Stratux ADS-B Dual Tuner Case

thingiverse

Yet another Stratux Raspberry Pi, Dual Band, ADS-B receiver case, with AHRS/GPS and cooling fan provisions. This case also works with the new RaspberryPi 3 and the shorter NooElec NESDR Nano 2 SDRs. This case design uses direct connection of the RTL-SDR receivers to the Raspberry Pi and eliminates the USB extension cords inside the case. Both antennas are also mounted inside the case, thereby eliminating ALL external wires except the power cord! This greatly simplifies its use in the cockpit. The dimensions are 166mm x 84mm x 33mm. Approx. 6.5" x 3.25" x 1.5". The micro SD card is accessible without opening the case and there are holes to view the Raspberry Pi, GPS and WI-FI status lights. If you use a RPi3 you will have to drill a small hole to view the RPi3 power and activity LEDs. Instructions Click this link if you want to buy a ready-to-fly Stratux UPDATE - 10/28/15 - I added a STL file for the top without antenna recesses. UPDATE - 9/23/15 - I uploaded new STL files for the top and bottom. I moved the fan location and changed the air exit holes in the bottom and moved the location of the RY835AI chip on the top to clear the antenna recess and the RPi GPIO pins. With the fan running the hottest CPU temperature I've seen is about 105F, the fan also cools the SDR receivers. I was receiving 10 ground-based ADS-B 978MHz towers at 1,000" AGL! This thing ROCKS!!! I used the following parts from Amazon to build this Stratux ADS-B receiver. Raspberry Pi 3 kit 2 RTL-SDR Receivers or 2 NooElec NESDR Nano 2 SDRs RY835AI GPS/AHRS Chip (get from eBay) or a VK-172 Gmouse USB GPS 25mm x 7mm Fan Kapton Tape Anker Astro E3 battery In the airplane I use an Anker Powerdrive 2 car charger plug Anker PowerLine Micro USB Cables I use self-adhesive velcro to hold the battery to the bottom of the case if I use the battery. Hatchbox Blue 1.75mm ABS filament I used a Prusa i3 printer to print my case. The Raspberry Pi is centered in the case which allows space for the cooling fan and also permits the case to provide some amount of strain relief to the RPi micro-USB power connection due to the distance you have to insert the power plug. I plan on permanently attaching the power cord to the case with some RTV adhesive (or hot-melt glue) to avoid any chance of breaking the RPi power connector. I also plan on securing the 2 RTL-SDR Receivers to the case support with the same adhesive. After you remove the plastic shell from the SDRs I suggest you add some Kapton Tape or some other non-conductive material to the bottom side of the top receiver so it doesn't short against the bottom receiver. To prepare your antennas peel the sticker off the bottom then, using a small screwdriver, pry the metal base off, you will see the coax shield wire is not attached to the metal base and it could come in contact with the antenna wire and give you poor reception. I also didn't see a need to cram 6 feet of extra coax into the case, so I cut the coax to about 8" and soldered the wires to the appropriate place. Put the metal antenna base back on and add a small amount of adhesive to secure it to the bottom of the case (during final assembly!), to keep the folding mast alignment centered on the box for neatness. You can re-purpose the magnet on your workbench to hold up a photo of your airplane, you don't want the magnet in the cockpit anyway. The cooling fan is a 5 volt, 25mm x 25mm x 7mm fan. I plugged it across the 5v and GRD pins on the GPIO header. I oriented the fan to blow into the case, it may work just as well blowing out. I saw CPU temps of about 100F in direct sunlight on the black dashboard of the plane, so I think the fan is working great. I printed most of the other Stratux cases available on Thingiverse, but decided to design my own to incorporate all of the pieces and wires inside one box, like the commercial units ;). I also wanted a simple, 2 piece, flat, box that would fit on my Prusa i3 200mm x 200mm print bed. I did have a problem with warpage so I added rafts to the corners, which helped, but didn't eliminate all warpage. Good luck!