Comms Module
Client:
Shrike Marine
Date:
2013
Position:
Design Lead - Design director at ...XYZ Design
Roles:
Industrial design, Detailed mechanical design, Design for manufacture
Shrike Marine won a contract to develop an omnidirectional speaker system for the South African Defence Force. Working closely with Shrike Marine while they developed the electronics, I was involved in developing the enclosure to meet the required design specification. The speaker is used at base stations while troops are out in the field and is required to be omnidirectional in order to issue commands to troops around the base. The speaker was used in an outdoor environment in potentially wet and dusty conditions and was therefore specced to have an IP65 rating.
The resultant design makes use of an IP65 transducer which is mounted upside down above a cone that radiates the sound in all directions. The base of the speaker houses the electronic components and the mil spec connectors for the associated cables and user interface. An IP65 microphone is also included in the design for the operator to issue commands directly from the speaker. The enclosure was carefully designed to meet the IP specifications by making use of O-ring seals between all component. The enclosure was machined from stock aluminium and finished in a Mil-spec paint finish, ensuring its durability out in the field. It also included features to protect the connectors and switches from abuse during handling in the harsh environment.
The images below show the complex machining that was achieved during the development process.
Contributors: Roelf Mulder (Design support), Dewald Koegelenberg (Production and procurement)