Plastic Enclosures Specifically

QuattroRS4

While I posted in a previous thread related to metal enclosures - which quickly deviated into cutting methods .. I decided to post a specific thread to suggested Plastic enclosure..

On the topic of enclosures - I work closely with a high volume plastics manufacturer .. I had played with and discussed with the customer - the idea of a plastic protoboard enclosure (2mm wall thickness) with pcb standoffs & screws,cover, switch slot and power led 'light pipe'- with 'knock out' (thin walled section easily trimmed out) sections for all the standard accessory kit items .. KB,Mouse and VGA as well as extra 'Knock out' sections throughout the enclosure to facilitate customisations ... If there was enough interest in these (by enough I mean enough to convince me to foot the tooling fees) I would certainly do it.

Also if anyone has suggestions on how a plastic protoboard enclosure should look .. then by all means post them here. The idea would be to have a quality sub $10 protoboard enclosure.

Regards,
John Twomey

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

Carl Hayes

I've often wished I could buy somewhere an enclosure like the one this test breadboard is built into.· In two or three sizes (especially smaller), with blank plastic panels, I think it might find a market.· I imagine it is an injection molding.· I also·imagine (but you will know for sure)·that the tooling cost would be in the tens of thousands at least.

You could include the rich coating of dust at no extra cost.

Hmmm?

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· -- Carl, nn5i@arrl.net

JasonDorie

I'm partial to these (or would be, if they fit the ProtoBoard) : http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=8601

SRLM

My 'ideal' enclosure would have a the large part of an enclosure where the board slips in from the end or the side, and a cap with screws to finish the enclosure and hold the board in. Corners should be sharp, with the possibly by the end user to round them if desired.

Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)

For plastic enclosures, Rose+Bopla is hard to beat for quality, aesthetics, and variety. Their Combi-Card series is a virtual Lego set for building finished-looking boxes. They're not cheap, though.

SRLM,

Again: www.lansing-enclosures.com.

-Phil

ElectricAye

Could such housing be made out of conductive plastic, and, if so, would that serve to shield the electronics from EMI, etc? And/or shield the world from it?

Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)

From the Rose+Bopla website, under "Services": "RFI spray on our plastic and fiberglass housings offers protection for your design against adverse interference or radiation. We can also install RFI gaskets, on request."

-Phil

uxorious

I use and recommend Polycase for plastic enclosures. They do excellent/low cost work if you need machining or silk done in volume. (greater than 50 pcs) The per unit cost is not bad either.

www.polycase.com/

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~~ dRu ~~

QuattroRS4

Yes the plastic mixture can be 'doped' for EMI shielding .. as per some automotive applications ..As Phil pointed out sprays are also available ...

@Carl Hayes - Yip I am fully aware of tooling costs hence this attempt to guage interest and if interest - ideas to incorporate into the design - better to get it right first time (or a majority verdict) rather than have to redo it later. I am not convinced that there is enough interest for me to take the chance though ..

Regards,
John Twomey

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

rjo_

Quattro,

I think just about everyone will be interested... the only issue will be final cost. If you keep it cheap enough, guys will order by the dozen.

Rich

QuattroRS4

Thanks Rich .. Lets see if it is viable ..

Regards,
John Twomey

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

Timothy D. Swieter

Regarding tooling cost, over here in China I have a lead on a supplier that has done tooling and molding before. It was reasonable costs too - still not super cheap. I am not a mechanical/mold guy myself, but, if someone on the forum is good with Solidworks or Alibre or similar to design the box then we could all pitch in with advice. In a couple months I may be able to go in and afford the tool, or at least price it out.

It could be neat to have a forum designed box, we just need someone with a little experience in this area to help do the modeling.

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Timothy D. Swieter, E.I.
www.brilldea.com - Prop Blade, LED Painter, RGB LEDs, uOLED-IOC, eProto for SunSPOT, BitScope
www.tdswieter.com

QuattroRS4

Tim - no offense meant here but I have first hand experience with Chinese tools and due to sub standard materials - lack of efficient cooling (even though it was specified) and resulting cracking of cooling paths, warping of backing plates and much more - that is not an option.

Hasco back plates and quality steel rule here .. that experience (as suggested by you) was tried in Europe but failed ... it has been tried and tested .. in terms of tool building and repair .. the initial savings while substantial are negated (to say the least) by the resultant failures and associated cost of repair and rebuilding of the same tool with quality manufacturers.

Regards,
John Twomey

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

Post Edited (QuattroRS4) : 2/26/2009 3:06:28 AM GMT

Timothy D. Swieter

No offense taken John. Just a suggestion - everyone has had different experiences in China and the reason while I moved to Hong Kong was to make the best experiences possible for my employer. I don't know a lot about tooling, so far our vendor has taken care of us and been teaching us. There is so much more to learn!

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Timothy D. Swieter, E.I.
www.brilldea.com - Prop Blade, LED Painter, RGB LEDs, uOLED-IOC, eProto for SunSPOT, BitScope
www.tdswieter.com

QuattroRS4

Tim,
Your employer saw the light ! As you are more than well aware so - it's not just about cost! You seem to be aware of the varying opinions wrt China as a manufacturer. The experience I outlined was the same for many in that industry ... for them it was an expensive and time consuming disaster .. I do recognise that many have had good experiences. There are many other issues that need to be addressed e.g adhering to copyright and patent legalities .. but hey, lets not get bogged down ..

Regards,
John

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

Mikerocontroller

· I visited the PacTec website yesterday evening and found a free sample offer.· They allow you a choice of two newly released sample enclosures.· The selection is pretty nice. They sent me a FedEx shipping confirmation number today and said it should take about 4-7 working days to arrive.· I'll try to post some pics when they arrive.

QuattroRS4

Well - It looks like I will shelve that idea .. no harm done .. Just as well I didn't decide to get the tools built!

Regards,
John Twomey

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'Necessity is the mother of invention'

Those who can, do.Those who can’t, teach.

Philldapill

Mikerocontroller, the free samples from PacTec are very nice. I've sampled many of them, and plan on using one of their enclosures in a product I'm trying to develop.