H2 BladeCenter

[rvalle]

( this project post started as a discussion in OpenSCAD H2 Model )

In case there are some new dedicated x86 community members who do not regularly look at the ARM forums,
there is an OpenSCAD H2 model available here.

Using this fantastic OpenSCAD H2 Model I am working on a blade center similar to the fantastic one created by Clear Simple that I recently remixed.
You can find the details here https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3929164

Looks like this:

IMG_20191020_160816.jpg (409.73 KiB) Viewed 1671 times

[rvalle]

For a more realistic model, here is an assembly of the h2 with peripherals and heat-sink on:

H2-Periferals.PNG (201.94 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

H2-HeatSink.PNG (346.38 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

[rvalle]

Here comes the design of the caddy:

H2-Caddy.PNG (276.69 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

H2-Caddy2.PNG (99.32 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

H2-Caddy3.PNG (106.82 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

H2-Caddy4.PNG (188.24 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

[rvalle]

And the first 3d print.
It pretty much works, but I will try to make the pillars a bit thicker.
Also, will test if it is possible to add/remove RAM and SSD while on the Caddy, perhaps I need to cut some more here and there to get better accessibility.

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photo_2019-11-06_22-04-15.jpg (131.38 KiB) Viewed 1668 times

[odroid]

Nice 3D printings!

Please consider writing an article for our Magazine.

[Mullcom]

And the first 3d print.
It pretty much works, but I will try to make the pillars a bit thicker.
Also, will test if it is possible to add/remove RAM and SSD while on the Caddy, perhaps I need to cut some more here and there to get better accessibility.

photo_2019-11-06_22-04-06.jpg

photo_2019-11-06_22-04-00.jpg

photo_2019-11-06_22-04-15.jpg

Can you pleas upload this files here?

Can be fun to test this out. I yast buy a 3d printer. Is this slave working with other bords Also?

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[rvalle]

Please consider writing an article for our Magazine.

I a happy to present the BladeCenter in the magazine, once that it is finished.

[mad_ady]

What about the enclosure where you are connecting the caddies? Is it printed as well?

[Mullcom]

For power i sugest that at today the best way is to go with old PSU

[rvalle]

For power i sugest that at today the best way is to go with old PSU

Which one is tha power supply? I did not know there was more than one.

With regards to the uploads, let me try it 3d files first. see below

[rvalle]

I have been working on the Mount for the caddy and the ears to attach the whole thing to the rack.

The Blade center will be 3U, that fits perfectly. However I could not make 8 H2s in 3Us for a very few millilitres.

Unfortunately the audio connectors are very tall, 4mm taller than the other connectors, which times 8 is 32 millimetres.

Finally I decided to make an unusual hack, letting each audio connector embed in the next block:

H2Mounted.PNG (276.85 KiB) Viewed 1529 times

The Audio block is higher than the mount, as you can see on this side view.

H2Mounted2.PNG (105.7 KiB) Viewed 1529 times

However, a socket has been created on the base of the mount to embed the audio connector from the previous H2 block.

H2Mounted3.PNG (168.14 KiB) Viewed 1529 times

With this hack it seems possible to fit 8 H2s in 3Us.

Also, note that the mount has been created in a way that no support should be required to 3D print it, which will save time and plastic.
Little knobs and holes have been created to ensure good alignment.

Here you can see how each audio connector embeds in the next block, saving space to allow 8 units in 3Us.

H2BladeCenter4.PNG (116.18 KiB) Viewed 1529 times

Once you put them toguether the blade center looks like this:

H2BladeCenter.PNG (123.25 KiB) Viewed 1529 times

I am going to be printing this weekend to test if all the parts work as expected.

[rvalle]

I have now Received the RAM and SSD for my H2.
... and the outer SODIMM cannot be installed while the H2 is in the Caddy, everything else is accessible.

In case of having to replace hardware, upgrade memory, etc. Its nice if not many work is required.

photo_2019-11-08_10-31-02.jpg (116.96 KiB) Viewed 1473 times

[rvalle]

And for the brave, here comes a first STL pre-release.
Includes the caddy (in 2 versions: Self Tapping screw and another for M3 HeatLock Brass Inserts)
Mount and Ears (left/right).

As you can see above the parts have almost not been tested and surely will change.

H2BladeCenterSTL-Alpha-NotTested.zip

(90.54 KiB) Downloaded 20 times

[rvalle]

First mount print came out and seems to be working OK. (thought I posted this already...).

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photo_2019-11-08_08-45-38.jpg (145.5 KiB) Viewed 1472 times

Next will see if 2 mounts chain themselves OK.

[Mullcom]

For power i sugest that at today the best way is to go with old PSU

Which one is tha power supply? I did not know there was more than one.

With regards to the uploads, let me try it 3d files first. see below

I am talking about how to power all this devices. and minimize Cabling and adapters.

Instead to have one adapter for every device you can modify PSU so PSU can power all this devices in the slave. i got that tip from user domih here on forum.

[rvalle]

Ok, the second mount came out and it is working well with the first one.
The alignment knobs work well, but the holes need to be clean of plastic for them to do their job properly.
The cut out to embed the audio connectors in the next mount seems also good.
Looks improbable that modifications will be required to this part.

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[Mullcom]

Hello. i hast yast start to 3d print stuff. so i am wondering with program you are using when you modify or creat new 3d models?

[rvalle]

There are many

Opensource you can use openscad or freecad, freemiun there's inventor and onshape.com and professional you have Solidworks...

