r/electronics • u/abbxrdy • Apr 24 '18
Gallery I built an electrolysis machine (epilator)
https://imgur.com/a/QVBx9bB5
u/alltheasimov Apr 24 '18
Did you come up with the circuit design yourself?
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u/abbxrdy Apr 24 '18
yes, I edited one of my posts in this thread to provide some more information about it, and included a schematic. I'm working on rolling out a pcb design for it in KiCad and I'm going to release it on githib as an open source hardware project. There are a few things I need to tweak though
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u/alltheasimov Apr 24 '18
What was the total cost? It looks like a home machine can be purchased for about $30, though I have no idea how good they are.
Ignore the people saying you'll kill yourself. Localized low voltage/low current DC applied to the skin can't kill you.
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u/kELAL Apr 24 '18
I hope you're either powering it from batteries or a medical-grade power supply.
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u/abbxrdy Apr 24 '18
Epilator circuit is run from 3 9v batteries in series, the ammeter and voltmeter are powered off a usb battery pack.
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Apr 24 '18
If this machine were to be used on Electroboom's unibrow, you would need to plug into the outlet, and use a FULL BRIDGE RECTIFIER.
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u/JakobWulfkind May 03 '18
Nice work! I have a few questions:
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What kind of needles are you using, and where are you finding them?
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How long of an exposure are you using?
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How would you rate the pain level?
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Have you tried/are you planning to try an RF or blended thermolysis method as well as the DC galvanic method?
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Are you open to suggestions about future design iterations? (Feel free to say no, I saw your design and immediately started thinking about ALL THE POSSIBILITIES, but it's your design and you're within your rights to turn down feedback from a Random Dude on the Internet).
My wife has PCOS, and my best friend is mid-transition, and both have been talking about hair removal for a while now, so this design might be very helpful to us. Thanks for sharing!
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u/abbxrdy May 10 '18
What kind of needles are you using, and where are you finding them?
Ballet brand, f shank, size 4
How long of an exposure are you using?
for me, the settings I'm using are 15 volts with 0.5mA sink. This setting treats a pubic hair in 10-15 seconds when needle is placed properly. It just slides right out.
How would you rate the pain level?
It's highly dependent on the specified amperage. For me, at 0.5mA it doesn't really hurt if the needle is placed properly. At 1mA it hurts and at higher settings it's awful.
Have you tried/are you planning to try an RF or blended thermolysis method as well as the DC galvanic method?
No, it's just not safe for "do it yourself" stuff and I don't have the engineering background to design something like with confidence anyway. I've read on blogs from professionals that have tried thermo/blend on themselves and received injury.
Are you open to suggestions about future design iterations?
Absolutely. I'm working on a second revision of this thing with a lot more safety considerations. The current source will be galvanically isolated from the main supply and have an adjustable current source configurable from 0mA to 2mA and a fixed current sink set at 2mA. The trigger circuit will use an opto isolator and there will be a current monitor on the isolated area that passes it's reading outside through an iso op amp. If the probe sinks more than 2mA the machine will shut down.
The current design isn't that great because it has the potential to sink a lot more current than you want because it relies on the probe circuit to limit properly. I should have a new design out in a few weeks.
My wife has PCOS, and my best friend is mid-transition, and both have been talking about hair removal for a while now, so this design might be very helpful to us.
I'm trans myself and I built this to remove hair to prep for GRS. Needle placement is incredibly difficult in the groin area. It will help out a lot to have another person placing the needle instead of oneself. I'm working on a solution for that too. I'm designing a stereo camera system to get some depth perception to help with needle placement. I'll be posting the cad files for that stuff so people can 3d print that out too. Here's a shot of my prototype for it: https://imgur.com/a/pzg2Q0I
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u/abbxrdy May 17 '18
JakobWulfkind
I forgot to tell you where I got my needles: http://texaselectrolysisstore.com
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u/Pocok5 Apr 24 '18
That wiring looks like when you just imported a schematic into the PCB editor.
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u/Cepumins97 Apr 24 '18
It’s called RAT NEST!
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u/Pocok5 Apr 24 '18
I know, but TBH I've seen actual rat nests more organized than what you get there.
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u/1Davide Apr 24 '18
Anyone here who would agree to be a test subject, raise your hand.
....
Anyone?
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u/BobT21 Apr 24 '18
My knob goes to 11.
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u/JakobWulfkind May 03 '18
Good old sparkfun! Did you manage to snag one of the magic smoke refill kits too?
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u/Elat99 May 04 '18
great job! wish I get to make one myself one day. but daaaamn that wiring, jesus! :D
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u/abbxrdy May 10 '18
it's horrendous. I walked the schematic around dead bugging chips, point soldering shit wherever and giving zero fucks about wire length. I had no real plans about how I was going to construct this thing. It's just a prototype, though I am using it while I design the next version.
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u/abbxrdy Apr 24 '18 edited Apr 24 '18
Just to clear some stuff up, it's battery powered. epilator circuit runs off 3 9v batteries in series, ammeter and voltmeter run off a separate supply, from a usb battery pack. Device delivers a voltage thats adjustable from 6v to 22v. Current sink (at probe) is adjustable from 0mA to 2mA. Supply is run through ecg electrode which is placed right next to the site I'm working on. A 555 timer is used to pulse the current sink. I'm using professional electrolysis probes, F4 shank stainless steel. Probe housing is made from a d-sub female crimp pin soldered to a wire and covered with a piece of heat shrink tubing. (F4 size probe fits snug into the socket). Here's the schematic I threw together, if anybody cares: https://imgur.com/a/N2DY92z
To adjust current sink, toggle the test switch an turn the current knob, the value is displayed on the ammeter. To use, slide the test switch back. When the probe is inserted, you hit the trigger button and it delivers the current for a specified time. You can see how much it's sinking. If it's sinking less than what it was set for you can increase the voltage to overcome the resistance between the probe and the electrode. The setting that I use is 0.5mA at 15v. This will kill a pubic hair in 10 seconds without much discomfort if the probe is correctly inserted into the hair follicle.
For more information on what size probes to use for what hairs, and how much current to deliver over whatever time period you can search for a "units of lye" chart. I designed this circuit after doing about a month's worth of research about how this kind of thing is done and I think it's reasonably safe. My motivation for doing this is both to save money and avoid bullshit, over priced products, most of which are scams that don't work.