Meshtastic Heltec Tracker LoRa Board - Enclosure with 18650 Battery Support

Printed on a Bambu P1S with Standard or Optimal print profile. I have only tried PLA for this build so far. Please note that the tolerances are pretty tight to ensure a good fitment.

Flash the Meshtastic Firmware to your board, install the case and your choice of 18650 and enjoy!

Parts Required

• 1 X Heltec Tracker (915MHz for USA and Canada)
• 1 X Switch (Optional, but there is a cutout for it)
• 1 X 18650 Battery Holder
• 8 X M1.7*6 Screws (I just had these laying around, others may fit)
• Wire (You can use what comes with the Tracker and Battery Holder)
• Soldering Iron/Solder/Flux
• Hot Glue (I added a drop to the four corners of the board, the switch, and the battery holder)

Wiring

The wiring is pretty simple, just connect one of the battery leads to the switch, then the corresponding lead to the connector that comes with the board. (I recommend the ground wire, see below)

I included the switch so I can be sure the board doesn't draw the battery down when not in use, but there is a software shutdown option with the Meshtastic Firmware if you choose not to add the switch.

Please ensure you don't short your positive lead of your battery to the antenna connector as that is grounded through the board. That could create a dangerous situation for your battery and would likely destroy all your hardware.

Known Issues - To be addressed in a future revision

• Push buttons are inconsistent

The push button placement on the Heltec boards does not seem consistent from build to build as one of my boards works perfectly with this design and the other is a challenge to push them. I will be changing the design of the push buttons in a future revision as they aren't ideal.

• Coil antenna location is inconsistent

The coil antenna on the front of my two samples varies by several millimeters. I have made a slot that works well for my two boards but with such a small sample size I am unsure if other boards could have fitment issues. I can open up the slot if anyone has issues.

• Text for Dual Filament Setups

You'll notice that there is text on each component. I found my printer botched the text at this size so I wouldn't recommend trying to paint it another colour unless you're feeling ambitious. I made a 0.01mm depth emboss so if you slice normally and don't change the colour, your printer should just ignore the text.

I'd love to hear any criticism or suggestions for improvement. I will likely post a revision to address the known issues in a few months when I have some spare time.

If you would like this model to use commercially, please reach out for details. I'm also willing to create new designs for commercial applications if desired.

Thank you!