So I just purchased and received my Rock5B, can anyone confirm if there is a standard the heatsink mounting conforms to? Regardless of it being “okay” to run without, I’m seeing 80 degree C temps in an environment with 20 degree C ambient.
Would also really help to either sell a compatible charger with a UK plug option, or link to a recommended one.
Thats ameridroid collection for the rock 5b I hope they add more stuff.
It’s a 55mm mounting hole that lots of PCH coolers also uses. Just look at the official cooler and find a one with same shape and 55mm mounting hole and you will be fine.
I’m trying to add Rock5 to SBC_Model_Framework to ease the process of making a customizable case for Rock5B, and now we have a prototype from the mechanical drawings, and I would like to ask someone who has a 3D printer to do a verification print see if the measurement is correct. I also ordered 3D print from my local store but it may take some time to arrive. Once the verification (and the measurement fixes after the verification) is corrected I will create a pull request to add Rock5 to SBC_Model_Framework.
rock5_shell.zip (214.6 KB)
Please remove the Pi in the name of Radxa SBC for the 3D file name, the correct name should be:
That’s a very good news. I always prefer a passive cooling route. Any pictures of the sample/prototype?
Thank you for your design.
I had printed the bottom part with my ender 5.
print setting:
0.4 nozzle
0.2 layer height
PLA material
I will print the cover part for test tmr.
I found that there are a few points could be improved.
SD card port is not fit. It is better to raise the port up around 0.8 - 1.5 mm and bring it near to the mini hdmi around 2 -3 mm.
The 3.5 mm port make the pcb a little bit tilted. The port could be made larger 0.2 mm.
It is better to add some hole or make it honeyhomb for reducing heat of ssd.
There are around 2 - 3 mm spare height. It could be reduced.
So cool. This community is on Fire 
Soon maybe we can get the best kick ass cool cases for Rock 5B
It seems like the actual PCB thickness is slightly smaller than the number we used. I’m going to get my printed prototype today and I’m going to do some check on that.
Gansgta ! ahaha any link where to buy that fancy one?
Ohh I guess it was new old stock, have not seen one of these new in ages.
Git it at a local store 
Running 7z b for an hour temperatures stay all below 43°C so I guess I can consider this enough for open passive cooling.
Anybody seeing this please don’t waste your time and materials for this version prototype. I received my prototype today This version has some critical dimension errors that prevent you to insert the board into the top of the case. I still need some time to collect a summary of modifications needed.
Here’s the quick summary of modifications needed from my initial inspection:
The 3.5mm opening is too small for the connector, need ~1mm more radius.
The HDMI port opening is too high, and need to go down ~2mm.
The mounting stand is too thick and will interfere with the fan header, need to be 1-2mm thinner.
Resolving the above would at least make the board get into the case.
Some other problem:
The TF card opening is too low to be useful and you cannot insert the card in, still need to verify if it’s a PCB thickness issue or slot placement issue.
The switch openings are off, little bit too tall and to the right, but the button is too small to be pushed in using those openings anyway, probably we need something(like a mechanical button) to help us push those buttons easier.
The nvme drive need some airflow, but the vent has to be opened on the side of the case because openings at the bottom is meaningless as your desk will cover it.
After use some brutal modification, I managed to use this prototype, next I will fix the design so that I never need to do this again(hopefully)
It looks Bad Ass Perfect!
It would be great to have a metal case! But not full metal, unless the load temps require it. I’ve had some bad experience with a full metal case on another SBC: It introduced a loose contact, leading to restarts of the board when I move it and it’s also really heavy, making it impractical for traveling. It also doesn’t feel like a perfect fit, so you get that anxiety of breaking your board with the full metal case.
So the best option is too use as much metal as is needed to keep the full load temps down but to also keep the weight down by using quality plastic where possible.
A good case should also think of any accessories like NVMe that might also require cooling or at least some air vents and space.
I’m going to modify the baseplate of this case from Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07XYXYCVH/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 it’s probably overkill, but I hate bare-pcb’s and plastic cases. So what else am I supposed to do?
If you have a FDM printer, the 5B board specs have been added to “SBC Case Builder” ( however i did have the lid’s board supports fall off on the ‘fitted’ version due to not being designed right, should be easy to fix however. )
I’m working with the maintainer of SBC Case Builder to provide a correct model, and the prototype I posted here is indeed generated by that tool, but as you see we still need some specs to fix.
