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In 2020 I set out to build something very similar[0]. This was before I even knew NYCTrainSign existed. I started with zero electronics knowledge and learned a

by dom96 4y ago

In 2020 I set out to build something very similar[0]. This was before I even knew NYCTrainSign existed. I started with zero electronics knowledge and learned a lot. My prototype has been running solidly for way over a year and while I've always hoped I would be able to turn it into an actual product I could sell... doing so proved challenging. Really what blocked me the most was CE/FCC conformance. I have done a lot of research into it and I couldn't figure out a way to get it without a massive investment upfront ($10k+). If anyone has experience in that area I would love to talk, my contact info is in my profile. Who knows, maybe I will get it to a point where it can be sold eventually. I'll certainly write up about my learnings from the project at the very least. 0 - https://twitter.com/d0m96/status/1427055272980328460 https://twitter.com/d0m96/status/1427055272980328460

jareklupinski 4y ago
https://www.instagram.com/p/BVAIWfGBARk/ https://www.instagram.com/p/BVAIWfGBARk/ my problem was squeezing the MTA API parser into the ESP32 flash... as long as you use off-the-shelf / already conforming modules, like the esp wroom etc, the cost for FCC compliance testing goes down into the thousands. it's still a line item, but over a run of 1000-2000 units, it turns into something that costs about a buck per board :)
- dom96 4y ago
  > my problem was squeezing the MTA API parser into the ESP32 flash... Ahh, I wouldn't do that. The way I've done it is by pushing as much of the API handling logic off the ESP32 and onto a standalone server. The ESP32 is effectively a dumb client which takes in instructions like "WRITE westminster 5 min" from the server and draws the appropriate text/pixels/etc. > as long as you use off-the-shelf / already conforming modules, like the esp wroom etc, the cost for FCC compliance testing goes down into the thousands. it's still a line item, but over a run of 1000-2000 units, it turns into something that costs about a buck per board :) yeah... it's $1 per board unless none of your boards sell :)
  - jareklupinski 4y ago
    that's fair ;) when kickstarter was first taking off, I loved using it to springboard only the projects that would at least break even: if there wasn't enough demand, nothing happens, but as long as the minimum is high enough to cover all the costs, it worked out pretty well
    - elcritch 4y ago
      Crowdsupply is great for those things now. They're much better at helping get hardware projects off the ground, and they can handle S&H too.
- elcritch 4y ago
  Yah using the pre-canned esp32's make the cert process a lot easier. @dom96 thats cool! Ping me on the Nim discord sometime if you want. I've not done FCC but did do some hardware certification stuff. For low volume products there possible ways around full FCC certs I believe. IIRC, you can sell things as "kits". I wonder if theres also exemptions for "prototype builds" too.
deleted 4y ago
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by dom96 4y ago

jareklupinski 4y ago

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVAIWfGBARk/ https://www.instagram.com/p/BVAIWfGBARk/ my problem was squeezing the MTA API parser into the ESP32 flash... as long as you use off-the-shelf / already conforming modules, like the esp wroom etc, the cost for FCC compliance testing goes down into the thousands. it's still a line item, but over a run of 1000-2000 units, it turns into something that costs about a buck per board :)

dom96 4y ago
> my problem was squeezing the MTA API parser into the ESP32 flash... Ahh, I wouldn't do that. The way I've done it is by pushing as much of the API handling logic off the ESP32 and onto a standalone server. The ESP32 is effectively a dumb client which takes in instructions like "WRITE westminster 5 min" from the server and draws the appropriate text/pixels/etc. > as long as you use off-the-shelf / already conforming modules, like the esp wroom etc, the cost for FCC compliance testing goes down into the thousands. it's still a line item, but over a run of 1000-2000 units, it turns into something that costs about a buck per board :) yeah... it's $1 per board unless none of your boards sell :)
- jareklupinski 4y ago
  that's fair ;) when kickstarter was first taking off, I loved using it to springboard only the projects that would at least break even: if there wasn't enough demand, nothing happens, but as long as the minimum is high enough to cover all the costs, it worked out pretty well
  - elcritch 4y ago
    Crowdsupply is great for those things now. They're much better at helping get hardware projects off the ground, and they can handle S&H too.
elcritch 4y ago
Yah using the pre-canned esp32's make the cert process a lot easier. @dom96 thats cool! Ping me on the Nim discord sometime if you want. I've not done FCC but did do some hardware certification stuff. For low volume products there possible ways around full FCC certs I believe. IIRC, you can sell things as "kits". I wonder if theres also exemptions for "prototype builds" too.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]