custom plastic component case

[Hurleyautoaudio]

I've got a prototype of a project that i need to get a custom case built for so
that i can show it around. does anyone have any suggestions and good recent
experience?

thanks

gary

 

[Spehro Pefhany]

I've got a prototype of a project that i need to get a custom case built for so
that i can show it around. does anyone have any suggestions and good recent
experience?

Are you getting it molded eventually? There are several RPT
technologies that can make one or two pieces of custom case for
(relatively speaking) peanuts, especially if you have already done the
part design and solid modelling. Or use an existing standard case or
competitor's case and modify it to look like how yours will work.

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

 

[Frank Buss]

I've got a prototype of a project that i need to get a custom case
built for so that i can show it around. does anyone have any
suggestions and good recent experience?

Another idea: Use wood. It is easy to handle.

 

[Baphomet]

I've got a prototype of a project that i need to get a custom case built for so
that i can show it around. does anyone have any suggestions and good recent
experience?

For a prototype, either get an off the shelf case from a place like Radio
Shack or get a sheet of acrylic with a suitable glue and make it yourself.
What are "they" going to think?...that it's a prototype?

 

[Fred]

For a prototype, either get an off the shelf case from a place like Radio
Shack or get a sheet of acrylic with a suitable glue and make it yourself.
What are "they" going to think?...that it's a prototype?

Depends on who the potential customer is? First impressions count and you
don't normally get a second chance. Spending money on a good case may well
be a good investment.

 

[Mike D2]

I second that. Depending on your product you could get one machined out of
plastic or made by a rapid prototyping process like SLA or FDM. You can get
some pretty amazing professional looking and "working" products this way at
a reasonable cost.

Here's a good link to get you started:
http://www.cc.utah.edu/~asn8200/rapid.html

 

[Fritz Schlunder]

Are you getting it molded eventually? There are several RPT
technologies that can make one or two pieces of custom case for
(relatively speaking) peanuts, especially if you have already done the
part design and solid modelling. Or use an existing standard case or
competitor's case and modify it to look like how yours will work.

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

Could you give a very roughly speaking idea of what "peanuts" really might
translate to in terms of US dollars? Are we talking tens of dollars,
hundreds of dollars, thousands, etc?

Also what do most people normally use to do the part design and the solid
modelling? I assume this is some sort of CAD type program? Are there
industry standards and formats for this type of stuff?

 

[Fritz Schlunder]

Could you give a very roughly speaking idea of what "peanuts" really might
translate to in terms of US dollars? Are we talking tens of dollars,
hundreds of dollars, thousands, etc?

Also what do most people normally use to do the part design and the solid
modelling? I assume this is some sort of CAD type program? Are there
industry standards and formats for this type of stuff?

Oh yeah, and what about non rapid prototyping technologies. What about
these silicon rubber molds or other low volume plastic making technologies?
Do they produce parts that are more or less the same as what is normally
achieved with regular mass production injection molded techniques?

 

[Spehro Pefhany]

Could you give a very roughly speaking idea of what "peanuts" really might
translate to in terms of US dollars? Are we talking tens of dollars,
hundreds of dollars, thousands, etc?

A few hundred to maybe a thousand, US$, per copy depending on size,
materials, number of different parts required, finish (often they
require sanding and painting to get them to look close to the final
parts). Complexity doesn't matter much. That's assuming something you
can easily hold for a few minutes at arm's length, if it's something
like a 19" CRT monitor housing, the methods and or/prices would be
different. Creating the solid model is not included, and that work
would depend on how much design work was involved and how complex the
part is. The 2-D drawings should be created as secondary to the 3-D
model in this day and age.

The solid model is pretty cute in itself, you can (using a free viewer
program) rotate and zoom in on features of the parts, assemble them,
check for interference, and apply materials (blue plastic matte
finish?) to them, adjust lighting and get an idea how the product will
look.

Also what do most people normally use to do the part design and the solid
modelling? I assume this is some sort of CAD type program? Are there
industry standards and formats for this type of stuff?

Autocad Inventor, Solidworks, Pro-Engineer, Catia. Some have
free/cheap versions, but the full versions of most are fairly
expensive. IGES (a vector-like format) and STL (a raster-like format)
are two standards for files. STL files generally are pretty portable,
IME. Those programs above are not ideal for actually creating swoopy
shapes using NURBS (kind of the 3-D equivalent of Bezier curves), some
people say Rhino-3D is good for that, then take it into another
program to continue work on it.

A few hundred to $1K is very cheap compared to even a prototype
injection mold, and it makes it much more likely that you'll a) get
good orders in advance of buying the mold and b) the mold will come
out right. If you're thinking of exhibiting at a trade show, taking it
to buyers who can place big orders, etc. don't even think about it.

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

 

[Spehro Pefhany]

Oh yeah, and what about non rapid prototyping technologies. What about
these silicon rubber molds or other low volume plastic making technologies?
Do they produce parts that are more or less the same as what is normally
achieved with regular mass production injection molded techniques?

No, they're crap, generally speaking. Without a mold-steel machined
cavity exposed to 10,000+ PSI molding pressures and corresponding
clamp pressures, the results are never going to be up to the standards
of commercial mass-produced products. The choice of materials is also
much less, and it's hard to get things like electrical properties
guaranteed. Also, the per-part cost is high. But if you only need a
few, the "tooling" cost may dominate. Unfortunately, the poor
appearance may end up costing so many orders that it ends up scuttling
any possibility of getting a permanent tool.

Even with a proper mold, consumer companies such as Sony set a
standard of fit and finish in the minds of all customers in modern
countries that is very hard to meet.

Best regards,
Spehro Pefhany

 

[Garrett Mace]

I second that. Depending on your product you could get one machined out of
plastic or made by a rapid prototyping process like SLA or FDM. You can get
some pretty amazing professional looking and "working" products this way at
a reasonable cost.

Here's a good link to get you started:
http://www.cc.utah.edu/~asn8200/rapid.html

I would suggest looking around for the nearest well-rounded community
college, and enlisting the services of one or two model-making students.
Building cosmetic prototypes is what they are trying to do for a living. I
have seen some prototype models that were impossible to tell from the real
thing. Maybe the instructor is looking for 'real' projects for his students
anyway.