3DVR Phone Dock · Nomad Clip evolution

Your phone. Real controls. Anywhere.

A universal cradle, dock, keyboard, input, and wearable system built around the phone you already own. The phone stays the screen, camera, sensors, cellular link, and compute node. 3DVR adds the ergonomics, physical controls, quick-release mounting, docking, and expansion around it.

See wearable modes Try orientation Prototype it Open Phone roadmap Scale it up → vehicle
Orientation-adaptive One quick-release interface Belt → chest → head → desk Physical keyboard optional USB-C first Modular + repairable
3DVR Operator · Worlds · Tools

Portrait + software keyboard: natural phone use with useful workspace above the lower-third keyboard.

Core interaction

The dock follows the task.

3DVR should not force one screen orientation. The holder rotates 90° without removing the phone, while the controls and grip remain usable.

01

Portrait + software keyboard

Default phone mode. The on-screen keyboard can occupy the lower third while the upper two-thirds remain useful for messages, Operator, browsing, and forms.

02

Landscape + physical keyboard

Once real keys are available, the screen no longer needs to reserve a lower third. Landscape becomes a tiny workstation with the full display available for the actual task.

03

Landscape + controls

Game, camera, Pocket Window, remote desktop, spatial computing, and media modes can prioritize thumb controls, shoulder buttons, trackpoint, trackball, or sticks.

Design rule Soft keyboard present → portrait is usually better. Physical keyboard present → landscape becomes practical and often preferable.

Input system

The holder becomes the computer around the computer.

Start mechanical, then add only the controls that prove useful. The phone remains replaceable; the dock becomes a long-lived input and expansion platform.

Keyboard

Thumb typing or fold-out keys

Split keyboard halves can live beside the phone, fold behind it, slide underneath it, or detach for desk use.

Pointer

Trackpoint / trackball / touch

A precise pointer makes remote desktop, code, web apps, and desktop UI possible without reaching across the screen.

Controls

Sticks + shoulder buttons

Optional gamepad-style inputs also work for camera movement, spatial navigation, scrolling, media, and 3DVR worlds.

Dock

USB-C expansion

Charging, audio, storage, keyboard, Ethernet, display-out, and future compute modules all converge through one replaceable dock layer.

Modes

One object, several computing postures.

The same phone and cradle should move through the day with you instead of making you carry a different device for every posture.

HandheldPhone + controls + optional keyboard.
Belt clipSecure low-profile carry with one-hand quick release.
Neck / chestHigh, stabilized hands-free screen for standing or seated use.
Head / VRFlip between immersive viewing and a lower floating-screen position.
TransitPersonal theater or terminal with headphones and lap input.
Desk dockKickstand, external keyboard, mouse, charging.
Big screenUSB-C display-out to monitor, TV, projector, or glasses.
TravelCompact protective frame that becomes the workstation when opened.

Wearable system

One cradle. Many postures.

The key hardware is not the belt clip or the headset by itself. It is a shared 3DVR mounting interface: magnetic alignment for fast docking, a mechanical safety catch for real-world movement, and rotation so the phone can move between belt, chest, head, desk, keyboard, tripod, bike, and future mounts.

Diagram of one 3DVR phone cradle connecting to belt, chest, head and desk modules
The cradle is the standard. Everything around it becomes replaceable, printable, repairable hardware.
3DVR belt clip mode concept
Carry

Belt clip

Low-profile, secure, reversible screen direction, with a tactile release you can operate one-handed.

3DVR neck and chest wearable mode concept
Hands free

Neck / chest

Keep the screen high enough to glance at, then use a second stabilizer point so it does not swing like a normal lanyard.

3DVR head and VR mode concept
Spatial

Head / VR

A balanced headband can move from full VR to a flip-down personal screen. Battery or counterweight can shift mass away from the face.

