Aabix Bixbox Smart Home Device
Aabix Bixbox Smart Home Device
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Designed an enclosure for the mass production of a smart home device.
Designed an enclosure for the mass production of a smart home device.
Ongoing
The Aabix Bixbox is a product I helped design for Aabix Corporation, a smart home device start up. The Bixbox is a home IOT sensor designed to monitor environmental conditions and alert the home owner to potential failures or damages. The start up is still in its early stages, having sold products commercially for less than a year. I am currently the lead mechanical engineer for the company.
The Aabix Bixbox is a product I helped design for Aabix Corporation, a smart home device start up. The Bixbox is a home IOT sensor designed to monitor environmental conditions and alert the home owner to potential failures or damages. The start up is still in its early stages, having sold products commercially for less than a year. I am currently the lead mechanical engineer for the company.
When I started working with Aabix, the electronic portion of the Bixbox had already been designed and was ready for small scale production. However, there was no completed enclosure design for the device. Thus, my first task was to design the enclosure for small scale manufacture. The design had to ensure electronics were adequately protected without compromising the functionality of the sensors. This last requirement was a bit of an issue as some of the sensors needed airflow to properly function. The solution was the enclosure holes and semipermeable base found on the box. Testing showed that this configuration allowed ample airflow for the sensors to take accurate readings, while still protecting the electronics from harmful environmental conditions. I addressed the manufacturability concerns by designing the box such that it snapped together, requiring no tools to assemble, while still being durable. In addition, I kept the number of parts down to a bare minimum to keep production costs low.
When I started working with Aabix, the electronic portion of the Bixbox had already been designed and was ready for small scale production. However, there was no completed enclosure design for the device. Thus, my first task was to design the enclosure for small scale manufacture. The design had to ensure electronics were adequately protected without compromising the functionality of the sensors. This last requirement was a bit of an issue as some of the sensors needed airflow to properly function. The solution was the enclosure holes and semipermeable base found on the box. Testing showed that this configuration allowed ample airflow for the sensors to take accurate readings, while still protecting the electronics from harmful environmental conditions. I addressed the manufacturability concerns by designing the box such that it snapped together, requiring no tools to assemble, while still being durable. In addition, I kept the number of parts down to a bare minimum to keep production costs low.
In my role as a manufacturing engineer I also was responsible for finding a company to produce the enclosures. I got in contact with a variety of small scale manufacturers across the globe and got quotes for evaluation. Based on the quotes we determined the most economical method would be to outsource the manufacture of the box components but assemble the boxes ourselves. After a second round of quoting we ended up going with a manufacturer in china who was able to out bid the competition offering the lowest price.
In my role as a manufacturing engineer I also was responsible for finding a company to produce the enclosures. I got in contact with a variety of small scale manufacturers across the globe and got quotes for evaluation. Based on the quotes we determined the most economical method would be to outsource the manufacture of the box components but assemble the boxes ourselves. After a second round of quoting we ended up going with a manufacturer in china who was able to out bid the competition offering the lowest price.
Recently, I have been busy working on redesigning the enclosure such that it is more aesthetically appealing, and easier to manufacture in large quantities. This has been a very helpful exercise, developing my artistic side while strengthening my design skills with more complex geometries. Currently there has been no decision on which design to make official, but some that are up for consideration are included below.
Recently, I have been busy working on redesigning the enclosure such that it is more aesthetically appealing, and easier to manufacture in large quantities. This has been a very helpful exercise, developing my artistic side while strengthening my design skills with more complex geometries. Currently there has been no decision on which design to make official, but some that are up for consideration are included below.
Some Possible Future BixBox Designs
The design team for the product is small, containing only 3 members including myself. I am the only mechanical engineer on the team, with the other two team members being the electrical engineer and the company's founder. Due to the tight knit nature of the team we all played a big part in the design of the product and had to work closely together. I worked closely with the electrical engineer to ensure the PCB was designed to maximize the effectiveness of the sensors and simplify the enclosure. While the current iteration of the Bixbox was not too concerned with aesthetics, I still spent a considerable amount of time working with the company founder to keep the enclosure in alignment with his vision, and recognizable enough to help with brand building.
The design team for the product is small, containing only 3 members including myself. I am the only mechanical engineer on the team, with the other two team members being the electrical engineer and the company's founder. Due to the tight knit nature of the team we all played a big part in the design of the product and had to work closely together. I worked closely with the electrical engineer to ensure the PCB was designed to maximize the effectiveness of the sensors and simplify the enclosure. While the current iteration of the Bixbox was not too concerned with aesthetics, I still spent a considerable amount of time working with the company founder to keep the enclosure in alignment with his vision, and recognizable enough to help with brand building.
The project is ongoing but thus far has been successful. The product launched and is publicly available. The sales growth of the product has been modest but larger than we expected. In light of this we have begun an enclosure redesign to build branding and make the Bixbox more aesthetically pleasing. In addition, we have begun looking into higher volume production partners to meet the growing demand for our product.
The project is ongoing but thus far has been successful. The product launched and is publicly available. The sales growth of the product has been modest but larger than we expected. In light of this we have begun an enclosure redesign to build branding and make the Bixbox more aesthetically pleasing. In addition, we have begun looking into higher volume production partners to meet the growing demand for our product.
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