200 Series Ti key shell

[suprarx7nut]

I also like the plain render, but what's up with the red dot to the top left of the buttons?

Mine has nothing there:

And what would the key release on the side look like?

Finally, I also like the idea of having the "TEQ" Toyota logo on the back.

HTH

@gaijin the newer ones have a light near the lock/unlock buttons... guessing that's what is depicted. however, my light is on the right side of the buttons.

Hmm, OK, interesting. It sounds like there are some variations of these circuit boards with differing locations of the LED and some without it at all. I'll have to dig into that and accommodate each variety. No biggie.

 

[suprarx7nut]

And what would the key release on the side look like?

Finally, I also like the idea of having the "TEQ" Toyota logo on the back.

HTH

The release mechanism is my favorite part, but I'm keeping that behind closed doors until I prove out my concept. If I can get it to work as I plan it should be a great example of elegant simplicity. ORRRR it could just be a bad idea if it doesn't work. Stay tuned!

 

[KLF]

I thought they all had the red light, my '11 version does. @gaijin, you can't tell the light is there until you push one of the buttons, and it's not very bright. Cup it in your hand or go into a dark room, push one of the buttons, it should blink and you can see it.

 

[sleak]

My key (2016) has the light (very small) to the upper right of the large buttons.

 

[gaijin]

I thought they all had the red light, my '11 version does. @gaijin, you can't tell the light is there until you push one of the buttons, and it's not very bright. Cup it in your hand or go into a dark room, push one of the buttons, it should blink and you can see it.

Well ... learn something new every day! You are right, there is indeed a LED light behind the solid plastic in that spot above and to the left of the buttons. And it is, indeed, very faint. Since I never noticed the light before, I'd just as soon live without a hole to "see" it, but either way, I'll live with it.

Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[TonyP]

Weird, why would you need a small light for a keyfob that says in your britches?

 

[suprarx7nut]

Well ... learn something new every day! You are right, there is indeed a LED light behind the solid plastic in that spot above and to the left of the buttons. And it is, indeed, very faint. Since I never noticed the light before, I'd just as soon live without a hole to "see" it, but either way, I'll live with it.

Thanks for pointing that out.

I may be able to incorporate a removeable piece over the LED. Want to cover the LED? Leave it on. Want to expose the LED? Punch it out. I'll have to see how much space there is in that area. I may just need to make multiple versions.

Weird, why would you need a small light for a keyfob that says in your britches?

Diagnostic value, perhaps? If most people don't want it I could just cover it. That's one less dimension I need to get dead on!

 

[gaijin]

I may be able to incorporate a removeable piece over the LED. Want to cover the LED? Leave it on. Want to expose the LED? Punch it out. I'll have to see how much space there is in that area. I may just need to make multiple versions.

Diagnostic value, perhaps? If most people don't want it I could just cover it. That's one less dimension I need to get dead on!

My use case may not be unusual, but who knows? I rarely use the buttons at all - have never used the "Panic" button at the bottom. I just leave the fob in a secure pocket somewhere on me and open the locked truck by touching a door handle or pushing the taigate unlock pad. When securing the truck, I just push one of the door buttons. Under normal circumstances, I never touch the fob at all.

When leaving the car for service at a dealer (very rare occurence), I lock my glove box to limit access to the cabin air filter and give the fob to the service writer without the key. So, an easily removeable, yet securely attached, key retention mechanism is required.

So ... I could easily live without a hole above a light I never use. But now I know the light is there, if there were a hole above it, it would really bug me if that hole were not perfectly aligned.

My vote, therefore, is no hole.

HTH

 

[suprarx7nut]

My use case may not be unusual, but who knows? I rarely use the buttons at all - have never used the "Panic" button at the bottom. I just leave the fob in a secure pocket somewhere on me and open the locked truck by touching a door handle or pushing the taigate unlock pad. When securing the truck, I just push one of the door buttons. Under normal circumstances, I never touch the fob at all.

When leaving the car for service at a dealer (very rare occurence), I lock my glove box to limit access to the cabin air filter and give the fob to the service writer without the key. So, an easily removeable, yet securely attached, key retention mechanism is required.

So ... I could easily live without a hole above a light I never use. But now I know the light is there, if there were a hole above it, it would really bug me if that hole were not perfectly aligned.

My vote, therefore, is no hole.

HTH

Oh trust me, if I include the hole it will be perfect before I launch the product. That said, I am assuming your use case is shared with most people so the LED has severely limited value. I have no heartache over leaving it out of the design entirely.

 

[Battleship]

I’ll buy either, but prefer the plain fob.

I’m thinking if I ever really need to see that the LED is flashing I can just open the case.

 

[Markuson]

I also like the plain render, but what's up with the red dot to the top left of the buttons?

