H2 BladeCenter

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:23 pm

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

hominoid wrote: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 9023 times

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:35 pm

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 9021 times

: H2-HeatSink.PNG (346.38 KiB) Viewed 9021 times

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:37 pm

Here comes the design of the caddy:

: H2-Caddy.PNG (276.69 KiB) Viewed 9022 times

: H2-Caddy2.PNG (99.32 KiB) Viewed 9022 times

: H2-Caddy3.PNG (106.82 KiB) Viewed 9022 times

: H2-Caddy4.PNG (188.24 KiB) Viewed 9022 times

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:41 pm

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 (78.42 KiB) Viewed 9023 times

: photo_2019-11-06_22-04-00.jpg (176.06 KiB) Viewed 9023 times

: photo_2019-11-06_22-04-15.jpg (131.38 KiB) Viewed 9023 times

Post by **odroid** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:53 pm

Nice 3D printings!

Please consider writing an article for our Magazine.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 5:57 pm

rvalle wrote: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 · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 7:13 pm

odroid wrote: 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 · Post by **mad_ady** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 9:53 pm

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

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Thu Nov 07, 2019 11:45 pm

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

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:26 am

Mullcom wrote: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 · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:59 am

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 8885 times

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

: H2Mounted2.PNG (105.7 KiB) Viewed 8885 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 8885 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 8885 times

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

: H2BladeCenter.PNG (123.25 KiB) Viewed 8885 times

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

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:36 pm

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 8829 times

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:41 pm

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 68 times

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:47 pm

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

: photo_2019-11-08_08-45-34.jpg (146.1 KiB) Viewed 8828 times

: photo_2019-11-08_08-45-38.jpg (145.5 KiB) Viewed 8828 times

Next will see if 2 mounts chain themselves OK.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 7:22 pm

rvalle wrote: ↑
Fri Nov 08, 2019 6:26 am

Mullcom wrote: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 · Post by **rvalle** » Fri Nov 08, 2019 9:01 pm

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.

: photo_2019-11-08_13-00-25.jpg (154.63 KiB) Viewed 8800 times

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sun Nov 10, 2019 6:55 am

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 · Post by **rvalle** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:01 am

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 · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:20 am

rvalle wrote: ↑
Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:01 am
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...

Sent from my Redmi Note 7 using Tapatalk

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 · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:37 am

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 · Post by **rvalle** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 2:02 am

I have uploaded stl, haven't I?

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Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 2:10 am

rvalle wrote: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 · Post by **rvalle** » Mon Nov 11, 2019 2:34 am

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 · Post by **Mullcom** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 4:48 pm

rvalle wrote: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

Sent from my Redmi Note 7 using Tapatalk

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 · Post by **rvalle** » Tue Nov 12, 2019 8:52 pm

Mullcom wrote: 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 · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 14, 2019 4:06 am

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 · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 14, 2019 7:55 pm

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 8461 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 8461 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 · Post by **rvalle** » Thu Nov 14, 2019 8:13 pm

BOM and V1 RELEASE:

H2-BladeCenter 3Ux8

: IMG_20191114_133152.jpg (389.2 KiB) Viewed 8438 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 · Post by **psomero** » Sun Nov 17, 2019 3:13 am

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 · Post by **Mullcom** » Sun Nov 17, 2019 6:14 am

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 · Post by **rvalle** » Tue Nov 19, 2019 9:30 am

psomero wrote: 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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Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon Mar 30, 2020 2:25 am

Hello. i am trying to make some modification to get some more functions in this blade setup. i have yast learn fution 360.... problem i have is that when i import them i dont get corectly size...

Is there any way someone have betther sulution for me or have a ide how to get this corectly in size?

i import STL files.

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Mon Mar 30, 2020 3:41 am

Mullcom wrote:Hello. i am trying to make some modification to get some more functions in this blade setup. i have yast learn fution 360.... problem i have is that when i import them i dont get corectly size...

Is there any way someone have betther sulution for me or have a ide how to get this corectly in size?

i import STL files.

Hi!

Good to know... What are you trying to achieve? Hdds?

The project was created in Solidworks I will try to see how we can best import in fusion 360

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Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sat Apr 04, 2020 11:09 pm

So start to get hang of this

Going to find a why to combine Both raspberry and H2 on this blade chassi.

