Designing the 3D Printed Battery from Charge

After we premiered Charge I had this nagging urge. I desperately wanted to have a physical copy of that amazing battery prop that Andy Goralczyk designed for the film. Well, how about I just make it myself?

But there's a problem. I don't have any experience with product design nor electronics and I've only ever 3D printed a couple of simple things.

This is where ignorance and tenacity come in handy. I had no idea how much effort it would end up taking and I was stubborn enough to keep going until I got what I wanted. For a better part of a year I tinkered with this design on and off in my free time.

Here I've put together a video that explains the project goals, the materials I used and the steps I took to assemble it:

This thing is made out of 3d printed PLA parts, blue acrylic rods, acrylic sheets, a bunch of electronics, blood, sweat and tears.

The design went through many iterations and there were a lot of dead-end experiments. Overall I'm happy with what I came up with, especially given the goals that I set out with.

Here are my design files:

Blender File · 11.9 MB · CC-BY battery_design_file-01.blend

Download File

Blender File · 49.5 KB · CC-BY display.pdf

Download File

Warning: If you are considering making your own version using electronics, please follow all the necessary precautions and stay safe. Electronics can be very dangerous.

In hindsight, I would honestly allow myself to use a longer lasting battery that could be charged with a cable and then design a discreet socket in the back for the cable.

Hope this inspires you to make fun stuff!