Jabberry the PiHutt

Lots of people place their Raspberry Pis in different containers for projects. Most are very simple; Just a box with the proper holes for cables. A few are more elaborate.

I'm all for making sure your enclosure is functional and sometimes a box is all you can do and still accomplish your task, such as placing the Pi under a table you are using as a retro-game emulator. However, sometimes, when the enclosure can be more than a box without losing its functionality, I think we should have a little fun with them. My hat's off to those who create such enclosures like the War Games computer (WOPR) for your arduino nano enclosure, or the NES system enclosure for the Pi.

So, when I needed an enclosure for my new Raspberry Pi B+, I decided to see what I could accomplish with a little bit of theatrics. What I ended up with was the Jabberry PiHutt. OK, maybe I could have a better name, but it gets the point across.

I first decided to try using the Ark of the Covenant from the Raiders of the Lost Ark. Due to a miscalculation on my part, the top printed but the bottom did not. The extended pieces did not have the supports necessary to 3D print without help. So, while tinkering with the supports, I still had a top half of an Ark which could be useful.

So, out of the ashes of a failed 3D printing attempt I decided the 1/2 Ark I now had would make a good thrown for the all mighty Jabba the Hutt. I found a pretty good file of Jabba on Thingiverse. Printed him off without a problem. I was not, however, able to find a suitable Slave Leia to go along with it. But hey, the crime lord is good enough for now.

It took a little guess work to make sure the Ark would house the Raspberry Pi as well as the Hutt, but for the most part it worked. I printed out a Raspberry Pi holder for the inside of the enclosure as well to make sure it was not going to move around.

Instead of looking authentic with the colors I decided to paint accenting colors of gold and silver.

I then needed to make room for the cables. I had to cut the appropriate holes out of the thrown. Once accomplished I had the structure to hold the Pi. Next I needed the ability to start the Pi, a view screen and control it.

Off Ebay I ordered a 5" screen with controler board. I 3D printed a cover for the screen and attached the controller to the back. However, it only has a VGA connection so I added a HDMI to VGA converter.

I used a wireless USB mouse and keyboard for a controller. However, I'm not done just yet. I plan on building a small wall just like in Jabba's palace in order to hang the screen from. That, and maybe trying to find an appropriate slave Leia to include. But otherwise, that's it. So far it works pretty well. I use it to test my programming on the Pi for use with other projects which will use a Pi. So the enclosure is not limited to the function of a project. As a result, I enjoy it and the way it looks on my desktop.

So keep up the good work, like those fun loving people who built the WOPR and NES enclosures. Make it fun to house something when the housing does not need to be part of the project. You'll enjoy it more. . . at least I have.