Ruggedizing COTS electronics for defense or harsh industrial environments is a core competency of the Rugged Science engineering team. Our design approach is a consultative, specifications gathering process about the COTS electronics, your application, and your operating environment.

Design Process

Rugged Science Sales Engineers and/or Project Managers will consult with the customer team throughout our design process:

• COTS electronics assessment (motherboard, power supply, etc) for environment (ingress, shock, vibe, or EMI)
• Removal of commercial grade housing or enclosure
• Subjection of electronics to specified operating temperatures, vibration over full frequency range, and aggravated power loads
• Analyze failures or weak points and begin preliminary modeling of enclosure design
• Run structural and thermal analysis with preliminary models, iterating to improve thermal conductivity and reliability, and determine whether the COTS electronics can successfully be ruggedized for the desired environment
• Conduct Preliminary Design Review for customer approval
• Begin detailed design with goal of reducing size, weight, power, and cost, while maintaining thermal conductivity and overall reliability
• Conduct Critical Design Review with the customer to present the finalized design with all detailed structural and thermal simulation
• Obtain release for production from customer, and begin fabrication
• Prototype designs subjected to “real-world” shock, vibe, EMI, and ingress tests as germane to the specifications
• Once test results have been approved by customer, final production drawings and manufacturing begins

Rugged Science Enclosure Customization

Rugged Science’s fully integrated machine shop allows us to quickly customize enclosures to meet customer requirements. Our in-house paint, powder coating, laser etching, and silk screening capabilities allows us to easily customize your material finishes, colors, port labeling, or custom logo to your desired requirements.

Contact a Sales Engineer