FSAE Status Indicator Light Enclosure

As part of the UWaterloo Formula Electric (FSAE) team, I contributed to the design and fabrication of a status indicator light enclosure used on the team's electric race car. There were several requirements for the enclosure - it needed to be IPX5 water resistant, act as a heatsink for the custom PCB,  and manufacturable without sponsor involvement - manufacturing capabilities were very limited so DFM considerations were critical.

I decided to design the main body of the enclosure to be manually machined out of 6061 aluminum for its strong thermal conductivity and machinability, with waterjet EPDM gaskets and polycarbonate covers, and electrically insulating thermal interface material for mounting the PCB. I used a cable gland for waterproof cable entry, and rubber washers to seal the mounting holes. I conducted a thermal simulation in ANSYS Mechanical to ensure the PCB wouldn't overheat. Finally, I ran a tolerance analysis to make sure that the gasket would have sufficient compression for waterproofing at my worst-case machining ability.

The enclosure was machined on a 3-axis manual mill out of a solid block of 6061. I specifically designed the enclosure for manual machining and considered this in my internal radii and gasket width. I then waterjet the gaskets and covers and tested to validate the IP rating.

It was very rewarding to carry this project through from concept through manufacturing and validation, and I developed and improved many skills including thermal simulation, design for manufacturing, machining and tolerance stackup analysis.