Barebone Case

[Spacehonkey]

I currently don't have the cash to really start on this project. Plus I'm scheduled to take out the next 11th MEU in July so I won't have enough time to start on it since I'm busy with my Monitor Mod (www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6802).

My idea is to continue with my skeleton theme like on my monitor and make a case that will compliment it. Here's the basic design I've made in SketchUp and before anyone asks I didn't make most of the pieces. I downloaded the skeleton and computer parts from the 3D warehouse.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/BoneCaseSet.jpg

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/BoneCaseLeftSidetext.jpg
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/BoneCaseFronttext.jpg

Now let the questions start flying. Just to give you a heads up I've already figured out the whole light activated switches. You can read up on it on the Laser Switch (http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7088), I posted a few weeks ago and see some pix of my ghetto setup along with a video. Enjoy:D

[DaveW]

Crikey, that's brilliant! Great plans, looks sweet! I dunno though, there must be a way to gt some of those necessities, such as that front fan and the water pump, to be more like features of the case?

Maybe you could have a hand holding the pump, for example. The fan's a tricky one; i would replace it with 2, one in each side of the ribcage. Although there's little point in the fan even being there if the case itself is open...

The reservoir heart looks sweet, but i'm willing to bet you could get it to pump. Crimson can tell you where to get the materials to make a rubber heart, in fact a few guys about here probably could. Making it pump wouldn't be that hard; similar to the fetus in Crimson's Matrix computer.

I see a lot of potential in this mod. :)

-Dave

[progbuddy]

lol

That was a great pun. Nice looking case. +rep for the awesome ideas. Keep goin with it!

-kev

[Bucko]

Although there's little point in the fan even being there if the case itself is open...

it does say the entire case will be enclosed with acrylic panels, so it will probably need the fans.

My best suggestion there is get clear fans so the don't stand out too much.

[Spacehonkey]

My best suggestion there is get clear fans so the don't stand out too much.

Clear fan that's a good idea. I wrote that down. I'll go into SketchUp in a bit and change that.


...there must be a way to get some of those necessities, such as that front fan and the water pump, to be more like features of the case?

Maybe you could have a hand holding the pump, for example. The fan's a tricky one; I would replace it with 2, one in each side of the ribcage. Although there's little point in the fan even being there if the case itself is open...

The reservoir heart looks sweet, but I'm willing to bet you could get it to pump. Crimson can tell you where to get the materials to make a rubber heart, in fact a few guys about here probably could. Making it pump wouldn't be that hard; similar to the fetus in Crimson's Matrix computer.

I see a lot of potential in this mod. :)

-Dave

Yeah the pump is a huge eye sore not sure how to change that. Oh just thought of something maybe a stomach since it's got a tube coming and going just like the pump does.

Yes the case will be enclosed in acrylic panels. Which brings up another question. I was planning on testing this out myself but maybe you guys have already done that for me. After heating a acrylic panel how flexible is it? Can it be form fitted to the rib cage?

Make the heart pump that would be cool. I didn't even think that was possible for a novice like myself. I've never done anything like that but I'm willing to give it a shot.

I also thought about having an audio circuit card hidden in the case. It would provide a beating heart sound and wire it up to some lights to make it flash with the sound of the beating heart.

I touched on it but forgot to mention that I'll be on the MEU from this July to about March on next year and will have little if any access or time to work on this project. I should however have internet access so I'll still be able to knock some ideas around and work out any kinks that there might be. So to make a long story short this project won't get off the ground until about April 2008 but keep the ideas coming. That's why I posted this so early, so all the planning and improving would be done when I'm finally ready to start on it.

[DaveW]

After heating a acrylic panel how flexible is it? Can it be form fitted to the rib cage?

I believe you should simply be able to heat it up and let gravity mould it for you: although Tybrenis is the guy to ask about this. ;)

-Dave

[progbuddy]

Depends on what thickness you're using and the shape. A good space heater should do the trick. Just make a mold for the acrylic (a bit bigger than the desired shape) crank up the heat, and let it sit for a while. Just be careful not to melt it or burn it ;)

[Commando]

Dude,

Your sketchup skills are still awesome. Even if you did download the parts.

[Ticien]

Wow awesome... +rep for that idea man, I was wondering if you were going to make a case to go along with the monitor

[Spacehonkey]

Wow awesome... +rep for that idea man, I was wondering if you were going to make a case to go along with the monitor

Well I got the alien mouse, I followed Crimson Sky's tutorial, that I made for my first attempt at this modding thing. So whenever I finish the monitor and case all I'll have left to do is the keyboard. I haven't really put to much thought into a keyboard since it'll be awhile before I'm done with the case.

[CanaBalistic]

I like the idea, a lot!

I do want to mention somthing, maybe you've thought of it or maybe you have'nt. How are you going to get the light activated switches to work? If somone turned on a light or lamp, wouldnt that activate the switch and turn the power off? I could see that being a huge anoyance down the road.

[Spacehonkey]

I do want to mention somthing, maybe you've thought of it or maybe you have'nt. How are you going to get the light activated switches to work? If somone turned on a light or lamp, wouldnt that activate the switch and turn the power off? I could see that being a huge anoyance down the road.

Well I read on a thread somewhere in here that they got their lights to flash with the audio track and not influenced by outside noise by plugging it into the mic input of their board or something like that. The important thing is I know it can be done so I'll do some more digging around when I get time.

Believe me I know my projects push the limits of my skill level but isn't that the point. How will you ever get better if you never test yourself and try to do thing just out of your reach. Plus I like the idea of doing something new or improving on other people's ideas.

[CanaBalistic]

Sound activated?

I was talking about the light activated power switch in your schematical diagram.

Thats a cool way to get sound activated lights to work though.

[Spacehonkey]

Sound activated?

I was talking about the light activated power switch in your schematical diagram.

Thats a cool way to get sound activated lights to work though.

Oh sorry misread your comment. I've got a bunch of ideas in my head and sometimes I get into to much of a hurry and they get mixed up.:redface:

Yeah I thought about that. I've done a bunch of tests with the LDR sensor in the paper roll and the room light doesn't affect it. I even shined a flashlight directly on the sensor and then turned the flashlight on/off it also had no affect on the switch turning on/off. The light from the LED overpowers all other light so only the LED turning on/off will activate the switch. Also, just as a back, I put the LDR deep enough into the paper roll so the room light won't affect it. So I don't see turning the room light on/off as being a problem.

[Eclecticos]

Possibly. . the coolest idea ive seen soo far. :up:

You could save time working off of real bones seen it on Mythbusters.
Get ur bondo out.

Well maybee not. . I can see the picket signs already. . LOL

[mercerman318]

this is such a cool idea, just a couple suggestions though, make the heart the pump, and some other organ the resevoir. also you could make the wiring look like veins.

[Spacehonkey]

You could save time working off of real bones seen it on Mythbusters.
Get ur bondo out.

Well maybee not. . I can see the picket signs already. . LOL

I'm not sure how it would save me time by using real bones. When I started designing this I actually looked into the price of real bones, you know just for comparison pricing against the fake one, and they're way to expensive. Plus the whole idea of using real ones would just be to freaky.


this is such a cool idea, just a couple suggestions though, make the heart the pump, and some other organ the resevoir. also you could make the wiring look like veins.

Making the heart the pump would make more sense. I don't know why I didn't think about that. This will be my first water cooled setup so I wasn't sure if repositioning the pump and reservoir would affect the system. I just ran across this basic setup first and just went with it. I'll do some rearranging in SketchUp again and see how it turns out.

Having the wires look like veins is a good idea. That was my intension all along. I'm just not sure how to pull off that look yet. I just used a red texture over the wiring to represent the vein look for now.

I like all the input from you guys. :D You've already improved the flow of the design a lot, Thanks. Keep the ideas flowing.

[agnat]

Can't suggest anymore, everybody has already had some great ideas. But what I can do is congratulate you on a fantastic mod idea! This is probably the most awesome and ambitious mod idea I've seen!
+ rep for you and your creativity (and your sketchup skills as well, even if you did download a bunch of it!)

Agnat

[BinaryDemon]

That looks sweet. The jaw dropping down to allow the DVD/CD drive to open is truely ingenious. I can't wait to see you pull it off.

[Spacehonkey]

Hey guys I got a water cooling question for you. Like I stated earlier this is going to be my 1st water cooling setup so I don't understand the specifics yet. I was wondering how to run the tubes. I understand the coolant will be the coldest when it first exits the radiator. So I was wondering if this is how I should connect the tubes up. Radiator-CPU-Video Card-Reservoir-Pump. Does it matter if the reservoir is hooked up before the pump or should the reservoir be the last thing before it cycles through the radiator again? I'm asking because I'm making some changes to my design in SketchUp and the tubes are crossing each other and I don't like the way it looks but if I change the order I have the coolant flowing then I can rearrange the tubes so it'll look better.

