Hi, it's project time again. It's about six years ago since I did a video EV Blade 29 LinkedIn if you haven't seen it, how to search for and an enclosure for a product and well, that was like a general thing. I think I don't know I haven't watched it in six years. I'll link it in, have a look and then I've got another one as part of my USB uh Power Supply series.

Yes, I might eventually do an update video on that to show you uh, what happened to that and where it got. Leave it in the comments down below if you want to see it anyway. I Talked about our housing down there anyway. I'll link these in I'm starting a new project at the moment.

won't tell you what it is uh, right now. but I'm searching for an enclosure. So let's go to Dave CAD here and this is what I'm looking for. a rather unusual enclosure which I don't know the exact terms for it.

That's what I'm gonna do. we're going to search for it. uh, see if we can find something suitable in this video. It's a bench top enclosure so you know about yay big something like that that sits on the bench top.

Obviously, you know I'd have a little rubber feet on the bottom or whatever and it would have a sloped uh, you know, display on the front here and then maybe some buttons on the front. So some sort of compact ABS enclosure or something like that and of course, it'd probably be split. You know, along here, something like that, because it'd come in two parts. You've got to put your PCB.

it'll probably have, you know, some little uh, you know, standoffs in there for your PCB or whatever. So it did. Yeah. I'm kind of looking to sort of build a project around an enclosure like this.

Now if I can't find something suitable in this video, this is uh, I may not I might actually uh, just do the board and then 3D print I Talked about this on the Amp Hour in the last episode every week. If you haven't seen it, the Amp hour with uh Chris Campbell oh I actually. uh, talked about um, you know, possibly like 3D printing a case for something like this so you know I'd have to brush off my 3D modeling skills and and potentially uh, you know, design my own to fit around the PCB so to speak. but I just thought it.

do we actually have something? Can we search for a enclosure like this? Well let's give it a go. now. One of the first things you could do is actually go over to the EV blog Wiki which um has been shut down for donkeys years. Should I re-enable this sort of thing so that, uh, you know the the community can add uh resources in here.

Anyway, there is actually an enclosure manufacturer's uh list over here where it's um I added a good lot of these but uh I think But from memory this was set up like probably 10 years ago now. um, but these are a lot of um, like enclosure manufacturers so you can go to all of these sites now. of course you would do like maybe Google searching or you could do parametric searching on your favorite uh, component supplier, digikeys and mouses and the rest of it. Uh, right.

Um, so yeah. Anyway, there's lots of enclosure. This is not a comprehensive list, but you know you can start with some of these. If you've got a particular favorite, it might go to them first.

for example. So I'm actually going to Google this a sloped desktop, uh, enclosure and well, yeah, you know you got your Hammonds you got your buds, you got your uh, takishis, your okw's right. Oh yeah, um, the multi-cop is not a thing, that's just a generic, uh, brand name from Um element uh, 14. But you know, Pac Tech right? You got all the usual uh, suspects.

Now you've got. you know, these sloped ones like this. but that's not really what I'm after because it doesn't really have that um, you know that flat part on the front so it's just the sloping starts from the front. so not really what I'm after.

but we get in there so we might do an image search for something like this. and maybe we'll luck upon something for example. And this is the great thing about searching for something like this. and even if you see an enclosure like this, it can go.

Oh, I've got a project idea for that enclosure. Lots of my projects have started because I've seen a case that I really liked. Oh, what can I fit into that? you know, like these little tiny you know, these little handheld ones there. Oh I can make something out of that right? But anyway.

um so we've got lots of oh, that's see, we've got one here that's not too shabby. So now we're talking down here, right? We've got ones like this and you know that's that's not too bad. So it looks like I'm onto something with my sloped desk desktop enclosure search term. So yeah, um, but that's got like I wanted I didn't want that big of a front panel but I guess like they're optimizing.

uh Market forces of dictate that most people want like a screen up the top here and then they want some sort of large keypad thing I don't I I just want a few buttons and indicators and stuff I kind of want it Opposite I want like a larger uh screen on the big sloped uh surface and then just a small Pat front panel for uh buttons and whatnot. So whoa, there we go that one bud Industries have got something like that. and of course you can get these uh cases often from the manufacturer. You can get them customized so you send them your drawing.

I Want you know an LCD cut out window here I want switch cutouts here and here so that your board just slides in and often they will actually do that for like a tooling charge or you know it depends. They might add either a tooling charge or they might add a premium onto the case. Of course you can just buy the case and then give it to a third-party manufacturer to like a machine shop to actually do them. but you know it's nice if you get sort of like the manufacturer uh to just do that service for you and probably a good majority of them will.

So yeah, once again, uh a big slopey fronts. not really what I'm after. so once again like we could go into the individual manufacturers but that could take hours like this video would be a couple of hours long if I went into every enclosure manufacturer and purposely went into uh the you know into all their sections. That'd just be nuts right? But but then again, I don't want metal right? So I could put in ABS enclosure or something like that that might narrow it down a tad well.

