Product Architecture
Purpose
Define the high-level system architecture for a retro-inspired IoT radio with a wood-cabinet aesthetic, modern streaming features, and battery-capable operation.
Product Summary
The product is a tabletop connected radio/audio device with:
- Wood-look cabinet
- Approximate width target: 220 mm
- Two front-panel knobs
- Small center display
- WiFi connectivity
- Bluetooth connectivity
- Streaming-ready audio playback
- Rechargeable battery option for unplugged operation for a few hours
- Good perceived audio quality for tabletop listening
Top-Level Functional Blocks
- Power input and charging block
- Battery management block
- System power regulation block
- Wireless compute/control block
- Audio processing and playback block
- User interface block
- Display block
- Mechanical/acoustic integration block
Functional Architecture
1. Power Input and Charging
The product should support:
- Wired power operation
- Rechargeable battery charging
- Automatic or controlled power-path behavior so the unit can operate while plugged in and optionally while charging
2. Battery Operation
The battery subsystem should support:
- Several hours of unplugged playback
- Safe charging and protection
- Battery status reporting to the user interface
3. Wireless and Streaming Core
The digital core should provide:
- WiFi for network audio and connected features
- Bluetooth for direct audio playback and device pairing
- Local control of playback state, volume, input mode, and presets
- Sufficient processing headroom for responsive UI behavior
4. Audio Chain
The audio subsystem should provide:
- Digital audio path from wireless/streaming core
- Clean conversion/amplification path to speaker output
- Good quality mono or stereo tabletop audio, pending industrial design and acoustic volume decisions
- Low audible noise during battery and plugged-in use
5. User Interface
The user interface should provide:
- Two primary rotary front-panel controls
- Small center display for status and browsing
- Clear indication of source, volume, network/pairing state, battery state, and playback metadata when available
6. Mechanical Integration
The PCB and system architecture must align with:
- A 220 mm wide front-facing radio format
- Knob placement symmetry or near-symmetry
- Center display alignment
- Internal accommodation for speaker volume, battery, and board placement
Likely Internal Subsystems to Realize in Schematic/PCB
- DC power input connector
- Battery connector and charging/protection circuitry
- Main processing/wireless section
- Audio power stage
- Speakers and/or speaker connectors
- Rotary control interfaces
- Display connector/interface
- Status indicators if needed
- Firmware/programming/debug access if required by implementation
Key Design Tradeoffs To Resolve During Execution
- Mono versus stereo acoustic architecture
- Display technology and exact visible size
- Knob behavior: volume + tuning/navigation, or volume + mode/select
- Battery capacity versus weight and internal volume
- Front-facing speaker layout versus hidden side/down-firing approach
- Thermal strategy for charging and audio playback at higher volume
PCB Implications
The PCB should be planned around:
- Front-panel alignment of the two knobs and center display
- Separation of noisy power/audio switching regions from sensitive RF and display/control regions
- Mechanical standoffs and cabinet mounting strategy
- Speaker wiring and battery wiring paths
- Antenna placement compatible with wood enclosure materials
Success Criteria
The architecture is successful if the design can support:
- Modern connected audio usage
- Clear, simple front-panel interaction
- A retro appearance with contemporary functionality
- Battery-backed portable tabletop use
- A schematic and PCB that can be packaged inside the intended enclosure
Open Questions
- Final audio output target and loudness expectation
- Final battery runtime target
- Exact display dimensions and technology
- Mono or stereo speaker arrangement
- Preferred charging connector and charging power target
- Whether voice assistant or microphone features are in scope