3D Enclosure Design
Parametric handheld console enclosure designed in OpenSCAD, optimized for 3D printing.
Design Overview
The enclosure follows a landscape form factor inspired by the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo Switch Lite, with ergonomic grip areas on both sides.
Dimensions: 170 × 85 × 26 mm
The OpenSCAD project files are in hardware/enclosure/. Open with OpenSCAD 2021.01+.
To render all views:
make render-enclosure
Interactive 3D Viewer
Open the interactive 3D viewer to inspect the enclosure from any angle. Switch between assembly and exploded views, toggle wireframe mode, and zoom into details.
Rendered Views
Front (Display Side)
Back (Battery Side)
Top (Shoulder Buttons)
Exploded View
Cross-Section (XZ plane)
Fit Check (bottom shell + PCB + battery)
Features
Front Panel
- 3.95" display viewport — centered, with 2mm raised bezel
- D-pad — cross-shaped cutout on left side
- A/B/X/Y buttons — diamond layout on right side (SNES style)
- Start/Select — pill-shaped cutouts below the D-pad
Back Panel
- L/R shoulder buttons — pill-shaped cutouts near top edge (28 × 10mm)
- Speaker grille — array of 1.5mm holes in a 22mm circular pattern, sized to the radiating cone of the 28mm driver whose frame seats against the inner face (D-pad side of the device; appears on the right when you look at the back)
Bottom Edge
- USB-C port — 9.0 × 3.2mm cutout (centered), Z-aligned with PCB connector
- SD card slot — 12 × 2.5mm cutout (ABXY side of the device), Z-aligned with PCB module
- Power switch — 8 × 4mm cutout (D-pad side, left of USB-C when viewed from the front)
Internal
- Battery compartment — 85 × 50 × 10mm cavity with 1.5mm raised border wall and retainer clips (fits the 105080 cell: 80 × 50 × 10mm)
- Screw bosses — 4 corner mounting points with M3 countersunk clearance holes (the 2 centre bosses were removed — they fouled the battery, so the PCB's 2 centre M2.5 holes are unused mechanically)
- PCB model — 160 × 75mm PCB at shell split line (Z=15mm)
- Button caps — retention flange (3mm wider than cutout) prevents fallthrough, actuator stem presses PCB tactile switch
- Wire channel — routing path for battery connector cable
Physical Layout
FRONT (display side):
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ │
│ ┌────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ │ [X] │
│ ┌─┐ │ 3.95" Display │ │
│ ┌─┤ ├─┐ │ 320 x 480 │ [Y] [A] │
│ └─┤ ├─┘ │ ILI9488 │ │
│ └─┘ │ │ │
│ D-pad └────────────────────────────┘ [B] │
│ (Sta) (Sel) (Menu) │
│ ∘ ∘ LEDs │
│ ┌─PWR─┐ ┌──USB-C──┐ ┌──SD Card──┐ │
└────────────┴─────┴────┴─────────┴─────────┴───────────┴──┘
BACK (as physically seen from behind — left/right MIRRORED vs front):
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ ┌──R──┐ ┌──L──┐ │
│ │
│ │
│ │
│ (( Speaker )) │
│ │
│ │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
BOTTOM EDGE (as physically seen from behind — mirrored):
─┬───────────┬─────────┬─────────┬────┬─────┬─────────────┬─
└──SD Card──┘ └──USB-C──┘ └─PWR─┘
The FRONT view is what the player sees; the BACK and BOTTOM-EDGE views above are what you see when you physically turn the device around, so left/right are mirrored. USB-C, the SD slot and the power switch are all mounted on the bottom (back) side of the PCB — on the bare board they face you when you look at the back, with SD on the left and PWR on the right. In device terms: SD is on the ABXY side, the power switch and speaker are on the D-pad side.
Dimensions Reference
| Element | Dimension | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Overall body | 170 × 85 × 26 mm | Landscape orientation (depth went 25 → 26 mm for the 10 mm cell) |
| Wall thickness | 2.0 mm | All walls |
| Corner radius | 8 mm | Rounded for ergonomics |
| Display cutout | 86.4 × 64.8 mm | Active display area |
| D-pad cutout | 24 × 24 mm cross | 5mm arm width |
| Face button holes | 8 mm diameter | A/B/X/Y, 10mm spacing (matches KiCad) |
| Start/Select | 10 × 4 mm pills | Below D-pad, 20mm apart |
| Menu button | 10 × 4 mm pill | Below ABXY |
| Shoulder buttons | 28 × 10 mm | Back panel, Y=32mm from center |
| USB-C port | 9.0 × 3.2 mm | Centered, Z=14.5mm (PCB-aligned) |
| SD card slot | 12 × 2.5 mm | X=60mm, Z=14.5mm (PCB-aligned) |
| Power switch | 8 × 4 mm | X=-40mm, Z=14mm (PCB-aligned) |
| Battery bay | 85 × 50 × 10 mm | 80×50×10mm LiPo (105080) + 5mm length tolerance |
| Battery border | 1.5mm wall | Raised edge around bay perimeter |
| Screw bosses | 6mm OD / 2.5mm ID | 4 corners, M3 countersunk |
3D Printing Recommendations
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Material | PLA or PETG |
| Layer height | 0.2 mm |
| Infill | 15-20% |
| Supports | Yes (for button cutouts and port overhangs) |
| Print orientation | Shell face-down (flat bottom on bed) |
| Nozzle | 0.4 mm standard |
| Estimated print time | ~4-6 hours per shell |
| Estimated filament | ~50g per shell |
Light sanding on the button holes improves button feel. For a premium finish, apply thin primer + spray paint.
Customization
All dimensions are parameterized in enclosure.scad. Key parameters to adjust:
body_w = 170; // Overall width
body_h = 85; // Overall height
body_d = 26; // Overall depth
wall = 2.0; // Wall thickness
corner_r = 8; // Corner radius
disp_w = 86.4; // Display viewport width
disp_h = 64.8; // Display viewport height
dpad_x = -62; // D-pad horizontal position
abxy_x = 62; // ABXY horizontal position
abxy_spacing = 10; // Button center-to-center (matches KiCad PCB)
bat_w = 80; // Cell length (X)
bat_h = 50; // Cell width (Y)
bat_d = 10; // Cell thickness (Z)
Rendering Different Views
Use the -D flag to select which part to render:
# Full assembly
openscad -o assembly.png -D 'part="assembly"' enclosure.scad
# Top shell only (for printing)
openscad -o top.stl -D 'part="top"' enclosure.scad
# Bottom shell only (for printing)
openscad -o bottom.stl -D 'part="bottom"' enclosure.scad
# Exploded view
openscad -o exploded.png -D 'part="exploded"' enclosure.scad
Modular Design
The OpenSCAD project is split into modules for maintainability:
| File | Contents |
|---|---|
enclosure.scad | Main assembly, shell definitions, render control |
modules/buttons.scad | D-pad, face buttons, Start/Select, shoulder button cutouts |
modules/display.scad | Display viewport cutout, bezel, mounting shelf |
modules/ports.scad | USB-C, SD card slot, speaker grille, ventilation |
modules/battery.scad | Battery compartment cavity, retainer clips, wire channel |