dear BBB experts—
we are working on getting the BBB to do a real job for us. this is our first time that we are designing something we want to sell! we will probably want to start with 100-1,000 of these, within a 1-3 months. by that time, we hope that circuitco will have managed to catch up with supply by then.
one problem: we need a high-end looking case. I have no idea of the price points of nice cases. to keep it affordable, presumably it would be a vanilla standard BBB case with the right cutouts for the ports and for ventilation in the right places, no customization–well, maybe a logo. maybe rounded corners to prevent injuries.
now, case vendors cannot even quote anything until they have a CAD file. is there a simple CAD file for a vanilla box to start from in the PD?
[or does anyone know of a vendor who sells super-nice looking cases for the BBB? I am thinking $30-$60 a piece, preferably looking like the old Mac Pro or a G-Drive Hero. Steel or aluminum. Or very high-end looking plastic.]
Advice appreciated.
/iaw
My suggestion is that you create a drawing of what you want in a high end case. Otherwise it will be difficult to find what you want. There are several step files out there under the various 3D file repositories. You might start there.
Gerald
hi gerald—this means I have to learn 3d files and design tools…and “step files in various 3d repositories.” can you point me to a 2 or 3 good BBB starters, please?
regards,
/iaw
No you don’t. Just gives you an idea of what is out there to reference. For example. I really Like X, but I need to to have another 1/2" in height. That sort of thing. The files have pictures with them. See the links below.
http://www.thingiverse.com/search?q=BeagleBone&sa=
https://www.google.com/search?q=BeagleBone+cases&oq=BeagleBone+cases&aqs=chrome.0.57j62l3.3505&sugexp=chrome,mod=6&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Gerald
http://www.logicsupply.com/bb100-orange/
the standard part at Logic Supply (orange and black) is pretty ‘clean’ and low cost. customization available in runs QTY 1000 + NRE costs.
3D model files available on LogicSupply Github for PD.
https://github.com/lgxlogic
3D printable (alternative case)
http://inspire.logicsupply.com/2014/04/3d-printable-beaglebone-black-case.html
more high-end options available upon request… MOQ and NRE apply.
good luck
Rodney
I ordered one to check it out. will report back.
also, if anyone else knows of for-sale enclosures, intended to be less hobbyist/tinkering and more professional enclosures, please point me there. I will order one each and report back my impressions.
/iaw
I can vouch that Logic Supply’s case is really nice!
I have the black one and it practically makes the BBB into a nice little industrial PC. I especially like that the case has a DB9 punchout and they sell a mini-cape to put a real RS-232 port on there.
I’m also doing a project with a RaspPi and I wish there was an equivalent metal case available for that thing. Laser cut plastic is nice and all, but real metal makes it less of a playtoy.
Rodney and his team are doing some great things. I’ve used some of their fanless industrial PCs as well as their BBB products.
Jim Evans
If you do make a case, please make sure to provide access to the three buttons (power, reset, boot-option) on the board. Virtually all of the cases I’ve seen provide no access to these very helpful buttons.
so here is my mini review of the LogicSupply case, BB100-ORANGE. I am a newbie embedded computer starter, but long-term computer programmer.
the case itself is industrial looking, made of steel. for an enduser like me, this is a somewhat rare and unusual look. I am more used to “one-piece looks”, where the whole case looks like one. there is a clear top-and-bottom separation in this case here. all in all, the look aspect for me is not good or bad, just different.
the tolerances are very good.
there are no airflow holes at the top of the case. I have not yet run stress tests on the BBB, so I do not know whether this will be an issue. I would have preferred some holes, if only to hear a buzzer that I want to install on it.
there is very little top clearance to add anything on the inside.
the outside screws are in black. it would be nice to have the option of orange screws to match the case.
customization (e.g., a logo) seems to be quite expensive.
it is a very good case, and it is very reasonably priced. I don’t think there is any other professional-looking case right now. so, go for it.
other observations
- the Logic-Supply wall wart is expensive at $9 a piece. I would have paid $10 to have the wall wart replaced by an internal power-supply.
regards,
/iaw
Hi Ivo,
i appreciate your review. the chassis design is two pieces with a simple but clean look and style by design. we wanted to have a professional look while being very low cost and competitive. for those who want something beautiful - it is possible but not every customer wants to pay for that. we can make extrusions, and plastic molds, castings, decals, and many different types of chassis and computer products. we make computers that look like art for high end clients and we make ones that can survive underwater or under a taxi cab seats.
airflow is not a concern for this device - it is really low power and gains some from radiation cooling from the chassis paint inside as well as conduction spread across the board. Logic Supply specializes in fanless/ventless industrial computer design and can cool i7 devices without fans or air vents in 70c ambient environments.
colors - again, black and orange are standard options. logos are not expensive to process. but need to be done at the time of manufacturing of the metal to be cost effective. minimum order quantity will apply usually 1000 pieces. in these quantities the customized solution retail price is only a little more expensive than the standard unit price + some engineering dollars. screws can be painted at the same time as the chassis, or there are other options (ex no screws, silver screws, bottom screws and not side). this idea of this BBB chassis is it will work for 80% of the clients and if it does not work then describe how it needs to be different for your project and it will be easy to quote.
expansion - the chassis top has 3 screw positions on the side - we design capes to fit inside by elevating the top chassis to a higher level. again, the focus is to prototype what you want and then order the metal custom for your application. most customization is only a few days at most for simple designs. then produced by laser or stamping processes in the factory.
power supply - there are some limitations to the beaglebone board (access to buttons and power options) - there are options for hiding power again it is an engineering project to do that. for standard product we do not see the demand to justify the premium. custom product is another discussion.
i hope this helps, and i wish you luck with all your projects!
Rodney
product development @ Logic Supply