Geek Project Help
I recently received an email from a distressed mom asking for help on one of her son’s school projects. I was planning to look into it tonite after I got home but thought, “Why not open this up to the internets in the meantime?”. If anyone out there has any easy tips for the project be sure to post them here to give her a hand.
“I have this problem. My son has a project that is due this next Monday. He needs to make a “lost keyfinder” using the parts of a cordless phone. We bought a cordless phone, took it apart, studied it for many, many hours, and when we thought we had it all figured out we cut the “beeper” component from the circuit board, and it failed to work. Why did we try to remove thebeeper from the circuit board? Well this lost key finder needs to be modified to fit on to a key chain. The base of the phone doesn’t need any modification, it’s still going to be the transmitter. Any idea’s how to get something like this to work?”
The email goes on to say the son is in sixth grade! That sounds like a daunting task for any middle schooler and down right terrifying to any mom 
She has also replied back saying that she has purchased a wireless doorbell unit. Any thoughts on the implementation of this versus the cordless phone?
You have to include the antenna of the phone, and you probably need the main processor of the phone to make it work.
Wow sounds like your son has a huge task in front of him.. What class is this again? Anyways did a little searching around and found 2 links to senior design projects (on a college level) and here are the links. One is a word doc and the other is power point presentation.
word doc
power point
The scope of this project is out of my league, I am not very good with circuts and what not. But good luck!
you could always just buy and original and put it in a homemade case. This project seems very difficult
http://search.ebay.com/key-locator_W0QQfkrZ1QQfnuZ1QQfromZR8
Well if its a cordless phone there is a “find handset” feature on it. Well, there usually is anyway. I say just rip the base apart and take out the part for the “find handset” and the same for the handset and just throw them into their individual little packages. Your probably going to have to do some circuit work inbetween the last two steps though.
Hit up the phones manufacture’s site or google for the schematic of the phone and base. You can throw that into the presentation too. Have fun!
I’d imagine it’d be much easier to hijack the wireless doorbell system (depending upon how big the circuit is of sounding the doorbell). Unfortunatly this follow the opposite form factor set. Small transmitter/Large reciever and noisemaker. You can prob hijack the sound signal to a small speaker/buzzer. The only problem then would be making a portable power supply. Very difficult project for such a young age though.
This is easy.
Drill a hole in the handset (Put the hole anywhere you like), and another hole in the base unit.
Loop the phone cable (the one that plugs into the wall) through both holes and tie it firmly.
Most cordless phones use an AC adaptor for power. If yours came with this, then tie this to the phone cable as well.
Finally, take a ring that is used for an ordinary keyring and attach it to the cable, then attach your keys.
Now, whenever you need to find your keys, look around for the cordless phone and base, tied together in an easy-to-find bundle. If you’ve tied it all correctly, you’ll have lots of nice loose wires that will be easy to spot, in case the keys fall down between the cushions on your sofa, or anywhere else.
HTH
:)