(^36) The Official Raspberry Pi Projects Book raspberrypi.org/magpi
att Wagner first thought
about fitting a computer
into an Altoids tin in
2012, shortly after the launch of
the original Raspberry Pi. While it
wasn’t quite possible back then,
the release of the considerably
smaller Pi Zero changed everything,
although not immediately for Matt.
“I was deep into another project,
Projects SHOWCASE
A fully functioning computer and display crammed into a mints tin
PIMINIMINT
M
MATT WAGNER
Matt spends his time developing
new Raspberry Pi projects, for a
more connected world. In the future
he hopes to spread this passion for
a full-time profession.
hackmypi.com
and the low availability of Zeros
made it challenging to find and
use for anything at the time,” he
recalls. “However, I now work in an
environment [Micro Center store]
surrounded with DIY materials,
so the idea just came back to me
one day.”
The result is the PiMiniMint,
containing a Pi Zero connected
to a 2-inch LCD display and –
thanks to a RedBear IoT pHAT –
equipped with WiFi and Bluetooth.
“The original design took a few
weeks, between prototyping
and sourcing parts,” Matt tells
us. “The concept of it is simple:
strap together already available
components. In actuality, though,
sourcing parts was a bit of an issue
The original
version
featured a Pi
NoIR camera
Sugru stops the
charger port
moving around
Hot glue is
added to
secure solder
points
Matt’s new
model will
feature a
phone SIM
Planned
Pi projects
include smart
luggage
tracking
Quick
Facts
The 2-inch screen and
its board are taped to
to the lid of the tin
The battery charging circuit
is connected to the Pi via an
on/off switch
The Pi Zero is soldered to
an IoT pHAT, both lying on
top of the LiPo battery