Raspberry Pi Case - "The Utility Box!"

thingiverse

Raspberry Pi - The Utility Box! I'm building an automation system and thinking creatively about how to use the Raspberry Pi in this process. One of the main challenges I faced was figuring out how to connect all my I/O for things like sensors and relays, and so on. Then it dawned on me that twisted pair CAT3 and CAT5 would be perfect for this, along with RJ12 and RJ45 connectors, which provides fast and reliable connections and disconnections. Home Depot sells wonderful modular wall plates that you can snap in various options, such as HDMI, USB, CAT3/5, and so on. (USB pass-through can be used as power if desired.) This makes it a natural solution for this type of I/O problem. However, mounting it poses another issue, because the standard blue utility box is not designed for external use. So I designed a box that is. I've included four different designs: - A short design which cuts off the end corner. - A long design which has the corner intact. - A dual-end design, which doesn't feature the tilt-up orientation, but allows you to have two different panels. - A quad design which has two panels on each end. Some people might wonder why I didn't build in mounting features inside the housing. This is mainly due to printing considerations. These prints are designed to be printed face down. If I added mounting features they would be perpendicular to the print bed, and would be very difficult to get to print correctly, with screws pressing against the layers. I think it's better to design mounts separately and then glue them into place. The texture and layering of 3D printing lends itself amazingly well to glue and epoxy bonding methods. Additionally, gluing mounts in after the fact adds maximum flexibility in terms of hardware support. I've decided to mark this as a work in progress, as I will likely continue to add things to this system over time. Such as additional boxes with this general design idea in mind, as well as different mounts to be used with it. However, every item should be print-ready.