I am making a way cool component in the dash. Basically it will be an electrically operated door that covers the radio door to prevent theft. The logic is: when the radio is on, the door will open and stay open. When the radio is off the door will close and stay closed.
I have also gathered the components:
1 Solenoid: to lock the door
1 300rpm reversible motor: to move the rack and pinion back and forth
1 rack and corresponding spur gear: this is the core component here, converts rotational motion to linear motion, a rack is like an unrolled gear
2 micro roller switches: for shutting off the circuit
3 SPDT relays: for motor directional changes and ignition switching
1 SPDT relay: for solenoid that locks door
2 Drawer sliders: for the door to slide on
1 Fuse block: for when my crappy wiring shorts out so the jeep doesn't burn down
4 colors of auto wire: for making nests
Tons of connectors and wiring harness connectors.
I drew up a schematic of the electronics required to do this:
Here are some of the goodies:
Micro roller switches. These shut down the circuit when the door has traversed its extents. The circuit will then wait for an interrupt from the opposite signal.
These are the ball bearing sliders the door will operate on.
Here is a prototype of the motor/switching circuit.