I do like that one that case there reminds me of the fluke uh, multimeter that the form factor that I really like. So if I was looking to do like a bench top multimeter format I would like that that that's really rather Schmick I kind of like that. see I could uh, change my design I'm not necessarily set on that, but I could like have maybe the big screen on the front like that and you could argue. Well, I could put some buttons on the top, but that's just too deep I don't really want that, but you know I'm the Project's flexible like I'm not really set I'm just you know, if there happened to be something available, then I'd build the project around that.

If not, uh, I'll just do the bare PCB and then maybe build our design the PCB in mind. You might see this in upcoming videos and then, uh, build it in mind. With that the fact that I'm going to like design a two-part 3D printed enclosure to actually go around it. So yeah, I'm not really.

uh, seeing exactly what I had in mind. Unfortunately, there's an interesting one I Don't mind that. but the problem with the buttons on the top is that your hand goes over the screen. So from a usability point of view, you're sort of like like covering up the screen and that's not really.

You know that's not really. Optimum from a UI interface point of view. Oh, look at that one slope laboratory enclosure that probably costs a fortune. Um I haven't don't think I've heard of old Tink Kia before, but jeez, they look pretty Schmick don't they? You know if you're designing like high-end uh, like custom instruments and stuff like that where the cost you know you might pay 50 bucks for the case and you just don't care.

you just want it to look Schmick for your uh Niche customers that you're charging, you know, a couple of grand for your uh Niche uh doofer Winkle widget As you can see like there's just so many like cool cases and stuff like that like you can get. You know, nice little ones like that. You know ones like that right? Really really interesting. um cases.

Wow, you need a slope in front enclosure? Look at that. It's just got a big flat thing on the front or is that the back? I think I think that's the ass end of it. Yeah someone's again like yeah look they've got like a well looks like a custom width sloping front enclosures from met case. you know they've got like buttons on top and things like that.

but yeah Google Images are isn't really doing the business here? Um, let's go to: Alibaba Let's go: Sloped desktop enclosure ABS Enclosure: Let's try that and nope. Nope nope. Oh, is there like a gallery version of this? that's better? All right? Yeah, nah, that's a yeah nut. But I think I just haven't got my Search terms right.

Sloping ABS case? No. Now we get in the uh Pelican type cases. That's definitely not what we want. sloping ABS Instrument case.

No no, no sloping desktop. ABS Instrument case. All right. we've got to add the desktop.

Nope. So it looks like you need enclosure instead of case for the keyword term. Uh, but that's that's pretty. Schmick Isn't it? Look at that desktop enclosure.

Oh yeah, yeah. Look, you want a professional looking product with the carry handles on the front and the tilting Bales and everything? Uh, Bob's your uncle? Look at that I'm gonna go sloped. Maybe not really seeing it there. that's not doing it.

Just go for desktop enclosure. Yeah, we get in and we're getting case manufacturers so that's good. No sloped ones. Sloped Desktop enclosure.

No. I'm really coming to get to here aren't I I was doing better. Far better with the Google image search. Maybe there's not many on Alibaba but I Find that surprising.

I'm going to try a benchtop. sloping panel bench top enclosure. Hey, there we go. Dual face, sloping plastic front enclosure.

Okay, so that's kind of like the first one. there you go. sloped controller enclosure. Okay, so we saw those on the Uh Google Images So yeah, we're getting there.

Okay, so sloping. just. it looks like there's just not that many. I Mean you know any of these manufacturers? You could actually approach them and say, hey, can you make this uh for me And yeah, give it enough volume, they they would make you a custom enclosure I'm sure now.

I'm really having no luck. I've tried a whole bunch of different variations of Search terms and really I'm I'm quite surprised I haven't really found anything nothing like what I was Finding with the Google image search here, you know slope in front enclosure here and it's just got like a generic uh ad for a uh supplier, right? and instrument case supplier once again. I Get that sloped controller I'm quite disappointed Alibaba hasn't come through I don't know. Leave it in the comments down below.

If you've got a search term on Alibaba that works, leave it in. Oh, look at that. that's funky, isn't it? Think up a project for that and it's a front. A Fronius Inverter Extrusion right? So they're ripping off a Fronius inverter.

Are they five bucks a pop? But yeah, doesn't that look funky? So here's a link to Alibaba here. So if we open that up right, what do we got? Cost Effective Dual Face Sloping Front Plastic Enclosure there. It's kind of there. so you could actually search that manufacturer.

Uh, Shenzin On Box Co-limited 13 years of injection molded experience, electronics and instrument enclosures we could go into like this specific category as well. Maybe that's better sloping? Oh oh, does that search within the category? No. can we actually search within that category? I Don't think we can. That's a bummer.

Anyway, back to this company. Uh. plastic desktop enclosure. Okay, we've got that one we've seen.

Uh, that one with the large sloped front. No, that's it. Okay, so nope. locked out.