Walking mode ≠ blind VR. While moving through public space, the design should preserve situational awareness: audio first, short glanceable information, peripheral vision, quick flip-up, and no opaque full-screen mode while actively walking or crossing streets.

Prototype v0

Mechanical first.

The first useful version does not need custom electronics. It needs to prove rotation, grip, phone compatibility, balance, quick release, retention, keyboard position, and the transitions between handheld, belt, chest, head, and desk use.

Adjustable clampFits common phones with or without a slim case.
90° rotationPortrait ↔ landscape without removing the phone.
Quick-release spineOne shared mechanical interface for belt, body, head, desk, tripod, and future mounts.
Safety catchMagnetic alignment can guide docking, but movement modes need a positive mechanical lock or tether.
Stationary gripThe phone rotates; the control surfaces do not have to.
Keyboard bayUse an existing Bluetooth/USB keyboard first; custom split keys later.
Fold-out standHandheld hardware becomes a stable desk workstation.
USB-C pass-throughPreserve charging/data from the beginning.

3DVR Open Phone

Replace the black box one layer at a time.

We do not need to manufacture a smartphone on day one. The dock becomes a bridge from the phone you already own to a fully open personal computer: useful at every stage, increasingly repairable, and progressively less dependent on closed hardware.

0Existing phoneScreen · cameras · sensors · cellular · compute
→
13DVR DockMounts · keyboard · pointer · controls · USB-C
→
2Linux companionOpen compute module joins the phone
→
3Modular handheldDisplay · modem · battery · cameras become modules
→
4Open phonePurpose-built, documented, repairable personal computer

Prototype 0

Build the smallest thing that teaches us the most.

No custom PCB yet. Prove the physical system and the phone-to-Linux relationship with commodity hardware first.

MechanicalExisting adjustable phone clamp, foam/cardboard or printed frame, 90° rotation, quick-release spine, positive safety catch, fold-out stand.
InputCompact Bluetooth/USB keyboard plus a small pointer. Keep game/spatial controls optional until the ergonomics tell us where they belong.
I/OUSB-C hub with power pass-through. Preserve charging and expose USB, storage, networking, and display-out without designing electronics.
Compute experimentDetachable Linux SBC/compute module powered separately at first. Connect it to the phone through the simplest reliable network/display path.
SoftwareOperator is the common shell. Test browser, terminal, remote desktop, files, camera handoff, and continuity between phone and Linux.
Pass/failCan one person carry it, dock it, type comfortably, move between portrait/landscape, and use Linux without the prototype feeling like a science project?
Gate before custom electronics Only design a carrier PCB after the mechanical dock, input layout, USB-C topology, and Linux companion workflow survive real daily use.

Foundation

The Nomad Clip still matters.

The older grip, stand, tripod, extender, lap, strap, and AR-glasses ideas are not discarded. They become mounting modes for the larger Phone Dock system.

GripStandTripodExtenderBelt clipChest harnessHead mountLap modeAR glasses routingNatural materials

Build path

Prototype the ergonomics before the electronics.

  1. 1
    Cardboard / foam / existing phone clamp

    Test portrait-to-landscape rotation, hand spacing, center of gravity, and whether controls should sit beside or below the phone.

  2. 2
    3D-printed cradle + shared quick release

    Prototype the actual interface once, then build simple belt, chest, desk, and head adapters around that same geometry.

  3. 3
    Wearability tests

    Measure bounce, neck load, head balance, one-hand removal, safety retention, flip-up speed, and comfort during a real walk or transit ride.

  4. 4
    Off-the-shelf keyboard + pointer

    Integrate a small Bluetooth/USB keyboard and trackpoint, trackball, or thumb pointer before designing custom PCBs.

  5. 5
    3DVR modular input rail

    Standardize swappable keyboard, gamepad, trackpad, macro, battery, storage, and compute modules.

  6. 6
    Open hardware release

    Publish printable parts, dimensions, electronics, firmware, and lessons learned so the dock can outlive any single phone.