How many tablets to use? Pi IoT Blog 3

Over the short period that tablets have been affordable I have somehow acquired at least 8, although I only actually paid for 3 of them. I also have acquired at least 7 Raspberry Pi modules, none of which I actually bought. One goal of this project is to employ as much of this stuff as possible before it is so obsolete it won't ever be used again. So far I have identified 10 displays with 3 more still in the planning stages. Given the space available, I need to get creative about where to put all these displays. One solution I have been working on is stacking tablets .... here is a stable stack of 3 seven inch tablets on a frame built using nine 3D printed parts. I didn't have any more black PLA (due to another big project), so it isn't colour-coordinated, but there is always paint if needed. The frame includes provision for USB power for all devices:

There will also be two 22" displays (one for a Raspberry Pi and one for a Windows 7 thin client). There are also a few other tablets to integrate including a 10", an 8", a 6" and a couple of 5" devices. Hopefully I can swing a 42" main viewer driven by an android set-top box. I have backed off to just planning one embedded wall-mount display for environmental control, but hopefully the parts come in to at least include bulkhead illumination on the custom wall. I am still planning one stand-alone display driven by a Raspberry Pi3, although there is no sign of the parts ordered for this system yet.

The system is growing and morphing all the time as new ideas pop up or necessity intrudes, but it is lots of fun speculating where to take it next. This project is all about having fun rather than formal project plans, design efficiency and following rules. I mean, who ever heard of integrating 15 computers just to make a thermostat? Okay, maybe it does a little more than that, but one computer could probably do all the functions. Hopefully 13 displays will at least make it look like a serious command center and hopefully it will have some entertainment value even if it isn't an "establishment" project role model.

In that vein the next installment will likely be getting back to the Star Trek theme narrative - I already missed an opportunity for the above devices to be displaying theme information in the picture.

Links to the Pi IoT Design Challenge site:

Pi IoT

Pi IoT - Smarter Spaces with Raspberry Pi 3: About This Challenge

Links to blogs about the Star Trek IoT Alcove project:

Pi IoT - Star Trek IoT Alcove - Blog 1

element14 and the photon torpedo - Pi IoT Blog 2

How many tablets to use? Pi IoT Blog 3