Search digikey for desktop enclosure. Tiny little photo down here. it's mostly white space. Uh, that's a that's a product image.

Fail if there ever was one. Oh, there you go. That's a that's interesting, Little like a display case kind of thing. Who knew you could get that? No.

I'm just I'm just not seeing anything sloped here. Okay, search for sloped, uh. desktop in Mauser And unfortunately, um, there's no images. Well, that doesn't help me.

There's a pack Tech Joby But no, all the others from Lmb Heger haven't heard of them. But nope, that's a fail. Once again, we can search for desktop enclosures here. Oh what? No desktop? Electronics Instrument enclosure? Yeah, once again, no slopies, not seeing the love.

Nope. Okay, we could go direct into the manufacturers. but as I said. um, you start going down the rabbit hole.

But of course, like if you're working on new projects, spending a day just going through all the manufacturer's websites like the product, the case could make or break you. Especially if you don't have any skills that you don't have the time or you don't have the inclination to, you know, design your own case. So we go into plastic enclosures. There's nothing that looks, uh, yeah, yeah, you've got desktop E ABS plastic with aluminum cover.

They're really old school stuff. We used to be able to buy those in the 70s. Let's go to Takashi here. which is, uh, those sloping cases that we saw before they make some really Schmick cases sloped? Look at that, they have a category.

Yes I will have sloped please. Oh God and now you set your step two. I'll go. No, no, no, just just just search.

Just search all of sloped. please Slow. Oh, they don't give you. they don't give you a preview image now.

Good old cattle Dog will uh is often the best way you know. You flick through the old, you know, funnels or you know, digikey catalogs or whatever and you just search through the instrument enclosure. Once here, you go see a series sloped enclosure. Um, no, it looks like um, they're they're alloy I think I know they've got some.

Yeah, these are. these are all alloy. So these are all extruded jobbies. or they got plasticy.

It's a big range, but no. So I followed the money on one of those Google uh image searches I saw before this our Tinker yeah, one. um, and sure enough, plastic slope desktop enclosure I Mean that's that's. pretty groovy actually.

You could have the slope screen and the sloped buttons as well. but the problem with that is that yeah, you've got to have good rubber feet because if you push on that at an angle like at a high angle like that like the thing can move on your desktop and stuff. so not ideal. I'd prefer a flat, that flat front so that you can push down on the button.

Um, but yeah. look look, it's got the uh, it's got a battery uh, compartment in there and also looks like it's got a cut out for. uh, like you know, to get cables in the back. you know, like an ethernet cable or you know, a DC plug pack cable or something like that.

So that's really good. Um, and they they make. they've actually got a slope desktop enclosures category so that's pretty groovy, isn't it? They've got some interesting looking ones, but yeah, nothing like these are. these are lots of Manufacturers make those, but no, nothing.

man, that one's interesting. It's got a little foot on it, but no. unfortunately. Then I followed another Google image to our Baja enclosures.

I Haven't heard of them before, but they actually have a um like desktop plastic. uh, enclosures like this and quite a few manufacturers make those. Once again, they've got some interesting ones. Look, got some curved front ones like this.

You know, if you you build one of those wanky internet of things you know, desktoppy things you're putting on Kickstarter or whatever, then you know, something like that perhaps. But yeah, nah, couldn't really find anything on this. Go anyway. might have called it quits.

I've come a gutsa here. Leave it in the comments down below please if you can If you know of anywhere that sells and enclosure like desktop enclosure like that, you know it's yay big. something like that. you know, 12 centimeters long something that'd be great, leave it in the comments.

but this video certainly wasn't a waste of time failing like this. It means that oh, there might be nothing like suitable off the shelf out there. I'll search some more. Of course if I do I'll do a part two video or I might add it on to the end of this one.

But yeah, leave it in the comments down below. Um, it may be that I'll just design my uh PCB that just, um, you know, sits um on a bench on its own and then maybe I can make a way to hold up the LCD It's sort of like a sloping angle or something like that. You know the switches can go directly on the boards and then you can either use it as a exposed um desktop benchtop unit or I can design a 3D molded case like two-part case that slips around the existing open frame PCB design easily. So yeah, that might be quite nice and I haven't figured out.

Like the battery solution and stuff like that and the board like. there'll be stuff on the back panel as well so it'll need some cutouts for you know, things like that. Um yeah, Battery Solution don't know yet. but anyway I'm I'm working on it.

There you go. So I thought I'd have a quick look and sometimes you fail. So that's this video. I'm not gonna I'll search a bit more, but there you go.

Please leave in the comments down below. If you can find an enclosure like this, homework I'll leave it up to oh, crowdsource it actually I won't I won't spend any more time on it myself I'll simply crowdsource this. Can anyone find an enclosure like that off the shelf? Anyway, hope you enjoyed that video and found it useful. If you did, please give it a big thumbs up.

As always, discuss down below: catch you next time. Thank you.