After spending hundreds of hours on a prototype why hide it under a uniform lifeless case?
Christoffer Jarnaker from Two Hornets had a problem when presenting prototypes to clients. After doing hundreds of hours of work on a project he would deliver a standard black enamel prototype case and see a little hint of disappointment when his customers first saw the initial prototype.
Jarnaker realized that the disappointment wasn’t from the product but the presentation – so much effort and time had gone into the product that to put it under black matte shell detracted from the finished product. His solution is a customizable project case that will bring personality and branding to any presentation.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/twohornets/slicecase-lets-you-decide-the-anatomy-of-your-box
The basic shape of the SliceCase fits around standard Arduino or Raspberry Pi footprints and allow for adjustments in height, input / output placement, branding and colors. Standard side and front pieces are laser cut to give users the ability to fix their height and allow for flexibility in the future if new additions are required.
Christoffer already has several rounds of prototyping complete and a laser cutter to make plenty more, but the Kickstarter funding will provide funds to ramp up production and solicit input on new designs and features that end users will want from their cases.
A customizable case seems like an inevitable next step for almost every large scale maker project. The Slice Case website will allow users to order exactly the parts needed to custom build their case and create a custom logo top to promote their company and ideas.
The really inspiring thing here is that the maker community is large and established enough that businesses can exist to service the makers. By offering their services to upcoming Kickstarter projects every prototype can be customized to make sure the hard work inside the case can be reflected to the world.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/twohornets/slicecase-lets-you-decide-the-anatomy-of-your-box