[Eclecticos]

I'm not sure how it would save me time by using real bones. When I started designing this I actually looked into the price of real bones, you know just for comparison pricing against the fake one, and they're way to expensive. Plus the whole idea of using real ones would just be to freaky.

No Haunted PC for you Huh? :eek: :D

[Spacehonkey]

No Haunted PC for you Huh? :eek: :D

Yeah that would bring a whole new meaning to the saying "There's a ghost in the system." :D

[Spacehonkey]

Well I've made a few adjustments to my design.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/BoneCaseLeftremodeledA.jpg

I've switched places with the pump and reservoir and made the fan clear. I tried putting the reservoir in a stomach model but it just didn't look right. The reservoir doesn't look right just sitting there out in the open all plain looking. Plus I don't like the look of the tubes just going straight across the case. I'm going to have to figure out a way to route them so it doesn't muck up the look of the case but I still want them to be visible. I think I might add some more tubes coming out of the heart and going to various parts of the case to make it look like the heart is provide blood to all the components.

Any suggestions on what to do with the reservoir?

Any idea how to make the tubes/wiring look like veins?

Anyone know a better way to route the cooling tubes?

[jdbnsn]

Here is a sketch from my anatomy lectures. Something that may work is putting the res in the skull so that it can't be seen and run tubes down to the heart like carotids. The hallmark of blood vessels is their constant branching, their actual physical appearance isn't something that would look good in your mod per se. But if you wanted to make a mock circulatory system, using blue tubing from the pump to the rad, and red tubes from the rad back to the pump would work. The other feature of blood vessels is their always changing diameter as they branch and re-join. However, it is a complex physics problem to do this practically while not adding extra resistance to the pump. I wouldn't advise trying to use multiple sizes.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/jdbnsn/misc/thymus.jpg

[Spacehonkey]

...putting the res in the skull...using blue tubing from the pump to the rad, and red tubes from the rad back to the pump...

Putting the reservoir in the skull is a good idea but there might be a problem with space since the circuit boards for the LDR sensors are going to be located in the skull also. Whenever I finally start on the project I'll have to build up some mock components and see exactly how much space I'll have.

Blue/Red tubing I think that might work out. Yeah I think the vein look would be really hard to pull off too. I'm not sure exactly what look to go with for the wiring. I still got a lot of playing around to do.

[Spacehonkey]

I've found some heart models but not sure which one I'm going to settle on. Here are some pix with links to the prices. Also I'm waiting on an answer from my sister-in-law, she's a nurse, on getting me a heart model.

Heart Model w/Desc Plate (http://grxmedical.com/item.asp?PID=40) I think this one looks the best but I don't like the fact that it has the Desc Plate on it.
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/Heart/heart-1.jpg

Heart - Hinged (http://grxmedical.com/item.asp?PID=39)
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/Heart/heart-2a.jpg

Transparent Heart (http://store.changbioscience.com/smd0885.html)
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/Heart/heart-3a.jpg

Heart Models (http://www.schoolmasters.com/models4.html)
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/Case/Heart/heart-4.jpg

EDIT: Remember these will only be used to make a mold out of.

[jdbnsn]

I was thinking about your pumping heart idea. You could build a pretty cool looking heart model if you can get a sturdy, leak-proof, and flexible substance to mold the outer skin from. Remember when you device a pump mechanism, for realism, the heart spends over 2/3 of it's time in diastole (relaxed)=inflated and less than 1/3 of it's time in systole (contracted)=deflated during the cardiac cycle. So it looks like a fist squeezing tight for brief bursts at an average of 60-80 times per minute. I thought of a theoretical mechanism to produce this effect. You can use a speed controlled, strong motor (not sure exactly where to find one to this spec, but I'm guessing Crimson does) with a fixture shaped like in the sketch to produce the short deflation appearance of a systolic contraction. You will of course need to greatly manipulate the scale and such to move the desired amount of fluid. You could build the hydraulic tube with plexi or whatever and lube/seal the inner surface with lithium grease and rubber o-rings. Of course you would want to build all of this out of sight behind the heart, but it could work. Just thought I'd throw it out there cause I'm lovin this project and can't wait to see it in action.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/jdbnsn/misc/tubedevice.jpg

[Spacehonkey]

Thx for the detailed information about how the heart works.:up: You can tell you definitely did your homework. Your Pump idea looks interesting. :think: I might give it a try but of coarse I would have to alter it a little bit maybe have the larger portion of the pump in the skull and have the suction tube running down into the heart making it look just like an artery.

