D.E.A.G.L.E. is a compact and innovative device designed to provide real-time access to a database of information about Star Wars starships. Using an ESP32 microcontroller and a custom-designed PCB board, it connects to the Star Wars API (SWAPI) and displays detailed specifications of various starships on its high-resolution OLED screen. Users can easily navigate through the data using side-mounted push buttons, and the device automatically enters sleep mode after 20 seconds of inactivity to conserve power. With a thematically designed 3D-printed casing created in Fusion 360, it offers durability, protection, and aesthetic appeal. The device is mounted to a users shirt using embedded magnets on the casing and backing plate. D.E.A.G.L.E. provides an engaging and fun experience, inviting users to explore the Star Wars universe one starship at a time.

Below are some final shots of the D.E.A.G.LE from different angles to highlight individual design aspects.

I began by creating custom printed circuit board (PCB) using EasyEDA by creating a parts sheet with each component arranged with the respective components for each subassembly. Once this was completed, I created the board outline and began placing components in the correct places before connecting each on with traces. A copper pad was created for both the GND and VCC seperately.

Once the board was delivered, the solder screen was used to apply solder paste to the contact pads before placing each electronic component in its respective location on the PCB. The shoulder buttons, battery, and OLED screen had to be hand soldered. The hardware needed to be modified since the button for BOOT was stuck in an always booting mode, but this was easily fixed by cutting the trace and soldering a small wire as the new connection between the ESP32 and the push button.

Once the board was completed and test code was uploaded to ensure that it worked as intended, I began designing the case in Fusion360. The PCB outline was used to create a 2D sketch that was extruded as a digital copy for easily designing a case to fit around it. The enclosure was designed to aesthetically mimic other Star Wars universe devices and was directly influenced by design choices for wrist mounted com devices.

Once the files were finished, they were uploaded as .stl files and sent to a 3D printer for fabrication. The magnets were added right before the printer covered up the cavities designed to hold them by using custom Gcode commands to pause the printer. The printer then continued to encase the magnets inside the back plate and the main case bottom.

The final assembly consisted of securing the PCB to the enclosure using four M3*10 screws mounting it to the bottom of the case while the top friction fit onto the top with a snap signaling it is properly secured. Below are some renders of the 3D model.

The final portion of this project was writing code in the Arduino IDE to allow the ESP32 to reach out to SWAPI (the Star Wars API) and grab information about starships that could be displayed on the included OLED. The code went through many renditions and took the most amount of time for this project. The final code was uploaded to a GitHub repository alongside a listing of the product on Tindie.com. Both are linked below under the Embedded Media tab.

Here is the 3D model designed in Fusion 360 for D.E.A.G.L.E. and the custom PCB design housing the various electronics. 

Here are some GIFs of the project start screen, entering rest mode, and displaying navigation functionalities of the starship data.