plantronics_pulsar

Plantronics Pulsar^TM

Plantronics, the leader in audio headsets, has worked with IDE, Inc. on numerous projects over the years. When Plantronics was developing their Pulsar™ Series of Bluetooth® headsets, the project had to be completed within a very aggressive nine week schedule, so they again turned to IDE.

Plantronics asked IDE to work on three products that are bundled with the headsets: the Universal Adapter, the Desktop Charging Stand and a base shoe-charging adapter. As with some of our previous collaborations, Plantronics had an industrial design concept for the product and its components, and then called on our expertise in product design and mechanical engineering to complete the design, fully engineer each product and support it through tooling at Plantronics' Asian manufacturers.

Working Closely

Plantronics supplied IDE with surface files and renderings that indicated the desired industrial design of the three headset components. We then got to work on the project, working with their electronics team defining all of the electronic circuit boards and components and subsequently designing all plastic and metal parts for each of the three products.

Our design for the Universal Adapter included housing a rechargeable battery, a custom RF PBC, a Plantronics proprietary SMIF charging connector, a power-on slide switch, a momentary pairing switch and a multi-colored LED. IDE designed custom switch actuators for the power switch and pairing switch, including a custom designed optical light pipe illuminated by the internal LED.

For the Desktop Charging Stand, the mechanical design included incorporating a pass-through SMIF connector cable as well as a metal ballast for mechanical stability.

The charging adapter mechanical design included the proprietary SMIF charging connector and a connector that mates with the Desktop Charging Stand.

Finishing the Project

Once the product design and engineering were completed, IDE provided engineering support for a prototype build of the headset components. Based on the prototype evaluations, we then did design updates. Finally, IDE generated all 2D tooling drawings for tooling in Plantronics Asian facilities. And, yes, we did it all in nine weeks.