Mine has nothing there:

And what would the key release on the side look like?

Finally, I also like the idea of having the "TEQ" Toyota logo on the back.

HTH

The light is there. It is hidden beneath the plastic though, and very dim.
Go in a dark room, and you'll see it...unless they changed yours vs. my 2008 FOB.

 

[KLF]

The light is there for checking to see if there battery is dead. I actually have a silicone cover on my fob, so I can't see the light anyway. But I would like the option of seeing it to check the battery.

 

[gaijin]

The light is there. It is hidden beneath the plastic though, and very dim.
Go in a dark room, and you'll see it...unless they changed yours vs. my 2008 FOB.

Yes, we already covered that - see @KLF post and my post above.

 

[Markuson]

Yes, we already covered that - see @KLF post and my post above.

Ya ya... I posted before that exchange appeared on me monitor.

Regarding the light... The factory FOB cover is sealed on the shell edge and buttons, but there is no seal where the light is (likely why they left it under the plastic).

So... I wonder if water-sealing would remain if the custom FOB leaves a hole there.
Pretty sure that would not be sealed. Would need a water-tight cover of some kind.

 

[KLF]

Now I wish I hadn't tossed that fob that fried on me, I would sacrifice it for a water resistance test.

But another reason why the red light is there, to see if the fob is transmitting at all. In my case, i tried a fresh battery and still no flashing red light, so I knew the fob was toast.

 

[Markuson]

Now I wish I hadn't tossed that fob that fried on me, I would sacrifice it for a water resistance test.

But another reason why the red light is there, to see if the fob is transmitting at all. In my case, i tried a fresh battery and still no flashing red light, so I knew the fob was toast.

My factory FOB has gone through the washing machine without issue... Maybe you're talking about an after market, but I know the factory FOBs can handle a ton of water.

 

[gaijin]

Ya ya... I posted before that exchange appeared on me monitor.

Regarding the light... The factory FOB cover is sealed on the shell edge and buttons, but there is no seal where the light is (likely why they left it under the plastic).

So... I wonder if water-sealing would remain if the custom FOB leaves a hole there.
Pretty sure that would not be sealed. Would need a water-tight cover of some kind.

That's an excellent point!

 

[suprarx7nut]

Ya ya... I posted before that exchange appeared on me monitor.

Regarding the light... The factory FOB cover is sealed on the shell edge and buttons, but there is no seal where the light is (likely why they left it under the plastic).

So... I wonder if water-sealing would remain if the custom FOB leaves a hole there.
Pretty sure that would not be sealed. Would need a water-tight cover of some kind.

The OEM fob - at least the one I bought for testing - is sealed with a translucent gasket/cover which covers the entire circuit board, including the LED. The LED hole on the front plastic housing is irrelevant to the watertight-ness of the assembly if the main seal functions as intended. The assembly relies on the translucent gasket, the lip on the back half of the fob which the gasket lays, and finally the front case to provide pressure onto the translucent gasket pressing it to the back half where the actual mating surface is located.

I wouldn't call it waterproof, by any means, but it's a neat design that simplifies the assembly so water resistance is maximized with no traditional "sealing surfaces" like you'd find on a water resistant watch. The injection molded plastic is "good enough".

My design will (or at least is planned to) maintain this feature with or without the LED hole. I'll test it out with some water submersion and water test strips to verify!

The OEM design might also "seal" on the LED feature itself, but on mine the plastic molded surface is pretty rough which makes me think they weren't overly concerned with that sealing. The back half sealing surface, on the other hand, looks really nice and smooth.

 

[sleak]

The OEM fob - at least the one I bought for testing - is sealed with a translucent gasket/cover which covers the entire circuit board, including the LED. The LED hole on the front plastic housing is irrelevant to the watertight-ness of the assembly if the main seal functions as intended. The assembly relies on the translucent gasket, the lip on the back half of the fob which the gasket lays, and finally the front case to provide pressure onto the translucent gasket pressing it to the back half where the actual mating surface is located.

I wouldn't call it waterproof, by any means, but it's a neat design that simplifies the assembly so water resistance is maximized with no traditional "sealing surfaces" like you'd find on a water resistant watch. The injection molded plastic is "good enough".

My design will (or at least is planned to) maintain this feature with or without the LED hole. I'll test it out with some water submersion and water test strips to verify!

The OEM design might also "seal" on the LED feature itself, but on mine the plastic molded surface is pretty rough which makes me think they weren't overly concerned with that sealing. The back half sealing surface, on the other hand, looks really nice and smooth.

If you're doing possible punch-outs for the light, it may be easier to put one on the left (as in the rendering) and one on the right (for '16s). I don't know where the light is on other model years.

 

[Roy Park]

Just for clarity, is this just a cover for the fob or will we take the innards from our fob and put them into this?