Anybody know of or has made a see through enclosure for a Domino or Panda (II)? I’ve obviously seen what GHI has, and the eSawdust enclosure for the Domino, but am interested in clear plexiglass (or similar material).
I hacked together the ‘enclosure’ below, leaving the sides open for accessibility. This design lets me stack as many boards and/or sheilds as I need, but eventually the boards will need a more protected home that lets the blinky lights shine through 8)
Thx,
Eric
I don’t know if you have seen my cases. These are open too, though.
@ Architect - I like the ‘outboard’ screw mounts and that you skipped using the board’s mount points on the Panda case. How thick is the plexi? And is there clearance between the bottom plate and the solder points?
The ChipworkX case is also super sweet. Was the Make magazine in the background staged? 
It is 3mm. Solder points lay flat on bottom. It is actually perfect fit which makes board on the same level with middle plate.
Make magazine - pure accident :whistle:
I mentor a First robotics team and we have several VEX teams. For several years we have been using poly carbonate sheets. At first we just used 2d. The last 2 years we have gone 3d with vacuum forming. The following video may inspire you.
[url]Vacuum Forming with your Kitchen Oven and Vacuum Cleaner - YouTube
I want to try vacuum forming someday. Thanks for sharing!
Do you have more pictures of things you made that way?
This page shows one piece from last year. It’s 1/4" poly.
[url]http://wiki.team1640.com/index.php?title=VacuumFormingPage[/url]
Poly is one of the hardest to vacuum form.
url not work here.
@ Gary2 This is cool. I checked out other parts of that site. Looks like a lot of fun!
@ Nicolas3 - What board (and sheild) are you going to put in that box?
@ Architect - My plexi panda case kharma must be good… I discovered a friend has a tabletop scroll saw that I can borrow for the weekend, so am going to attempt to make a few of your cases. Any suggestions on an optimal blade type/size? He also suggested ‘heat glazing’ the cut edges with some kind of small flame source to make them look a little more polished. Ever try that?
No, I have not tried “heat glazing”. I think small torch should work. I might try that. The smaller the blade - the better. It is easier to do turns. When you get the saw try it on a scrap of plexi first.
Post some pictures when you are done. ;D
One more thing. Print the template and if your plexi has protective paper glue the template on top. You can also put panda on the template to double check lines and gaps. Just in case your panda is different than mine. ;D
Polycarbonate is hygroscopic. (Holds moisture) If you get it too hot with out removing the moisture first you will get bubbles. If your using thick polycarb and have to make large bends you will get better results if the piece is heat soaked at 250F for at least 24 hours. I’ve found that the other half does not like me using the oven for hobby projects. Be careful. It’s hard to apply heat with a torch and not get bubbles. Clear PETG is a little easier to work with. Acrylic is worthless.
@ EricH,
I intend to fit inside the box a domino + ethernet shield, and a few connectors for external sensors.
A Panda II (a little bit longuer) should fit as well if you don’t use the battery space.
I don’t think an extra shield will fit. I have very few electronics to add inside my current projetcs.
My order was postponed because waiting for the new panda II to be received to ship at the same time ! As far as I understand a new bunch of panda II are about to be shipped, so hopefully I’ll be able shortly to let you know more.
This is not a big investment… 13.50 C$ !