"Besides, you can't keep a good scientist down!"
-- Dr. Emmett L. Brown

One of the next planned projects I'm considering is essentially a computer inside a payphone. The name "Phone Clone" describes exactly what the finished project will be: a perfectly functioning telephone, and an IBM PC-clone computer. As with any project, the first step is to define the project requirements. They are:

• The computer portion will be encased entirely within a payphone case, with a minimum number of external visible modifications done to the payphone chassis.
• The completed project will still maintain the full functionality of a telephone (though not necessarily a payphone) and a personal computer.
• The computer shall interface with the payphone handset and keypad. An LCD screen will be installed to interface with the use of the device.
• The completed project must operate as silently as possible.
• Connection to the computer's innards, such as video, mouse, keyboard, etc. will be achieved through a small yet high density connector in an inconspicous location on the device. This high-density connector will then break out to the appropriate mouse, keyboard, USB, VGA, and whatever else connectors are appropriate so as to minimize the appearance of the device as a PC.

As soon as I fix this problem with my digital camera drivers I will post pictures of the payphone I already have sitting in the shop.

this i have got to see, sounds like a very ambicious mod, i have a payphone sitting out in my garage, i know how tight fitting they are.....im thinkin from looking at mine, your definetly gonna have to ditch the coin box on the inside? or are you gonna convert the coinbox into a drive bay for something?i think the coin box on mine looks like it could hold two 5 1/4's maybe, or it definately could hold two HD's........there isnt really much to the phone portion....unless its an older one, ive seen inside a phone made in about 1980, there wiring in them is a tangle of spiderwebed wires running everywhere

good luck wixx, may the force be with you on this one......you need anything special let me know, my brother in law works for pacific bell, and i can see what he can get his hands on

mod pay phone to be a regular phone....

i can't wait to see it. sounds like it will be a hell of a mod.

Wixx you are amazing...the world would be so much more interesting if more people had your creativity and enthusiasm.
I mean the caffine machine just blew everyone away.
this one sounds like fun as well
well main thing is have fun
word up!

I remember Wixx posting this idea a long time ago. Sounds amazing! Looking forward to it!

a solution to some of the storage issues could be found in the plastic box looking thing that is designed to hold the phone books in those phone-booths. You could run rounded IDE cables down there and make a mini-rail system to hold an array of hard drives if you wanted to. then you could mount the phone on a wall or on a verticle stand and have the hard drive "Phonebook" hanging from below to finish off the look!

Wixx...I know this project had come up before in the Threads, I still looking forward to seeing it. Of all the Pimps here, I know you have the skills to accomplish it!

BZA's idea in his last post is GREAT and would add to the whole Pay Phone Look!

Wixx, you should prob take a look at this
http://www.blichfeldt.dk/numviser/index.htm

A friend of mine wants one so Ill prob build one soon for him.

hmm...i think that the best spot for all those connectors to come out would be the bottom. i would say the back, but if you plan to mount it on a wall that wouldnt work as well. i do like the hard drive/phone book idea, that would look cool.

if you want it silent you could go for older, slower processor and video. a GF2 MX that just has a heatsink, no fan would work, or if you have room for the zalman sinks..0
Sounds like an awesome idea tho, id like to see pics when its done.

maybe you could somehow turn on the comp by putting a quarter in the slot

just a thought

and the coin return button can be the reset button... hmm

Quote: Originally posted by DarkSide maybe you could somehow turn on the comp by putting a quarter in the slot just a thought

That's the idea, you insert a coin in the slot and it passes by a momentary switch that turns it on...keeping the coin return mechanism though will take up too much space inside the chassis I think.

well it does not have to be as complicated as that. couldnt you just cut through al that and just have it so that there is one single tube that goes streight to the coin return?

dont plan on using the stock phone either. empty the guts of some cheepo 10 dolla phone and use that instead, well i havent actually seen the insides of a payphone, could u maybe link me to what the payphone looks like?i can maybe help with some better ideas

What about a type of coin slot that only holds the coin and forcing the connection untill you hit the Eject Coin button which pushes it right back out the slot you put it in ? And as well opens the connection like a ps switch does. Shouldnt be to hard to make. Literally takes a push button switch mounted on a homegrown bracket in the back that when the quarter is inserted it pushes a small plate/bushbutton switch from behind. Make the quarter insertion kind of firm and not so easy so that the quarter stays put. Then only the force of the coin return will remove said coin. The coin return could be s simple spring loaded arm that when the button pushes in the top of the arm reverses the preasure hence bringing the bottom fo the arm toward the inside face of the phone. Or hence pushing the coin out of the front . see cheesy paint diagram

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actually if you removed the phones stock coin return and replaced it with a coin mech out of a arcade game unit and mounted it flat against a panel on the inside it might work....the coin mech from a arcade game is about 3.5"x3.0" and its about only a 1/4inch in depth....

I was a manager/tech when i was 20 for two years for a video game vendor....malls, mocie theatres......if you take two hotwheel's track or something similar, epoxy them together, they make a perfect coin tunnel for returning to the coin return slot at the bottom of the phone box, that surely wouldnt take up too much space

I know i refurbished one of those old Budweiser "tapper" arcade games, inside was totally gutted and the coin slot was modded and not where it should have been....it was up near the controls....we had to do the hothweel track trick and run a coin tunnel to the coin mech below, then another small peice of track for the coin would have a path to follow to the actual return slot, it was not a hard mod to do, just had to make sure that the tunnel system for the coin was kink free, and mounted securely.

dunno if that bit of useless information will help you any but hey your idea made me think, hehe, and ive been really braindead for like a week...

This is the payphone I bought off Ebay...


It came included with a "T" key, which you use to take it apart. Here's the bottom cavity showing the change drawer. Looks like a good place to stick a power supply...


When you take the top off you can see how the two halves of the chassis are connected via this short cable. I will probably keep something like this in the final design...

This is the thing taken apart. There are three major components, the coin acceptor, the electronics/bell assembly, and the keypad...




And finally, the chassis (the one part of the coin return is a little trickier to remove). It looks like there's enough room for a mini-ITX motherboard with enough left over for hard drives, CD-ROMs, and just about anything else...

pay phone....drool

I remember you talking about get the phone off ebay, Now the project starts! good luck! Ha... I just thought it would be cool if you hang the phone up the cd tray opened!