1st time poster but long time Arduino owner. Couldn't find within the forums where anyone is doing the below, though I think its a combination of a few projects. This is pretty much stemming from the removal of the Lenovo smart clock 2 from the google assistant world, which would have fit the bill for my need.
I have a ambitious 1st project to try and build a alarm clock outside the normal alarm clock functions. While I appreciate the functionality of my phones alarm and its ability to set a different alarm for each day, I have been unable to find a physical alarm that has the same functionality.
My needs
Wireless charging
USB A and/or USB C
Individual alarms for each day (7 days) - I have seen where this may be called a everyday alarm
My wants
Dimmable LCD
Connectivity to the Android based clock and/or Google calendar to easily set alarm schedule
Materials I think I need
Nano 33 IOT
4 push buttons (alarm on/off, Plus button, Minus button, and a snooze button)
Not sure since I can use function of RTC in Nano RTC
Buzzer
My initial development plan is to disassemble a iw18 and see what components I can use. This clock has many of the needs but lacks the every day alarm feature. I have a Uno that I plan to utilize to develop with some of the existing features of the IW18.
Whilst this sounds like an interesting project, I would be tempted to simply use an old Android 'phone to do what you want. You don't even need to put a SIM card in it
Need #1 is not a feature that a beginner will have the skills and experience to implement, so your plan fails here. Reconsider and it may be possible.
Want #2 is also not a feature a beginner either, but since this a want not a need, I suggest you could implement a UI through the LCD to set the alarm time for each day.
Clarification needed: "LCD" can mean anything from 4-digit 7-segment black-on-grey display to an 5+ inch full colour display with thousands of pixels. Guess which is more and which is less suitable for a beginner project? I would recommend a 16x2 character LCD. With a little extra circuitry, these can be made to dim.
I suggest you to add a "upgrade" to your existing alarm, tiny Esp board and few buttons for the weekly alarm. Alarm function is so independent from charging and display, that it's not worth to build all from zero.
I figure its tough without a elec drawing to see what actually is going on, but I believe the clock functions are all within the LCD board with some com going back to the piezo. The wireless charger I think would work without any connection to the LCD (It has voltage in and a led signal back to lcd. I could try unplugging it and see?) So modifying my original scope, i think working with a new LCD and a development board would be my starting point.
Find the LCD controller chip to get better idea how to collaborate with it. But I honestly think you save a lot of time if you just add alarm function separately. You can use the buzzer and looks like there's plenty of space for Esp32 supermini or similar.
I did a little research for my sanity and think I'm going to go a different route. Found this gem online and I think it fits the bill less the wireless charger. Going to try and mock something up when I get parts. May circle back when i get some skill built up to integrate to the ihome.
For anyone looking for a multi-day alarm clock with web interface, this one looks really well done.
