Raspberry Pi Model B Cases?

Thats reasonable pricing, at least for me

Some enclosures have been looking to cost more that the RPi. That just feels wrong for a proeject like this.

However I guess we will have a case mod community just like the PC world with also manner of lights and trimmings.

Please keep us updated regarding availablity

Hello,

The price you propose to charge is very low - much lower than is typical of injection moulded parts.

3D printing is not normally seen as being an efficient process (very slow).

Which considerations lead me to ask:

What kind of 3D printer are you using ?

Michael Kellett

Hey, Just an update on my design, not quite complete but very close to it, although many other designs are flying about so may just buy one haha, let me know what you think, and if you think I should continue to make it work Pic below

@ Michael Paholski I agree, who wants to pay more for a case than the Pi? It just seems extortionate and a rip off at the end of the day. I will be regularly posting updated renders in addition to actual physical prints in the next week or so, if you want to stay super informed you can subscribe to our website www.modmypi.com and we'll email you when we update everything! We are looking to start manufacture on the 5th of April. Thats if everything goes to plan, and my Raspberry Pi arrives when Farnell say it will. We won't be releasing case until we are sure that they are perfect!

@ michaelkellett I have been using 3D printers for a number of years now on various projects, and we have close links with various Universities in the UK who specialise in the research of 3D printing. We use a variety of printers for different services: our own modified version of the Prusa Mendel and the RepRap Pro Huxley are examples of the open sources printers we use. 3D printing is not 'efficient' in terms of mass production although I think your would be surprised at the quantity of items that a printer can produce in a day with a decent design. 3D printer are very efficient however in material usage, set-up costs, and customisability. We are simply looking to carve our own niche, not outdo the big boys who are bound to come along and start churning out generic injection moulded cases.

@ Aaron Garwell Case design looks good, i like the curve over the top.

ModMyPi

Jacob,

I hate to sound so cynical but the over the top hype surrounding RepRap and similar just hits a nerve.

If it's so easy and so good why not post a picture of an actual printed box rather than the glossy CGIs ?

Michael Kellett

@ michaelkellett

In my opinion the hype that surrounds 3D printing is well deserved. Its a brand new and innovative technology and, unlike many technologies, its open source, which opens up development to the community. You know they are developing it for use in the aerospace and automotive industries with metal? Its set to completely revolutionise how parts are manufactured.

I accept the attitude of "I won't belive it until I see it", its totally understandable, but i genuinely think you would be surprised at the quality of prints when they are completed with thought and care.

Here's a little hype if your interested over the manufacture of an 'impossible' object:

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The reason we haven't posted any pics of our prototypes yet is the simple fact that we haven't finalised the design, and this won't occur until we are completely happy with the cases and feedback from the renders. At the end of the day renders can be quickly updated to reflect design changes and we simply want our physical case to be our final and perfect design.

Jacob -

You are getting carried away again.

3D printing is not open source - there are a few, very primitive, open source 3D printers.

The companies developing 3D printed metal processes are not part of that open source movement.

There is no evidence at all to suggest that 3D printing will ever be a mainstream production process.

I have seen a good many 3D printed parts and currently the parts from low cost machines like RepRap or even the serious commerical equivalents can't match the finish or physical properties of conventionally manufactured parts.

3D printing will find its place but it's not going to replace plastic injection moulding or clasical metal forming techniques any time soon.

But I still don't understand why you can't 3D print a design now - the good thing about 3D printing is that you can make a part at any time and have a look at it. Why do you need your first print to be the "final and perfect design".

Michael Kellett

@ michaelkellett

What can I say? I am a complete and self confessed advocate and fan of 3D printing. I've been involved with it for quite a period of time now, and I think its versatility and adaptability is spectacular. But that is my opinion.

I think we will have to disagree on the first point I'm afraid. The software behind 3D pinters is open source, hence the physical printers based upon this software are open source. IMO I would not call the MakerBot 'very primative', check it out http://www.makerbot.com/

I never meant to insinuate that the metal 3D printers where part of the open source movement, I was just using them as an example of how far 3D printing technology has come in recent years. If this was inferred incorrectly i apologise.

Who's to say that the production of Raspberry Pi cases won't be the first maintream production process of 3D printing? I'm pretty enthusiastic about it, and with support and positive criticism, I don't see why it's not achievable.

I would like the pictures to be perfect because I am a perfectionist. I want to demonstrate the the product we will be producing is high quality. I want to be able to take a hundred pictures and show the world how good 3D printing is. The prototypes we have at the moment are just that, prototypes. They have been created to get the right fit, form and feel.

I agree 3D printing will find its place, and I don't see why the 3D printing revolution can't start here.

Hello Jacob,

I don't think we live on the same planet:

There are commericially produced 3D printers like

http://www.europac3d.com/TheZCorpAdvantage.html

or

http://www8.hp.com/uk/en/products/3d-printers/index.html

or

http://printin3d.com/3d-printers/v-flash-personal-3d-printer

and compared with any of them the makerbot is primitive - it's cheaper but it's just not designed for serious use in a commercial environment (where it must work for months on end without maintenance etc).

And re the open source thing - the software and hardware of the RepRap etc is mainly open source but my point is that the software and hardware of the serious machines (Z-Corp, HP etc) most certianly is not.

Good luck with your boxes (btw how long will it take one of your 3D printers to make a box ?)

Michael Kellett

@ michaelkellett

Its a fact that everything comes in varying levels of expense. You cannot compare a Makerbot with professional FDA printers just as you can't compare a Lamborghini Gallardo with an Audi A4 (oh yes i did just compare 3D printers to cars). This isn't to say the A4 is a bad car or 'primitive' just as the Makerbot isn't a 'primative' printer. They are simply in different classes, and designed for different purposes.

The HP is just a Stratasys with an HP badge on it and a mark-up, however many people would choose the HP over the Stratasys because of marketing and brand recognition. Again, the Stratasys isn't worse, it just doesn't have the right badge.

The RepRap and similar brings 3D printing into an environtment accessible to everyone and IMO this is a good thing. Companies like HP will always commercialise and market their products as being better, but is a £15,000 printer really £14,000 better than a £1,000 one. In my experience I would say no.

That isn't to say you can create an incredibly realistic inlet manifold for a car with a RepRap, if you want to do that, go by the HP. But in terms of creating a small quantity of simple, quality, cases for the Raspberry Pi. I say a resounding YES I CAN!

With care, attention and creativity in design, manufacture and post-processing you can get super high quality prints from the open-source RepRaps.

In answer to your question: it will take approximately two hours including a little post-processing to make each of our cases. Pretty slow when you compare it to injection moulding I know, but as i said, we are not trying to compete with the big boys, we just want to carve our own little niche

Thanks for the good luck, it's going to be great.