Eugene Posted April 28, 2012 Share Posted April 28, 2012 I need a small 12v DC fan to use to cool a phone used as a SatNav within the 7. I have the phone mounted on the transmission tunnel in a cradle, but in hot weather it can overheat. So, I want to add a small fan to the cradle... Any ideas? This is an old image but shows the set-up (very old phone, not the present one 😬). http://freespace.virgin.net/shaw.clan/images/powerconnected.jpg and http://freespace.virgin.net/shaw.clan/images/mk2b.jpg The plan is to mount the fan on the back to the cradle... Edited by - eugene on 28 Apr 2012 17:18:12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted April 28, 2012 Member Share Posted April 28, 2012 Try a cooling fan from a PC. As found in all good skips. Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian B Posted April 28, 2012 Share Posted April 28, 2012 Eugene, You could try something like this 50x50mm one. I'm not what voltage tolerance thery have so you might want to fit one of these voltage regulators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LazerBrain Posted April 28, 2012 Share Posted April 28, 2012 What's the cradle made of? Is it a custom one? I'd be tempted to mount a small PC fan (I gave away some ~30mm square fans recently) inside the cradle, perhaps after drilling some holes in it. Another option - how about a Peltier device, where the cold side is backing onto the sat nav, and the hot side to the cradle. Again, if there were holes in the back of the cradle then a fan on the rear could help remove the warmer air. Amazon - Peltier cooler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene Posted April 28, 2012 Author Share Posted April 28, 2012 Yep, home-made cradle. There are holes in the rear of the front 'mount' part, so fitting a fan would be ideal. I have thought of making some kind of 'air scoop' as an alternative... a bit of flexy pipe to the rear of the mount... but where to grab 'cool' air from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc Posted April 28, 2012 Share Posted April 28, 2012 Eugene Send me your address and I will stick a small 12v fan in the post, have a few here from old pc's MarkC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted April 28, 2012 Member Share Posted April 28, 2012 I'd try it without a scoop. If the 'phone is hotter than the air then just stirring the air will cool the 'phone. Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Ford Posted April 29, 2012 Share Posted April 29, 2012 Eugene, You could try something like this 50x50mm one. I'm not what voltage tolerance thery have so you might want to fit one of these voltage regulators. It'll be fine at 14+ volts, and a voltage regulator is overkill. It might be a bit loud - computer fans are often a bit loud at 12v, and running them at 14 is only going to increase that. Adding a small resistor into the circuit is probably a good idea. I generally run computer fans in my cases at 5v for reduced noise, but some struggle to start at that level. About 8v would be a good compromise. The Maplin fan one is rated at 100mA. From V=IR we get its resistance as 120 ohms. So if we want to reduce the voltage across it from 14 to 8 volts we need 120 / (14 / 8 - 1) = 90 ohms resistor. 100 ohms is the nearest available, and we'd need a 2w one (0.1A x 12v = 1.2w) so Maplin code D100R would suit. If you're using a different fan the rating will vary (and the 0.1A might not be very accurate anyway) so a few choices around that mark would be worth testing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S47zzz Posted April 29, 2012 Share Posted April 29, 2012 It might be a bit loud - computer fans are often a bit loud at 12v, and running them at 14 is only going to increase that.You must have a very quiet seven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil B Posted April 29, 2012 Share Posted April 29, 2012 Seems like an awful lot of complication, why not but a road atlas? Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene Posted April 29, 2012 Author Share Posted April 29, 2012 Oooh, I didn't know there was a road atlas that could turn its own pages, speak directions, warn of speed cameras, and make phone calls too 😬 😬 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil B Posted April 30, 2012 Share Posted April 30, 2012 You married the wrong woman clearly Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Jonathan Kay Posted April 30, 2012 Member Share Posted April 30, 2012 *arrowup* Do you two do this professionally? :-) Jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil B Posted April 30, 2012 Share Posted April 30, 2012 That'll be the Zetec factor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eugene Posted April 30, 2012 Author Share Posted April 30, 2012 I had this really bad wine from the near-side for ages... Found it went away when I went out on my own. Wife stays at home now! 😬 😬 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Soper Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 'Bad wine' from the nearside, must have been some thing you passenger brought up!!! Another vote for maps (not that you need a map to get to Lemans) +ve earth and front drum brakes Brian L7 S2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy_h Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Think I've got one of those phones (complete, in box etc). Qtek isn't it? Blatmail me if you want a spare? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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