch. im running tha last bin

Also working on a compact box. I will share when I have the chance to check is ok. It is configured with the Be-182 and a 1800 batt, the total size is about80x31x25.

I did everything, but the problem was that the partitions file was missing in its place. I struggled a lot to find the solution, bricking it several times and eventually reaching the point of having almost no memory-a total mess.
If anybody gets in trouble, it's good to know there is a resource in Github from Lilygo that you can use to reset the board to factory settings. I did, and it works fine.
After that, I reinstalled carefully, and it's working perfectly now.
About the top values they are indeed small, but I was more pointing to the fact that the stats screen is a bit poor, would be great to have a second one with 100m/250m/500m/top . I mean while sailing having the speed in big is enough, but once you stop at the shore or after a run is very useful to check the scores to adjust gear or just see how its going.
In Spain/France we use a lot those fixed distances more than speed over time (10 sec and so on). Just a suggestion for the future, to toggle to other screens to see some scores other than 2sec and alfa.
Thanks for the help

Warning....Wireless charging!!!

When in our case a esp-gps is fully assembled we use only a 5watt charger (5v 1amp) like the (old) orginal iPhone chargers. This way the produced heat is limited. As i test the hardware before assembling, i recently used a 20watt apple charger (usb-c). should be no problem because the wireless charger and reciever is not in a housing so the heat can go away.

So much for the theory, in practise the wireless reciever burnsout on the end of the charging. First one was a 213BN (no chip with leds) usb-c charger reciever.

nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005007575135816.html?algo_pvid=808d6cd3-07e1-4c27-8e78-7c377e0df0d0&algo_exp_id=808d6cd3-07e1-4c27-8e78-7c377e0df0d0-0&pdp_npi=4%40dis%21EUR%212.67%210.93%21%21%212.84%210.99%21%40211b61b017307372244928798eeccb%2112000041356309321%21sea%21NL%210%21ABX&curPageLogUid=14flE7Jz4aEs&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A

At first I thought it was an exemplary error, so i charged a B74 with the micro-usb reciever. Hmm same result. Burnsout at the end of the charging.
The 20 watt apple charges has 9volt 2.22 amp or 5volt, 3amp.

fortunately the 2 esp's are not broken, only the 2 usb (C and micro A) wireless recievers are broken, (can be replaced because they were not assembled). But ones assembled with epoxy it cant be replaced.

I received a new product from China.
It is the high tack acrylic tape I already use but then in a rectangle form which is larger as the top surface of my cases.
nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005006606995914.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.103d79d2Dmu6ZL&gatewayAdapt=glo2nld
With this acrylic tape patch you are 100% sure there are no edges that could fail.
Although it works fine sofar with the 10mm width in 4 pieces. See the manual.
Stick it on the flat case top and cutout what is not needed.
Add the transparant top plate and cut the tplplate to size and your done.

For those who are not pouring the cases with epoxy.............
For testing I put my designs first in a fresh water rain tank.
That is without electronics and front plate downwards. So it will float.
If they stay float for two days I am sure the sealing design is working for regular water resistant use in fresh water. Waterproof is a not needed in this case as the unit will not be submerged deep or long. I have no idea how it will behave in salt water!!!!!!
I forgot that one of my desings was already for 2 weeks in the tank. Still no water inside.

Other tip is to add some rice grains into the cases when closed up.
The rice grains will absorb any moisture like condensation overtime.

Happy building and thinkering.

Paco

How can I tell which 2.13 inch chip I actually have? I had ordered a couple of B74 chips (GDEM0213B74, www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09GY2Z75P/). Trusting that I got what I ordered, I went ahead and installed B74 firmware on them, without first checking the screen. But when trying the GPS out on the water the first time today, it seemed to be stuck on the "GPS Initializing" screen. After some more tests, it seems that the screen does not update with B74 firmware, but it does update without problems with the BN213 firmware.

Thanks. That helped, I got BN213, and Lilygo gets a bad review for a misleading description. I thought that would be the case since the documentation about the B74 on the Lilygo site shows it uses a different communication chip. Of course, the BN213 firmware working better is also a clear indication, but that's a bit tricky since some of the screen updates do work, so it's not obvious right away.