Decibel Meter Prototype

A working prototype of a decibel meter, the kind of wireless noise monitor used to log sound levels on site and report them back over the air. The client came to us with the working electronics, a single-board computer stacked with the sensor boards and a pair of external antennas, and needed it wrapped in a clean, presentable housing. We designed and 3D-printed a custom enclosure and assembled everything into one tidy, functioning unit.

A working prototype, not the final product

They needed the unit for a grant submission, so it had to work and look the part without the cost and lead time of a production casing. That balance of speed, price and fidelity is exactly where 3D printing fits. We could turn a bespoke enclosure around quickly and affordably, close enough to the finished product to present and demo, without committing to injection-moulded tooling.

How we made it

We modelled the enclosure around the client’s board stack and antenna connectors, then FDM 3D-printed it in two parts: a vented top cover and a base with mounting ears and antenna ports. After printing we sanded and finished the housing to a smooth, even white so it reads as a real product rather than a rough print. The electronics and the two antennas were then fitted inside, the case closed up and set on its stand, ready to switch on.

The gallery shows the earlier black casing it replaced next to the new white enclosure, the electronics seated in the printed base, and the finished unit on its display stand.