Slim, Frameless Bathroom Mirror with a 27" Display

reaper81

Hello everybody,

Since I came across the DIY Smartmirror project of Micheal Teuw and this forum about 1.5 years ago, I really wanted to build one myself. The project started on December 25, 2016 with the purchase of a Raspis and after almost one year it has been hanging on the wall since January 2, 2018. I’m curious if and how he proves himself in everyday life.

The main goal was to build as lean and frameless mirror as possible, which requires no control in everyday life.

The mirror has the following functions:
Indirect lighting with dimming function and color temperature selection from 6500K -2700K
Bluetooth speakers with exciters that stimulate the glass surface instead of a membrane
Radar motion detector that turns the display on and off
Smart Mirror modules:
Weather
date
Events
News Feed
fuel prices
Personal Greeting
Travel times public transport
Face recognition for user profile control

My main problems with the project were:
To find a provider for the spy mirror
To find the largest possible TV or display, which is very narrow and down-facing ports
To get a reasonably functioning facial recognition. The detection rate is mediocre
To find a motion detector that detects through metallized glass

Here are some steps in the process of getting started:

The project stood and fell with a German provider for the PILKINGTON MIRROPANE which was advertised in the forum and many tests as the best. I chose a thickness of 4mm and a size of 1.5m x 0.8m with rounded corners and edges.

After the bi-annual research for the mirror, the search for the right screen was hardly shorter. Although I would liked to have an even larger display but the AOC is ideal from its nature with max only 2 cm depth.

The separate power supply makes disassembly of the screen unnecessary. Only the foot must be unscrewed.

The frame was built with square wood from the hardware store in the size 3.8 cm. Thus, nothing in the mirror should have a depth greater than 3.8 cm. The beams were dowelled, pegged and glued.

For attachment to the wall without columns but with adjustment I have made hanging bars. Alternatively, there are now IKEA rails with adjustment options.

On the cheap Amazon Bluetoothlautsprecher the speakers were removed and replaced by exciters, which bring the mirror surface to vibrate instead of a membrane. The battery was replaced by a 5V power supply that also powers the Raspi.

For indirect lighting special 45 ° aluminum profiles were used, into which the LED strips were laid. The lighting can be dimmed and set the color temperature by radio.

As I later discovered, neither the PIR sensor nor the radar sensor detects through a mirror. But since the radar sensor does not need a Fresnel cover to detect at wide angle, I kept using it. So that anything can be detected, I had to drill a hole in the mirror.

Yes, that was just as exciting as it sounds.

Behind the hole came the sensor and before that a cover. Becuase the plastic covers did not look good enough, I used a metal one. Although this lowers the detection performance but looks classy. The sensor now works more as a touch sensor but the compromise on the optics was worth it.

I am satisfied with the final result.

doubleT

Wow, that looks classy, nice job!

@reaper81 said in Slim, Frameless Bathroom Mirror with a 27" Display:

As I later discovered, neither the PIR sensor nor the radar sensor detects through a mirror. But since the radar sensor does not need a Fresnel cover to detect at wide angle, I kept using it. So that anything can be detected, I had to drill a hole in the mirror.

Too late now, but I’d have suggested using only two of the three power sockets and building a cover with the PIR sensor for the socket in the middle. You probably get your power for the mirror from a hidden cable in the wall from there anyway? Or under the counter?

MyMirror

@reaper81:
What kind of PIR do you use? Maybe a HC-SR501?
And what happens, if the screen comes back from standby? Did a message e. g. “HDMI” or similar appear on the screen?

reaper81

@doubleT

During the bathroom planning was only a backlit mirror planned with cable for light.
This we have reconnected to continuous current. An surface-mounted shaft would never be an option.

reaper81

@MyMirror

I do not use a PIR sensor. I use the RCWL-0516 radar sensor. It is PIN compatible too the standard PIR sensors and cheap. However, if you connect it upside down, it burns immediately. That happened to me twice.

bhepler

Fantastic job, @reaper81. That looks like a professional installation.

schlachtkreuzer6

Looks great! :)

For attachment to the wall without columns but with adjustment I have made hanging bars. Alternatively, there are now IKEA rails with adjustment options.

What rails do you use (link)? That seems to be a really nice idea!

reaper81

@schlachtkreuzer6

if you mean the aluminum profile, they are from led-konzept. A realy nice shop, with lots of ideas all around led.

schlachtkreuzer6

@reaper81 said in Slim, Frameless Bathroom Mirror with a 27" Display:

@schlachtkreuzer6

if you mean the aluminum profile, they are from led-konzept. A realy nice shop, with lots of ideas all around led.

No^^the parts for hanging, with the adjustment option from ikea :)

reaper81

@schlachtkreuzer6

the conzept is called frence cleat. if they are well done, you can hang your mirror on the wall whitout any gap.

alt text

my rails are handcrafted and not so good.

My timber was too thick for the circular saw. If you use the ikea besta rails it is much easier and you get probably better results.

schlachtkreuzer6

@reaper81
Ah I see. Thanks!

Relic

This looks like exactly what I want to do! I have one question though, how did you attach the wood frame to the glass? Looks great btw:)

MyMirror

Hi reaper81,
same question from my site:
how did you attach the mirror to the wooden frame to make it look frameless? Can you provide us some pictures and tipps?

MyMirror

One more :-)
Can you explain the first picture a bit more? What are the individual boxes and connections that can be seen in the picture?

reaper81

@Relic

The wood frame ist glued with the strongest intallation glue i could find. in my case it was soudal fix all high track.

The consistency of this glue is very tough, so i had to spread it with a spatula on the frame. Before this i had roughen the foil on the glas with sandpaperfor more gluegrip.

After one day with a lot of weight on the frame the glue was harden.

reaper81

@ MyMirror

Before finishing the project, i had to rearange some prarts a little bit of the mirror, because i needed some space for the hanging rails. So don’t wonder.

alt text

220V AC Connection
220V AC Mainswitch
220V AC branching dose
24V LED-power adapter
LED-Controller with radioreceiver
LED-stripes
monitor-power adapter mit HDMI-connection
monitor
5V power adapter for Raspberry Pi und Bluetooth-Speaker
raspberry Pi
networkcable for Raspberry Pi
cameramodul for useridentification
radarsensor zur userdetection
voltage converter für Bluetooth-speaker from 5V to 3.3V
bluetoothreceiver/ -amplifier für exciter
button zur connect Bluetoothreceiver und smartphone
volumen Up Button for the Bluetoothreceiver
volumen Down Button for the Bluetoothreceiver
exciter (speaker)
memorycard for the raspi with a backupimage

Vancete

WOW. It look georgeous.

MyMirror

Very good - thanks for sharing!

schlachtkreuzer6

Thank you for all your informations! So last question ^^ how is the sound with the exciters? Maybe we need here a YouTube video 😁😁

MyMirror

… and a few more from my site :-)

Can you show us, how do you dismantled the foot
and how do you attach the power cable on the screen?
What about the temperature of the monitor? Will not be too hot in the tight construction?
Do you apply black foil on the back side of the mirror to improve the mirror effect?

Thanks for all your tips and pictures!