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Comment by oxplot | Hacker News Reader

I wanted to have everything that could use DC power up to 100watt to use USB PD since half a decade ago but adaption has been super slow so I made fpx [1] and sold it in high quantities to essentially subsidize the cost for my own use.

I now have roughly 30 devices that have been converted to use USB-C chargers. I can power them all with a single high quality adapter. I can also power them with power banks, or my car! It’s heaven. Having a few adapters means, I always have spares if one of them breaks.

To date, I have converted everything from Ryobi battery chargers, shavers, Vinyl cutters and hair straighteners to vacuum cleaner, label printer, old laptops, standing desks, vacuum sealers and work lights.

[1]: https://fpx.oxplot.com

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This is such a cool project, it's almost indecent.

I think it would be a force multiplier to also showcase the "ecosystem" (e.g. 3D printed adapters, mounting points, suitable DCDCs for specific applications, etc).

Even just "caveat implementor" links would show the possibilities and help people (like me) go from "that's cool but I'll struggle to trivially make it relevant to my devices" to "huh, all I need is to use something like this STL and use a scrap of strip board like this and mount it here with that DCDC, huh".

Good idea! I’ll try to do a video.

To be honest (and I guess kids these days would call me "cheugy" for it!), personally, I don't generally like videos if a some static content would do.

This is incredibly cool information.

I’ve dreamed of this for quite some time (though not as long as you). Do you have info about how you converted the shavers, chargers, etc?

I would like to know more (and subscribe to your newsletter).

Usually, devices have empty space inside that can be used to fit the fpx board. I then drill some holes to expose the port, mount the board inside with bolts and nuts and wire things up. Sometimes I need to 3D print an enclosure, sometimes I just shrink wrap it inline with the power cord for simplicity.

See my sibling comments for when fpx board alone isn't enough.

Would you and Bunnie Huang please teach a Master Class together? I have no idea what that would look like but it would be wonderful. I'd pay 200-400 for 4-8hrs of content.

I have had good results replacing the rectangular thinkpad charging port with USBC configured for 20V delivery. The boards are so small they fit within the footprint of the port, and sugru works well to hold things in place and provide a nice rubber finish. The last piece is using a third party usbc magnetic connector.

This is the coolest project/product I've seen lately. Great idea to program the module via the website (+works offline!).

For less ambitious hobbyist projects, there are USB type C decoy modules on Aliexpress for around $1 USD each, in 9V, 12V, 15V and 20V versions. Not programmable, but should do the work.

How do you attach it / keep it attached on a device?

It requires drilling holes and mounting it with bolts/nuts or screws.

Sometimes I have to add extra dc-dc converter to get the right voltage or a constant current converter for lithium-io battery chargers.

Could you expand on DC to DC adapters? Are you using these just in cases where the voltage needed is not available with the usb-c powerblock or otherwise out of range of usb-c options?

Ye, say you need 18V instead of 20V. A step down does the trick there. In other cases such as Li-ion chargers, they expect a constant current supply which fpx board doesn't do. So a DC-DC module with max. current adjustment needs to be added in-between to accommodate.

In short, it does take some understanding of how the device you're modding works and what power draw characteristics it has, before converting it to use USB-C power.

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