Introduction: Enclosure for Your Project With Aluminum Extrusion

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About: As I explore the exciting world of electronics, I can't help but feel a sense of wonder and amazement at the incredible things I discover!
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I am a electronics Hobbyist. I make custom electronic projects. most of the time, I 3d print enclosures for the projects. but it is not strong enough for some applications. it is a headache to 3d print larger enclosures due to print warping on the bed, also it takes more time to print.

then I think about building this on generic aluminum enclosures, but it was hard to find at my location, also it was not that cheap. After some brainstorming, I found out that I can build enclosures with extrusion used for aluminum fabrication, which is cheap to buy at a Local hardware shop,

I bought a 2.5in x1.5in 10 feet extrusion for only 1$, I can cut this to my preferred length and also need to 3d print side caps for inputs and outputs ports. this enclosure is low-cost, fast to make, and strong Compared to the Fully 3D-printed enclosure. also, it is reusable, due to its modular design.

⚠️caution: Not recommended to use it with high-voltage circuits due to voltage arcing

Supplies

  • Aluminum extrusion (you can find this in a local hardware shop)
  • M3 screw eBay
  • Spray paint/vinyl wrap(optional)
  • Screwdriver set
  • Hacksaw blade/electric cutter
  • Drill with 3mm bit

Step 1: Design Process

This is an example Design Process of making an enclosure, in this example, we are going to make an enclosure for 10A Step-down Voltage Module, after measuring the PCB dimensions and height, I find out that the 2.5in x1.5in extrusion with 80mm of length will be a good fit, we also need to fit 2 female dc jack pins to I/O Shield

Step 2: 3d Modeling

There are 4 main parts in this enclosure

  1. aluminum extrusion ( mainframe )
  2. side caps ( for holding the lo shield)
  3. io shield ( for installing the input/output ports )
  4. PCB holder ( to hold the PCB securely in the enclosure )

I use Autodesk Fusion 360 for modeling these parts, I already uploaded project files here, you might not need to model it again to customize, because of an awesome feature in Fusion 360 called parameters, I already setup the values on it, using this you only need to enter your extrusion dimensions. the model will update to the required dimensions automatically.

After opening this project file in Fusion 360 go to modify drop-down menu and select change parameters. there you can change height, length, and width values that fit your need .model will update automatically.

with this change parameters feature you can change

  1. height and width of side caps
  2. height and width of io shield
  3. height, length, and width of aluminum extrusion



Attachments

Step 3: I/O Shield Customization

I/O Shield is for easy installation of ports and connectors, all panel mount components will work here (potentiometer, LEDs, powers connectors, etc ) In this example we have two DC connectors that are panel mounted, so I designed it with holes for that, it is possible to put I/O Shield in both sides, here we only need one side, so I 3d printed one with holes and one without holes. after 3d printing push it through the back of the sidecaps and solder the wires to the dc connector terminal

Step 4: PCB Holder Customization

PCB Holder is only for holding the PCB Securely inside the enclosure also we are using Aluminium extrusion, which is conducive, so we need to isolate PCB contacts from the Aluminium extrusion.PCB Holder will help to not prevent any short circuits. when you customize the PCB holder, You need to make sure Perfect fits in three dimensions, also Design Pilot holes for the screws, I used m3 screws here. you can modify this from my project file

Step 5: Aluminium Extrusion

After figuring out the length of the design process, We need to cut the aluminum extrusion to the preferred length. The main thing when you cut in the extrusion is that it needs to be 90 degrees, It is hard to cut it with your hands at 90 degrees, so it is better to use an electric saw after cutting it, use a metal file to clean and smooth rough edges, After that drill 3MM holes for the M3 screws, use the 3d printed sidecaps fore hole reference

⚠️caution: When drilling and cutting, aluminum dust can be created. If this dust gets inside the enclosure, it could cause short circuits on the PCB. So, make sure to clean it up properly.

Step 6: Final Assembly

Now it is time for the final assembly.

  1. screw the PCB holder and PCBs
  2. putt the PCB holder with PCB to the extrusion
  3. complete the wiring of io shield
  4. connect io wires to the Pcb
  5. push io shield to the sidecaps
  6. put the side cap into the extrusion and screw it with four M3 screw

Step 7: Final Thoughts

these are some of the enclosures I designed for different projects with the same method. It saves me a lot of time for me. if you have access to CNC, you can also make an I/O interface on an aluminum extrusion surface. it is easy to make hand-held devices with this same method.

glad you like my Instructables

thanks