UCS Universal Housing

SPECS

MATERIALS:

Polycarbonate PC, polyamide PA (0.3 to 3 mm)

PROTECTION:

IP40

FLAMMABILITY:

UL 94 (reduced V2 when stacked)

Verdict

Build quality is excellent and the versatility of applications will ensure the UCS Universal Housing finds itself happy in a wide range of industrial settings. 8 / 10

Phoenix Contact

magpi.cc/universalhousings

From £35 POA

If you’re looking to deploy Raspberry Pi in an industrial or commercial setting, Phoenix Contact has you covered. By Lucy Hattersley

Increasingly, Raspberry Pi computers are turning up in industrial settings, from factories to warehouses, transport hubs, and retail environments.

Phoenix Contact is one of the biggest names developing a casing solution geared towards an industrial user. Its UCS (Universal Case System) Universal Housings are designed to contain Raspberry Pi in an industrial environment, and come in a range of sizes with flexible mounting and various configurations.

It comes with an IP40 rating: “Protected from tools and small wires greater than 1 millimetre. Not protected from liquids.”

The modular cases come with either a solid lid or a side panel for an embedded display.

We got three sizes to experiment with: 125×87mm, 145×125mm, and 237×195mm

Universal Housings are designed to house Raspberry Pi in an industrial environment

Made to measure

Matching accessories (which we haven’t tested) include stands, wall mounts, stacking adapters, and fibre-optic light guides – much of what you need to deploy multiple Raspberry Pi computers in a range of environments.

Inside the cardboard box, we received two halfshells, four side panels (with openings for the Raspberry Pi connectors), adhesive pads to stick the Raspberry Pi to the shell, and Torx screws.

The Universal Housing encases Raspberry Pi inside two shells and four panels

We used a Torx T7 screwdriver to fix the adhesive pads to our Raspberry Pi 4 and a Torx T10 to screw the two outer shells together. The presence of Torx screws will help prevent prying hands from getting into the shell, and the microSD card is tucked safely inside.

Documentation is excellent, and a data sheet (magpi.cc/ucsdownloads) covers technical data and assembly instructions. On the whole, we like the build process and the case has an aesthetically pleasing style that lifts it above its industrial roots.