Probably I have forgotten many...

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[Mullcom]

There are many

Opensource you can use openscad or freecad, freemiun there's inventor and onshape.com and professional you have Solidworks...

Probably I have forgotten many...

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Yes. the best i know is Sracheup.... but i am facing a problem with this blade files. How do i convert this files to STL ???

.SLDPRT ? To STL

[Mullcom]

I start to hate this company SolidWorks to be so annoying to close down for ppl that want to be creative.. thay make a plugin for sketchup but they want have money for it!

[rvalle]

I have uploaded stl, haven't I?

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[Mullcom]

I have uploaded stl, haven't I?

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Yes you have. But I was trying to get the original model. I am also interested in raspberry pi 4.

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[rvalle]

Yes in the thingiverse project I modified the cart only, the other stls are also in thingiverse. Read the instructions. That will work fine for the raspberry pi 4

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[Mullcom]

Yes in the thingiverse project I modified the cart only, the other stls are also in thingiverse. Read the instructions. That will work fine for the raspberry pi 4

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I get 30days on the add-on so now I have all files on STL . Going to check the other remix to. My plan is to build more dynamic blade. So in future it working for many types bords. And fix a nice cable setup. Hope

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[rvalle]

My plan is to build more dynamic blade.

Exactly, that is the plan.

Of course RPI and H2 are on different leagues. Like you can have a 2U blade center for small boards and a 3U for bigger ones, like the H2,

This H2 blade enter is a complete redesign, mostly parametric, so that it is easy to port back to 2U and multiple boards.

[rvalle]

At last, I managed to print the whole thing. Had some issues along the way but the measurements worked very well. I am putting my first H2s in service as nodes of my OpenNebula private cloud.

I have also implemented a press fit system so that the blades don't come off the mount easily. Now there's a click and a helper tab to get them out. Similar to the ethernet cables.

As previously suggested another power supply is required. The individual power supply sold here is very rack unfriendly. And 8 of those at the same time will just don't work.

I think the required spec is 15V 32A 480W for the 8 H2s, or maybe better 2x15V 16A 240W for 4+4 H2s so that not "all eggs" sit on the same basket. Would be nice if they take 1U max. MW has both and 1U mount but a bit expensive. Does anyone know othe brands?


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[rvalle]

The Press Fit mechanism works like this:

A knob from the from the mount will insert into the caddy to block it when in place. a small rail in the caddy also allows for inserting the caddy without issues until it clicks.

Here is a section to see the lock system working.

H2Mounted-PressFit-Section.PNG (168.01 KiB) Viewed 1105 times

Then there is also a helper tab that will help release the caddy. Since the enclosure is plastic is the actual deformation of the plastic that allows for the knob to get out of the lock.

Here you can see caddy and tab, how they interact.

H2Mounted-PressFit.PNG (221.07 KiB) Viewed 1105 times

I am not 100% sure that the helper tab is required, but sometimes it is useful. In particular when the blade center is not yet installed in the rack, then is difficult to place force in any direction.

The release bellow includes with/without Press Fit feature and Helper tab. I like the feature because it is easy to drop an H2 when moving the BladeCenter before install it in the rack. Also because ethernet cables can pull the H2 out of the BladeCenter, etc.

[rvalle]

BOM and V1 RELEASE:

H2-BladeCenter 3Ux8

IMG_20191114_133152.jpg (389.2 KiB) Viewed 1082 times

Required Hardware:

- 4x Rods, M6x44.5 cm (Metal or Nylon)
- 4x M6 Nuts
- Optional 32x M3 HeatLok Brass Inserts from PSM International or similar.
- Optional 32x M3x5mm screws for Insert Version
- Optional 32x self tapping screws 5-6mm long (hole is 2.5mm wide)

Printed Parts

- 8xH2 Caddy (either Inserts or Self tapping version) Version with inserts recommended, but requires brass inserts.
- 8xH2 Mount part (vanilla, pressfit or pressfit&tab version) recommended the one with tab.
- 1xEar Left
- 1xEar Right

Equipment:

- 8xH2 Boards
- 3U available in a rack (small depth/network rack is OK)
- (To Be Researched) PSU

Pending and Issues

- I have not tested the SelfTapping screws version of the caddy
- The distributed PSU is not rack friendly.

Feedback for H2 Design

For the particular use case of using the H2 as a rack blade, the following issues have been found:

- The audio connectors are too tall should stay within limits of other connectors.
- The positioning of the power/reset switches is inconvenient, would be better to have them from the front or the caddy.
- The positioning of the leds is also inconvenient

[psomero]

You put the boards in backwards. They should blind mate into a backplane.

JK, really though this is a cool project.

Are you familiar with plastite style thread forming screws? You can get rid of the brass inserts and have just as strong of a joint that is good for ~10 screw insert/remove cycles with a fastener that goes straight into a printed hole. I do a lot of 3D printing and always evangelize for the plastites. They changed my life: https://www.mcmaster.com/plastite-screws

[Mullcom]

Have you seen this ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR6OBlSzp7I

This look so nice.

I found ebay to buy this... i think i am going for this next time i shop
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R ... d&_sacat=0

[rvalle]

Are you familiar with plastite style thread forming screws?

No, I am not.

I am happy with the inserts for this kind of application. I work a lot with smaller sizes too.

However I find very interesting your link and will definitely check it up. Will order same and test them.


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