Raspberry Pi Mini PC

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Here’s a super cute, fun and introductory level physical computing project with a custom design 3D printed case! Designed in TinkerCAD, sliced with Canvas3d.io, 3D printed with a Mosaic Palette 2S Pro. Tutorial video edited in Adobe Premiere CC*

Growing up, I loved watching anime. I would always notice the awesome devices such as the Pokedex, Digivice, or the Scouter. In the show Digimon, Sora could be found typing away on a mini laptop.

Now, some may also remember that in the show Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury had “the Supercomputer.” This teal and gold, handheld device was the inspiration behind this build, and here’s how you can make your own!

The “Super Computer” is a miniature supercomputer that Sailor Mercury owned which could be used to scan surroundings and analyze data, proving very useful in battle.
Sailor Moon Wiki

Materials

– Raspberry Pi 3 B+
– microSD card
– 3.5 inch LCD screen
– Power bank OR provided Raspberry Pi power supply
– Bluetooth keyboard
(Note* the keyboard shown in this article is discontinued. The keyboard model in the link has one rounded edge).
– USB – micro USB cable
– 3M velcro
– Painter’s Tape
or Double-sided tape
– 50 mm M3 screws (x2) and hex nuts (x2)

Instructions

1. Print the parts and remove supports. The parts are printed at 0.25mm layer height, with 3-4 perimeters, 15% infill density and supports. You can find the models on Thingiverse if you would like to remix them.

2. Install Raspberry Pi OS onto microSD card.

3. Connect the top and bottom casing together with the screws and hex nuts:

4. Remove the USB bluetooth adapter from the keyboard, and insert into one of the USB ports on RPi:

5. Install screen onto Raspberry Pi. Align the edge of the screen connector to the furthest left pins on the RPi:

6. Plug in power supply to the RPi to boot it up, connect to Internet and configure RPi with initial preferences by following the startup wizard. Remove power supply once complete.

7. Find the center position for the RPi and screen in the top casing. Use small squares of velcro on the back of RPi to attach to the top casing. You can use a marker to draw the position for the RPi.

Adjust position so Raspberry Pi is centered, remove the adhesives and stick in place. Place the screen cover so it fits into top lid. You can use double sided tape along the edge of the screen cover: