Goal
- Explore the possibilities of the Uni Pro Kit
- use it for housings and frames
- maybe even for a little device or rig
Action items
- build alternative housing / frame for the Nimble™
- do the construction with FreeCAD utilizing the UPKLib
- expore the toolchain
- automatic BOM in FreeCAD
- assembly guide (step by step exploded views)
- integrating 3D-PCBs from KiCAD
- how to represent cable-trees
People and their roles
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Oliver Schlüter | UPK Introduction, Maintainer |
| Jason Selvarajan | Prototyping Nimble case with UPK + some 3d printing for testing |
| Marcel Partap | Documentation |
Documentation
Universal Prototyping Kit for
- We built a prototype frame from UPK case for Nimble to fit into a waterproof case (some Pelican clone from Italy).
- The UPK uses 20 mm as a grid size while Nimble is around 14 mm so it took a little bit of tricks to get them to fit together.
The UPK frame inside the box, still needs some fixing points and ‘buffers/dampening’ to keep it safe during travels. 
Here’s an example to some MacGuyvering, where the T-slot on the bottom is adjustable and allows the perpendicular T-slot to rest ontop of it. This T-slot is fixed to the racks, which isn’t perfect, but allows for the racks to be removed from the box in a pretty simple way.
The parametric racks would make it even faster and easier. 
Summary
Results
What did you accomplish?
We made a prototype alternative frame for Nimble using UPK. It still requires 3d-printed frames for the electronic housings, so in a way, all we did was replace the 14mm plastic T-frame clone with the real one. The benefit is that it’s a bit more rhobust/weather proof and can help make the assembly much faster - assuming the parts haven’t been printed in advance.
Next steps
What needs do be done after this hackathon?
- Finish the freecad 3D model and assembly instructions.
- Make it look as good as Nimble.
Open questions
UPK seems to be good for rapid prototyping but the parts are (relatively) expensive to be used permanently compared to ABS/PETG or alternatives like wood or sheet metal. So is this a viable solution, even though it looks cool?
Links
Issue tickets etc.
