Hello SFFNetwork,
I am rather new to this forum but always had an interest in SFF PCs. With my recent move back into my apartment, I decided it would be better to build a SFF system. I bought all my parts, and at this point, I had my system up and running--but without a case! So while on the hunt for cases, I was wasn't all too happy on the options, particularly in the way they were designed. So I set out to build my own with a couple main design goals:
The design takes after the typical design of a studio monitor, sizing also being rather similar. It comes out to 310mm * 176 mm * 223 mm (HxW
), putting it in around 12.1L.
With compatibility (at least for this form factor) being a major design goal, this design supports...
The entire case is designed around wood being a primary exterior design element, with bent aluminum sheets as the main structural component. There even is about about 11mm of cabling area behind the motherboard tray, which is also the point at which the 2.5" drive can be mounted. This results in a very "wooden" look, with the only exposed metal being the rear of the case.
Fabrication & Assembly
I attempted to design this in a way that I thought would be easy to maintain (assembly/disassembly), and most of all easy to fabricate. I originally tried to stay away from bending any metal, but given that my machining costs are $0 (hurrah for engineering school), I can afford to do some bending. There are 3 metal panels that need to be cut and bent into shape. They are then screwed onto the metal base-board and to each other with nuts and bolts--I opted to use readily available M3 machine screws whenever possible.
The side panels have been designed to slide into the case. I don't know how well this will actually go, but the plan is to cut the actual panels with 1/4" wood, then glue on an extra 1/16" sheet that acts as the backing and forms the channel through which the panels can be slided on to assemble the case. These are not load-bearing structures, so my judgement is that they will be fine.
Next Steps...
My major concerns right now to finish designing is finalizing fasteners and adding the power button.
I was originally going to opt for a generic panel mounted button, but I do not think it fits the aesthetic. An idea that came of in discussion was to use a standard rotary encoder with a button, and machine a small brass knob to sit on it. This would fit the overall feel of the case better. I felt bad about letting the other pins on the encoder go to waste, so the potential is there for me to hook up a small board with a HID-capable uC like a ATmega32u4 flashed to take encoder inputs as a volume control output. This would simply be wired to connect to the unused USB 2.0 headers on the motherboard, which would allow this to be permanently installed.
I am open to any suggestions/concerns/questions about this project. Please do let me know if I am doing something gravely wrong.
I am rather new to this forum but always had an interest in SFF PCs. With my recent move back into my apartment, I decided it would be better to build a SFF system. I bought all my parts, and at this point, I had my system up and running--but without a case! So while on the hunt for cases, I was wasn't all too happy on the options, particularly in the way they were designed. So I set out to build my own with a couple main design goals:
- Have generally good compatibility (i.e. not need risers)
- Be easy to maintain and fabricate
- Have a smaller footprint than the typical sandwiched SFF cases
- Fit in with the look of my furniture
- Look good!
|
|
The design takes after the typical design of a studio monitor, sizing also being rather similar. It comes out to 310mm * 176 mm * 223 mm (HxW
), putting it in around 12.1L. With compatibility (at least for this form factor) being a major design goal, this design supports...
- Up to 205mm long, 2-slot GPUs
- 130mm CPU cooler clearance
- SFX, SFX-L PSUs
- ITX motherboards
- 1 x 2.5" drive
The entire case is designed around wood being a primary exterior design element, with bent aluminum sheets as the main structural component. There even is about about 11mm of cabling area behind the motherboard tray, which is also the point at which the 2.5" drive can be mounted. This results in a very "wooden" look, with the only exposed metal being the rear of the case.
Fabrication & Assembly
I attempted to design this in a way that I thought would be easy to maintain (assembly/disassembly), and most of all easy to fabricate. I originally tried to stay away from bending any metal, but given that my machining costs are $0 (hurrah for engineering school), I can afford to do some bending. There are 3 metal panels that need to be cut and bent into shape. They are then screwed onto the metal base-board and to each other with nuts and bolts--I opted to use readily available M3 machine screws whenever possible.
The side panels have been designed to slide into the case. I don't know how well this will actually go, but the plan is to cut the actual panels with 1/4" wood, then glue on an extra 1/16" sheet that acts as the backing and forms the channel through which the panels can be slided on to assemble the case. These are not load-bearing structures, so my judgement is that they will be fine.
Next Steps...
My major concerns right now to finish designing is finalizing fasteners and adding the power button.
I was originally going to opt for a generic panel mounted button, but I do not think it fits the aesthetic. An idea that came of in discussion was to use a standard rotary encoder with a button, and machine a small brass knob to sit on it. This would fit the overall feel of the case better. I felt bad about letting the other pins on the encoder go to waste, so the potential is there for me to hook up a small board with a HID-capable uC like a ATmega32u4 flashed to take encoder inputs as a volume control output. This would simply be wired to connect to the unused USB 2.0 headers on the motherboard, which would allow this to be permanently installed.
|
|
I am open to any suggestions/concerns/questions about this project. Please do let me know if I am doing something gravely wrong.
