With the basic outer form decided on I now need to work out where a few of the main components are going to fit. Firstly I need to deal with user interchangeable components, which include a memory card and rechargeable battery. By looking at the existing model it was clear that there wasn't going to be enough space to fit a full size SD card, so I decided instead to use micro SD cards more commonly found in phones or cameras such as the GoPro. This would slot into the centre of the body from the top. The remaining space in the centre would be filled with a removable battery, slotted in from the bottom. The shell of the product slides open to reveal the slots. To get a quick idea of how it would work, I built a quick 2D cad DXF and sent it to the laser cutter to construct a basic model:
Below you can see images of how the model works. One half of the outer shell slides open to reveal slots for both the battery and SD card.
The model confirmed that the sliding shell idea was a good way of providing quick easy access to the slots without breaking the aesthetics of the camera. However, it was clear that the battery size was too small and that the current layout doesn't utlilise the space very well. When playing with the model, I noticed the microSD card was small enough width-wise to fit flat on the top of the camera. As you can see in the sketches below, the final solution will involve the SD card sliding in flat, like SIM cards slide into some phones, leaving much more space for a bigger battery.
I also noticed that if the shell was made to open slightly wider, there would be enough space to fit 2 AA battery cells into the body. The height and width of the batteries are perfect for the potential internal space in the camera. Also, as you can see below, with the SD card sliding into the body flat, there is a perfect sized gap to fit a small circuit board between the base of the cells and the SD card. This means that the SD card interface and the power input can be placed on the same breakout board, and can be ribboned to the main circuitry under the lens.