I'm currently trying to find the right model to make a heart mold out of and I've been in contact with Crimson about how to go about making this pump heart a reality. It might be a slow process because this is the first time I've attempted to do this type of thing so I'll keep you posted on my process.

Oh yeah, +Rep to jdbnsn for the heart lesson.

[Spacehonkey]

I thought I would post a pix of a rendering of the complete setup of what I hope to accomplish in the next year or so.
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j189/spacehonkey/Computer%20Mod/BoneyPC.jpg

[jdbnsn]

lol, in the office today I saw a model of a brain similar to those heart models you posted above and I though of ya! I need to get out more...

[Spacehonkey]

lol, in the office today I saw a model of a brain similar to those heart models you posted above and I though of ya! I need to get out more...

A brain!!! For some reason I really like the look of the brain. During my search for a good heart and skeleton model I kept finding tons of pix of brains. I think I might eventually do something with a brain. I don't know why but I can't stop thinking about using different parts of the body to use for modding.

What do you think of my keyboard?

Not sure if you can tell from the angel of the pix but the keys are going to be made from molded wisdom teeth and finger bones or something about the same size for the bigger keys.

[chaksq]

That keyboard is awesome. You really are going all the way with this theme, I like it.

[jdbnsn]

I don't know why but I can't stop thinking about using different parts of the body to use for modding.
I finished my psychiatry rotation recently, maybe we should talk about your...issues. LOL

I noticed the keyboard and wondered if those were teeth, that's gonna be a job! But as always I love the designs!!!

[Spacehonkey]

I finished my psychiatry rotation recently, maybe we should talk about your...issues. LOL

I noticed the keyboard and wondered if those were teeth, that's gonna be a job! But as always I love the designs!!!

Yeah my wife says I have issues too.

I've already got two different almost complete dental casts of a couple guys teeth. I had a dental checkup yesterday and I just came out and told the dentist what I was planning on doing and within a few minutes he gave me exactly what I needed free of charge. Now I just need to cast some molds off the casts the dentist gave me and then I'm set. I've never done any of these before so it'll be interesting.

[Spacehonkey]

I just found this thread (http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=550) and saw how Defyant used a defused acrylic panel to cover up the motherboard and I thought it was beyond awesome. I've always thought that the motherboard was a huge eye sore. I think when I get around to finally making this case I might incorporate this idea into my mod.




http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y165/Defyantmods/HPResurrection%20III%20MEGA/WORKLOG/MOTHERBOARD%20CAGE/IMG_6505.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y165/Defyantmods/HPResurrection%20III%20MEGA/WORKLOG/MOTHERBOARD%20CAGE/IMG_6511.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y165/Defyantmods/HPResurrection%20III%20MEGA/WORKLOG/MOTHERBOARD%20CAGE/IMG_6517.jpg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y165/Defyantmods/HPResurrection%20III%20MEGA/WORKLOG/MOTHERBOARD%20CAGE/IMG_6518.jpg

[Ichbin]

This is just an overly cool idea for a case mod....it must be stopped! jk jk

very good man, very good.

[Ichbin]

An idea for the resovoir is lungs. Who says the resovoir can't be like...a leak proof bag, and with the coolant moving around, it could give it a life like look.

[Spacehonkey]

An idea for the resovoir is lungs. Who says the resovoir can't be like...a leak proof bag, and with the coolant moving around, it could give it a life like look.

Very cool, I completely love the idea of using a little baggy for the reservoir. I will definitely try that out. +Rep for the idea.

[Ichbin]

Rofl, you could make it a bladder bag :P jk jk.

[Spacehonkey]

Rofl, you could make it a bladder bag :P jk jk.

:think: Well the last thing I would want is for the bladder to spring a leak and start pissing all over my case. Lets just say I'd get real pissed off if that happens.

[mercerman318]

maybe make the cpu heatsink a brain? or maybe other parts of the body for other heatsinks or covers

[Spacehonkey]

maybe make the cpu heatsink a brain? or maybe other parts of the body for other heatsinks or covers

Another good idea. I'm not sure what I'm capable of just yet. After I play around with the heart pump and discover how hard or easy it really is I'll start to look at modding other portions of the case.