3D printed ultimate all-in-one iphone case/ wallet/ money clip/ beer opener

UPDATE:

The newer and improved version case can now be purchased in this 3d printing store front. It's more expensinve that i would like to make it.. But this is the only way it can purchased before it's manufactured. But i hope the fact it's a 3d printed case should give it the extra wow and therefore worth it.

http://www.shapeways.com/model/450144/sleek_all_in_one_iphone_4_case__card_holder__money.html

I'm Working on The Version with the bottle opener since it needs a metal part that cant be added in 3d printing.

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ok one tip i was given when making instructables was to make the begging very appealing.. here it goes

Are you tired of carrying a bunch of other stuff in your pockets? do you ever wonder i wish i could just get one item that does it all? Well after a lot of research and personal pocket experience i have been able to design a product that covers pretty much everything you will need out in the road.. Wallet, credit card holder, id holder, business card holder, money clip, earphone holder.. and YES a bottle OPENER.. all in a tiny very compact case that will also prevent damages to your iphone.. this is like the Macgyver of the iphone cases.. this is like the swiss army of wallets.. this is like the master of money clips.. this is insanity!!

The motivation behind this iphone wallet was in part when i saw a girl at the club with no purse... She was using her bra as a wallet.. she had some cash, some credit cards, her ID and thats about it. If you think about it that pretty much all what you need when you go out in the world.  So not only this is perfect for girls but is also perfect for guy that hate carrying a lot of stuff around in their pockets.


The thickness was very essential.. my iphone had a hard shell case that was about 1 millimeter thick of clear acryilic. This is definetly no Utter box case or whatever that horrendous case is called. I liked this case because it protected against falls and yet added very little to "pant bulge"** While making this wallet/case i made sure it keep the strength to protect the phone and still keep the case extremely thin. Right now the credit card section adds just about 5 millimeters

When Designing this i encountered a lot of issues that took a lot of time and countless hours to figure out. I found very little help from designers out there who already had accomplished creating a case. I guess the common belief is why share your knowledge with others who might compete with you.. i understand that feeling.. However, by making this tutorial i'm giving you the basics that i wish someone had given me. Good luck my fellow designers. ***All i ask is to please go and vote for me in both the shopbot contest and the make it real contest :) 

Materials 
- 3d program (like Solidworks or Maya)
- 3d printer or access to the internet so you can get it printed
- tons of creativity and patience

** Pant Bulge is the look you get when you have a lot of stuff in your pocket

PS.. Please check out my other instructable that incorporates earphone organizer into your watch band 
http://www.instructables.com/id/3d-printed-6th-gen-nano-watch-band-w-earphone-org/

Step 1: How to Come up with the idea

When Designing a new product you need to identify your problems and then design your product.

My main problem was pant bulge.. i hate the look you get when wearing a nice pair of pants and you have all these stuff in your pockets making you look like you are growing something on your legs or butt. The wallet is been a huge peeped of mine since i started to develop back pains because the bulge of my wallet was making my back crocked while i sat at work for hours.. I have since  reduced the amount i carry in my wallet in order to reduce the thickness on it.. 

My other problem is that i'm a very forgetful person.. Sometimes i will forget my wallet or my headphones. If you like to listen to music at work or like to buy anything. You know that when you forget these is a pain in the butt. 

So i first tried to buy a iphone case that did similar stuff as mine.. However, most of them only did one or two things.. None of them did it all. Some like the headphone organizer actually made the iphone so thick it looked like a freaking camel!

So i started researching the internet and found out that there are some places that are very affordable. If you design your case well enough you can use very little material and actually make your 3d printed case almost cheaper than your store bought case

So in summary
Identify your problem.
Try to find out if there is a solution out there
Design your product that fixes your problems
get it 3d printed.

This are a couple of 3d printing websites
Ponoko.com
Shapeways.com
Sculpteo.com
If you find a cheaper website let me know
 

Comments

[AJSlack]

Any plans to release an updated case for the iPhone 5 coming out in Sept/Oct? If so, about how long will it take until they are ready to sell?

[mstyle183]

As soon as I'm able to get the measurements I'm making it.. If the design stays consistent like flat design.. I can get it done in a couple days.. But I have to test it.. So the shipping might take longer than me making the model

[skoster]

Does the case come in blue? it looks like blue on one of the pics from shapeways store: http://images1.sw-cdn.net/model/picture/640x476_450144_450153_1338961277.jpg

[mstyle183]

question did you order last night? someone ordered it in black detail.. this is my 1st sale on that.. sorry it bounced.. this material has different specs

[mstyle183]

sorry man that is a 3d rendering.. only colors available is red, purple black, and white.. i told them to make it available in pink and blue.. but is not ready yet

[FrankBlourtango]

I think that is a very slick case. I could probably trim down the glut in my wallet to a debit card and drivers license for day to day life. I'd opt out of the bottle opener. It was cool to add as a flat design challenge but I think if you have a cold beer, there is something around to open it with. : )

Nice project and well done.

[xayllon]

Is Iphone 4 the only mobile in the market or what?

[ginger snaps]

I would buy one if you had them for sale. The only thing i dont like is the cards and the money in the clip are touching the back of the phone and might scratch it as you put them in or pull them out. I'll be sure to vote for you

[mstyle183]

Thanks for the feedback

hey man i fixed it so it's stronger.. and added a small layer to prevent the card from touching your case..

http://www.shapeways.com/model/450144/sleek_all_in_one_iphone_4_case__card_holder__money.html

I'm Working on The Version with the bottle opener since it needs a metal part that cant be added in 3d printing.

[mstyle183]

Thanks for your vote!!

[mstyle183]

I could easly fix this.. it would add a millimeter which is not that bad.. and 3d printing cost.. but honestly i dont see this as a huge problem cause credit cards dont really scratch.. that i notice so far

[mdc123]

Is it possible to purchase this product?

[mstyle183]

The newer and improved version case can now be purchased in this 3d printing store front. It's more expensinve that i would like to make it.. But this is the only way it can purchased before it's manufactured. But the fact it's a 3d printed case should give it the extra wow and therefore worth it.

http://www.shapeways.com/model/450144/sleek_all_in_one_iphone_4_case__card_holder__money.html

I'm Working on The Version with the bottle opener since it needs a metal part that cant be added in 3d printing.

[mstyle183]

im improving this product as we speak right now.. i'm listening to some feedback and making it better and stronger.. once i'm done i'll put ti on sahpeways and will do a kickstarter page right after that

[Lisa_Bonita]

This is awesome! You should make them in pink for the ladies! :)

[mstyle183]

hmm they only make them in red.. but ill see what i can do about it :)

[unreal_ed]

Could you share the file for the case? I have access to a 3d printer and I was hoping to get it printed myself

[mstyle183]

sorry cant give out the final model.. however, i have given out a similar model out in step 3 :)

[Kryptonite]

If you were able to incorporate a blade into this, it would be the ultimate pocket product. If you were to sell these, I'm sure you could sell thousands!

[madhatter454]

I agree. Do you have your own 3D printer and how much does it cost to print each one?

[mstyle183]

No I used a 3d printing website.. I wish.. Vote for me so I can get one.. It cost about 25 bucks to get it printed

[madhatter454]

I tried to go vote for this one but can only find the watch on the Make it Real contest, Am I missing something?

[mstyle183]

i dont know why my iwatch got approved and this one didnt.. it took them couple of days to do it too.. i gonna try to find out

[madhatter454]

That is really cool. I agree that you could sell them even if you didn't add any new features. I don't have an iphone so I don't want to spend $25 plus shipping to give me as a gift to someone, but if you get the price down somehow, I might. I would suggest you add a plastic toothpick slot and maybe some of the other things that slide out of swiss army knives (http://i.imgur.com/wfSyk.png), if you make the slots the same size you can order the replacement parts from Victorinox and use them. http://www.swissarmy.com/us/category/Category/Parts-Accessories/1010?f=category&v=1/100/1010&m=add

[mstyle183]

just add this to the credit card holder... http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001WOKWQ/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=azg08-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0001WOKWQ

[mstyle183]

interesting.. if i get these manufactured instead of 3d printed it would be way cheaper.. also if i win the 3d printer.. i can make them my self and sell them cheaper :) ill check this website out thanks man

[madhatter454]

I have shown several people this but one of them brought up an interesting question, won't it demagnitize the credit cards? I have never had this happen personally, but my dad and someone else claim that if they leave their phone next to their credit cards then the magnetic strip stops working.

Personally, I never thought that a mobile produced a strong enough magnetic field, even during phone calls or speaker use but several people have told me they have had this problem. Have you been using the one you made?

[mstyle183]

hi.. i waited a bit to respond to this.. i been carryng 2 credit cards in my credit card holder religiously since i received this . its been a couple of weeks and i can honestly tell you that i havent had any issue with them.. they still work perfectly..

ill let you know.. but i dont see this happening as i also think the magenetic field is waY too small

[Kryptonite]

That's a brilliant idea.

Another one coming up: have the back piece with all the extra hold-'ems able to come off, so it's possible to just have an iPhone case.

Now all these things may make the case a little ridiculously large, though they're good idea nonetheless!

[mstyle183]

lol sounds like a challenge.. challenge accepted http://alltheragefaces.com/img/faces/large/determined-challenge-accepted-l.png