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Sun Apr 05, 2020 4:14 am

That is a good idea. Currently I use 3u for h2 and 2u for rpis. But i see your point

I think it would be easier to mix H2 blades with RPis stacked.. U know?

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Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Wed Apr 08, 2020 11:07 pm

So i have start to redesign the blade. Using triangle instead of screws. and at the back i am going to put two blocks to follow the frame togather. Going to use this technique with triangles to get different cubes fit together.

I have some ides how to Bring in the fresh Air from outside and transport it back to every device and out in front. but its only in my head right now =P

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Thu Apr 09, 2020 12:13 am

rvalle wrote: ↑
Sun Apr 05, 2020 4:14 am
That is a good idea. Currently I use 3u for h2 and 2u for rpis. But i see your point

I think it would be easier to mix H2 blades with RPis stacked.. U know?

Sent from my Redmi Note 7 using Tapatalk

Yes you have right on that. But i have so more features in my head.. =D

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Thu Apr 09, 2020 11:44 pm

So i was need to redesign the box agan. Cabling from PCI-E dont fit so well. Now its better air flow and More space for many more Disk can be put in.

Please came with some comments on this box.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sun Apr 12, 2020 1:33 am

Made some progress with the lock for this blade rack.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:02 am

I am wondering if c4 have same dimension as RPi4?? If it has I can make a block for that to. Not much need to be changed.

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mad_ady · Post by **mad_ady** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:40 am

You can try with hominid's 3d c2 model to see dimensions. It should be the same size, but odroid said the case is different because of the power jack size/hdmi position.

tobetter · Post by **tobetter** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:47 am

Mullcom wrote: ↑
Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:02 am
I am wondering if c4 have same dimension as RPi4?? If it has I can make a block for that to. Not much need to be changed.

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Wiki is your friend, DXF of the form factor is uploaded.
https://wiki.odroid.com/odroid-c4/hardw ... _datasheet

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 4:03 am

tobetter wrote:
Mullcom wrote: ↑
Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:02 am
I am wondering if c4 have same dimension as RPi4?? If it has I can make a block for that to. Not much need to be changed.

Skickat från min SM-G973F via Tapatalk
Wiki is your friend, DXF of the form factor is uploaded.
https://wiki.odroid.com/odroid-c4/hardw ... _datasheet

@mad_ady and Tobetter

For information.. can start and see what wee can do for this.

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hominoid · Post by **hominoid** » Sun Apr 26, 2020 12:47 am

mad_ady wrote: ↑
Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:40 am
You can try with hominid's 3d c2 model to see dimensions. It should be the same size, but odroid said the case is different because of the power jack size/hdmi position.

I'm currently working on the C4 3d model. I will post it as soon as possible.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Sun Apr 26, 2020 2:18 am

This is good news.

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hominoid · Post by **hominoid** » Mon Apr 27, 2020 11:36 pm

The Odroid-C4 model is available for download.
A stl is located in the C4 Projects sub-forum and the source is located in the sbc model framework thread.

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon Apr 27, 2020 11:55 pm

Thx. Let's see if I can implement this as a box.

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Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Tue Apr 28, 2020 4:19 pm

Hello..

I wondering if this is a good solution.

With this way The panels get stuck on the Blade rack and you can move them sideways but to get them out to change to different one if needed you need to pull the clips up.

rvalle · Post by **rvalle** » Mon May 04, 2020 5:16 pm

Mullcom wrote: ↑
Wed Apr 08, 2020 11:07 pm
So i have start to redesign the blade.

Hi!

Good to see you progress. I have a basic question, thou.
Is your design meant for 3d printing? or perhaps any other technique?

Mullcom · Post by **Mullcom** » Mon May 04, 2020 5:41 pm

rvalle wrote:
Mullcom wrote: ↑
Wed Apr 08, 2020 11:07 pm
So i have start to redesign the blade.
Hi!

Good to see you progress. I have a basic question, thou.
Is your design meant for 3d printing? or perhaps any other technique?

I am building it for 3d printing. I thinking in the terms of plastic and how 3d printer prints. Try to make it so much as possible for building kit. So you can change parts on the go. Different plates between units and so on. I am going to make a box or holder for a regular power supply for a computer.

Flexibility is the main goal.

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