Scratch Build – In Progress Logic - V 01 - The cook book!

Adapting the skeleton approach to the Spine Core, has been the plan for some time. I got curious how well it might do with the wiring so I started to implement it ahead of some other improvements.



I spent more time on this then planned, then again it points to other parts that can/should be improved. This is the 1st iteration.





I like the look of this part but with Aluminium the weight will be close to 3 kg, in Carbon Fiber the weight should be below 1.7 kg. To create this part in Aluminium I need a CNC or access to the same, this is not in the cards atm.

The problem with heat dissipation inside the Spine if made of carbon will have to be addressed later. I am looking into a few few different options.

This approach with leading the wires inside the Spine Core gives a lot less clutter and air resistance inside the case.

Rear


Front


These are all the main motherboard Connectors attached to cables (almost) not including Sata, Fans and RGB (if its on the board).



At present the cables to the SAS4MC have been planned for but are not included on the CAD drawings yet. I will add them when time allows.

Added panel and improved on the next pictures:





An overview and a look of the Wires, LAN - RJ45 (the large RED cables) moving data from the Rear to the Front when needed.



Thats it for now

Nox Out

 

Hi all

Latest progress update.

Still rapid prototyping ideas for inserts, shape, forms and placement of components to be sure it all fits and is functional. I went back and took a look at the Clips that are used for bringing the Power Wires through the Spine Core (read Motherboard Tray). They will be made of aluminium to make sure heat is not building up to an unwanted level inside the composite spine core, with a deeper core it seems to be necessary. As a design element the aluminium could be anodized into a color that works for this project.

A few pictures before more rambling ;D










Some parts still need to be added to the Clips, will follow later.

Placement of the Clips are next to the areas on the motherboard where needed.






The Clips added into the Spine;






Inserted Clips can be seen next to the cut out for the Core Cover with raised area for wires comings out of the spine core.






The core cover is added here in yellow.


This is still far from done, the wires need to be closer to the core cover (read closer to the surface). Why? To ease access (serviceability) of wires, and to dissipate heat created in the wires. The cover could be made of paper, composite (the most likely candidate) or a thin sheet of Aluminium.

A design element not added yet is using strain reliefs and cable organizers to prevent sharp bends, loads on the wires and add ease of access, will be added soon.

The wires are now laid out to avoid sharp bends because the rules that are true for resistance in a water tubes also work in a data or electrical wire. Lets take a USB Cable sharp bends heighten the likelihood of data loss. How? Imagine a race track and a sharp corner data running wild and not lowering the speed and some of it will not make the corner.

USB cables are designed to be flexible, but excessive bending or frequent bending at sharp angles can lead to physical damage that may result in data loss or intermittent connections.

Why am i planning this to this detail level?

It started with a lack of knowledge on small electronics, wire resistance, power drop etc. Now it has transformed to looking at the limitations on wire length versus resistance, wire diameter, voltage drops etc BUT most importantly finding a way around these limitations!

Example: A normal recommended limitation when working with the Arduino 3.3V and the distance of wires to sensors with data and power cables is 30 cm (read 1 foot) resistance and voltage drop seems to be a big part of it but so is Signal Interference because of a lack of shielding depending on the purpose of the wire. Wire diameter vs the resistance is also a part of the equation. I might in the near future go all out detail geek on how these parts are working TBD.

A big part of planning this Spine is imagining how to build it and let me be honest this is by a large margin the most complex part to date. Can't help being a bit exited about the process.

Well that's it for now

Nox Out

 

Hi all

The Process of building the case as I see it at the moment.

My initial idea and long term solution is 3D printing the entire case.

This does present some difficulties:

1. The case is 450 x 450 x 650 mm try finding a 3D printer within a budget that can handle this size short term. This is not even including the cost for 3D print failures, in both time and materials.

2. Outsourcing would be an option looking at the price, the cost for outsourcing is close to https://creality3dofficial.com/products/creality-cr-10-s5-3d-printer

This means we hit the thinking mans option, work the problem. Get maximum effect of the resources available. So a smaller printer, gluing the 3D prints together and optimize?!

For the Shell this is surprisingly simple. instead of 3D printing the sides of the shell I use glass/mirrors cut to the size of the sides. This cuts down the 3D prints to the corners of the Shell with some support for the glass. I will only be using this 1st edition Shell to make a form for the carbon fiber Shell.

The advantage of this process is the flat surface and cost of glass that's is actually cheaper than if it was 3D printed and the time saved is massive.

So printing 4 corners in 2 parts each with support for the glass on the inside, check.

Creating a form likely of fiberglass on the outside in 2 parts splitting it on the corners. There is a lot of grinding and polishing in between prepping the form for the Carbon-fiber fabric, lets be honest that not all.

Thinking about it all, RESET: Creating a form with the glass and corners for the carbon-fiber is the premium choice, discarding the glass fiber form! So1 step back and less work for me and the option of looking through the glass and seeing if the carbon-fiber is mounted where it is supposed to be. Might have to create a Top flange to mount the Carbon-fiber on.





10 minutes exercising the grey matter, money and time saved. Problem is I still, that I would like a large ass 3D printer, well now I might have time to build one TBD.

The main Challenge is mounting the carbon fiber in a 3 mm deep layer, not using prepreg. I did some time ago choose to use a wet layup/vacuum process because prepreg has a limited lifespan in a freezer, and needs a autoclave (oven) to harden, The oven part is not a deal breaker it can be build relatively cheap using IR lamps and insulation in a metal box.

The same process is initially used for the Frame, it will need some more preparation and 3D printed inserts (for the Cut outs) before mounting the Carbon fiber in the form. I will at a later date go into detail on this part.



The pièce de résistance is at present the Spine/core (The motherboard Tray) it has some complexity that will likely go up before I find the design fitting my wish for functionality.







I would go into detail about the wires and the wire mounts but I am out of time.

Added a day late

Glass for the bottom a tat longer to be able to add a MNT for the Fiber fabric:









Fabric inserted from the Top







Nox Out for now

 

Hi all

A short note not intended to blame or point fingers, just a FYI.

Some days ago i mentioned that I really wanted a large printer on 1 of my posts in here and today YouTube pushed 2 Large printer projects on my account, If you are interested it puts it all into perspective, in my opinion that's a healthy point to start from. I still want a large 4ss 3D printer.

The links are: