mini-ITX case

From Sean we received pictures of his MakerBeam mini-ITX case.

According to Sean the stock lengths of MakerBeam work for this exactly. The top and bottom panels he cut using something called the ‘shaper origin’ (a hand-held CNC-router).
He also used this tool to cut (and engrave) the plexiglass held by makerbeams. He was very pleased with how it turned out since it is hard to get the corners right. The plexiglass slots right in (<=3mm) but the corners need to be cut just a little to fit. The corner cubes do not have slots.

We agree with Sean. It looks great and is a job well done.

Team MakerBeam

The Ant – Compact PCB Maker

The Ant was a successful project. So successful we never got round to make a blog post about it. The project now seems to have run it’s course. Some parts have become obsolete and hard to get a hold of. Why highlight it then now? It is a classic good MakerBeam project where MakerBeam is used to frame items that are (or were) ready available and custom 3D printed items.

The Ant team also made a series of how to build the Ant step by step in a series of videos. The 200mm (b: 100900, c: 100180) and 60mm (b: 100067, c: 100157) MakerBeam (10x10mm), T-slot nuts (101619), right angle brackets (100326), square headed bolts 6mm (100359) and the 200mm linear slide (104162) and self locking nuts (101619) are all needed for the build and they go through all the steps. You can find these here below.

The Ant team obviously is passionate about electronics. Two of them, Matti and Angelo, have gone on to create videos on the channel Due Makers Asociali (Italian language).

Team MakerBeam

UVTOWER

In 2020 the ArsElectronica program took place all over the world. There were conferences, exhibitions, performances and concerts. These all took place locally but taken together they created a festival on the net to be enjoyed worldwide. One of the art performances was the UVTOWER.

The UVTOWER, pictured above, is a musical instrument. It is made with lasers and mirrors. Adding and removing mirrors changes the beat. Andrea Guidi and Giacomo Lepri use these lasers and mirrors to configure alternative ways for composing music. In doing so they reflect on the notion of growth in an accelerated age. The system collapses and starts anew. Changing the setting of the mirrors speeds up this process or slows it down.

Below is the @ArsElectronica 2020 YouTube video.

Team MakerBeam

Custom computer frames using MakerBeam

Custom PC Hardware is a fan of MakerBeam. So much so he dedicated a video to our beams and how to use these for custom build PC cases.

Before he discovered MakerBeam, both regular 10x10mm and MakerBeamXL (15x15mm), he would look for a case to contain all the parts. Only to find himself searching for another case after he had upgraded or expanded his computer. All the parts of the new design would not fit the initial case.

With MakerBeam he dismantles the existing frame and reassembles it to meet his needs. As each build is a prototype, should the requirements change, the frame is easy to change too.

Custom PC Hardware buys his MakerBeam from Technobotsonline in the UK. On our website you can find a ‘where to buy‘ page with a number of resellers listed.

Team MakerBeam

New product: sponge rubber cord

We added a new small product to our product range: sponge rubber rectangular cord 5x5mm for MakerBeam (10x10mm), article number 104454. The rubber cord can be used to create surface protection. Or protection for something else like a tablet, see the tablet stand below.

The cord only barely fits the T-slot of MakerBeam (10x10mm). Part of the rubber will stick out and create a cushioning band.

The sponge rubber can be easily cut into the desired custom lengths. You have to stretch the rubber somewhat to fit the T-slot, see pictures.

The 5x5mm cord will only fit the MakerBeam (10x10mm) like this. We are working to introduce an alternative for MakerBeamXL and OpenBeam shortly.

Team MakerBeam

Ultimaker dust cover

Vincent Mensink of Studio Mensink is a regular customer. He works on product design and special props and effects. He has to come up with ingenious constructions to make these designs work. He loves MakerBeam (10x10mm), MakerBeamXL (15x15mm) and OpenBeam, especially the profiles anodised in black.

MakerBeam is used a lot in combination with items that are ready available and custom 3D printed items. To create these custom 3D printed parts he has a few Ultimakers lined up.

You will notice the dust covers on these Ultimakers. These covers were especially designed by Vincent to fit the Ultimaker. You can find the special designed brackets and the bill of materials on Thingiverse. You can also find the bill of materials below.

Dust cover designed for the Ultimaker 2+

The Acrylic lasercut plates slide into the MakerBeam frame.
The 3D printed brackets lock the cover into place.

Part list:
MakerBeam (10x10mm)
• 4x 200mm (b: 100090, c: 100180)
• 7x 300mm (b: 100102, c: 100191)
• 8x corner cube (b: 100988, c: 100270)
• 8x T-slot nut (101619)
• 8x M3 6mm bolts (100359)

Laser cut:
• 1x Top-300,56mm x 300,56mm (2mm acrylic)
• 4x Side-200,56mm x 300,56mm (2mm acrylic)

3D print:
• 4x DustCover Bracket (3 walls/100%fill)

Team MakerBeam

“Ryzen” PC with MakerBeam

On PCPARTPICKER.COM spawn01 shows the PC case he built himself. For the framework he used MakerBeam.

You can read more on PCPARTPICKER.COM, click here. Below are a few more pictures of the build.

And the last few pictures are from the start of the build with MakerBeam the most visible (click here to go to our website).

spawn01 ends his entry about the build that it is a great DIY project to take on. We could not agree more.

Team MakerBeam

Coupe de Robotique France

Good news for the team of Les Karibous (@LesKaribous). The Coupe de Robotique France finally could take place. It was already scheduled for 2020 but like with almost everything else it was rescheduled because of Covid19 restrictions.

The team of Les Karibous were awarded a jury prize. You can see part of the team pictured here above. For transportation purposes they built a special box. The box was equipped with light and sound effects so it could double as a good display case as well.

Below you can see the robots of Les Karibous in action during the competition.

For more information about the robots please visit the Twitter accounts of @LesKaribous and @barbatronic (French). For more information about the competition please visit Coupe de Robotique France.

Team MakerBeam

MakerBeam in the workshop: Simone Giertz

Still from: Building a Musical Instrument Out of Teeth

A lot of customers buy MakerBeam with a certain project in mind. Which is good, but MakerBeam is also quite handy to have around. Simone Giertz, inventor and youtuber, makes this clear in her video.

Still from: Building a Musical Instrument Out of Teeth

In this video Simone builds a musical instrument. She combines a number of teeth with a keyboard in order to create music. During the process she uses MakerBeam for a temporary framework to test opening and closing of the teeth.

Stills from: Building a Musical Instrument Out of Teeth.

Team MakerBeam