Use the tour section to navigate the lab by toolboxes, stations, and storage areas. This section is about 80% complete as of March 2026, and should be finished this year. The goal for this section is to offer visual access to all lab areas in sufficient detail that a reader can reproduce a lab buid just like OpenLab.
Which tools do we use? How are workspaces arranged? Why did we choose each supply? What model is the device from David's youtube video? See the lab, the machines, the inventory. Discover how it is organized, and what drives successful projects.
panoramic photos of the lab as of 2025.02
Video Tour This video published 2025.03 shows several parts of the lab in 2k resolution with explanations arranged by Actuators. The next step is to record a new video as a generic tour that includes more nooks and spaces, and shorten it by eliminating explanations.
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A space which has both storage and workspace, together.
Let's call this the cutting box. It's featured in the video about how to drill a hole, and short videos which use the oscillating tool. Photos from Feb 2025.
The clamping box. Box 2.0 includes course fasteners, clamps, pneumatic tools and circular saw. 5 drawers in total.
The instruments box. There are USB cables, adapters for USB & battery power, and instruments containing batteries. This box belongs in climate control for safe storage of batteries, circuits, and more fragile tools. If the lab catches on fire, it's recommended to roll this box outside of the lab first. Each box contains a consumable box of dessicant, but box 3 has high priority in handling moisture so it may contain dessicant in multiple drawers or they may be changed more frequently.
The hammer box. Tools for forming, sanding, precision cutting, and tasks overall that usually create dust. We dedicate a surface at the top of this box that is clear for setting down parts to be worked or clamped in the adjustable bench clamps.
The soldering station. This box contains parts for building wiring connections, crimping terminals, soldering boards, fine work, and heating parts with heat guns, hot glue, etc. With soldering and heat guns, fumes are often present so the fume extractor is built into the benchtop, along with racks for the most common screwdrivers & hand tools, and adjustable mounts for lighting, and hot air, plus self-weighted helping hands in the top drawer.
Box 6 is a top box with mechanics tools, plus cutting tools, pliers, sockets, and metal files. Many of these tools date back over 15 years, meaning they are common familiar tools for a garage mechanic or someone who repairs machines in general. Posted in Feb 2026, a bit delayed as this box is still changing in organization. The wrenches and sockets in the lab have moved to hanging positions as you'll find empty spaces in two drawers. Drawers are named 6.0 for the top tray and 6.1 through 6.6 for the six drawers. These drawer numbers maybe used to build a database of key tools with links and part functions.
Some special items found in box 6 include:
- pencil sharpeners, used for making chamfers on dowels and polymer tubes
- brushes, ie cosmetic brush in the file drawer - to dust of files before storing them
- spare holders for hex bits - these printed bins can stand alone or seat in a handybox (see OpenBox CAD model).
- both drill and driver in the top tray - often used in pairs, for drilling & driving. The drill gives more torque control and concentricity.
- replacement blades for utility knife, swapped daily when using the blades. Also a bin to gather spares.
- drill guide - absolutely invaluable once you use it, Kreg Brand, $8 on amazon
- calipers - my brand is iGaging and I strongly recommend it Amazon $47
- The 6-inch caliper stays in the lab and my preferred 4-inch unit stays at my desk.
The following topics describe a workstation with a dedicated activity. Designing these stations essentially asks: what supplies and arrangements are necessary to support the actions of "charging handhed items" or "washing and drying parts" or some other relevant action.
The linked video video demonstrates the Process of Converting a Tool into a Workstation. In this video the Grommet Press Tool shown requires not just a tool but several steps before the tool can do a job. The formation of a station is basically asking "what is the gap between the tool and useful work?" and breaking down that question into pieces, then arranging all of those pieces into one space to get the job done. (It's best to view the video on mobile since it is rotated 90 degrees).
Wall station for charging.
This small shelf is for quickly charging usb-powered handheld tools, or mobile phones, or battery cells. It's been a great backup when the tabletops are filled with project materials and there is no space to set aside a device for charging.
The wall outlet was installed to reduce the number of plug-in usb adapters. We need the station to support micro USB and USB-C male plug types, with QC, PD, and ordinary 5v USB charging protocols. This outlet was installed 2024 and delivers up to 45W DC power. The cord organizer keeps the cables organized on the wall, and the plugged-in adapter is the QC type adapter from our battery charger unit.
I found the XTAR battery charger to work great for these functions: charging or discharging cells to 3.6v for storage, measuring capacity with a discharge test, and measuring energy input to the cells when they are recharged. Measuring each cell independently allows me to test other appliances. For example, I can discover if a tool is maintaining balance between two cells after it has been discharged and charged for some time. If my headlamp battery does not seem to last very long, I can discover if the cell's capacity has degraded. For a quick trial, I can sit the charger in the blue rack, but of course it is safer to set up trials on a flat surface.
For portable charging, the 2-cell power bank works together with the charging station. In the photo shown, the xtar PB2S is delivering a charge to a portable light. Unlike most power banks, it is modular and you can swap out the individual cells. I can set the PB2S in the charging station to receive a charge rapidly (using PD), and then bring it to my workspace outside of the lab, or set it in a drawer together with the tool that needs a charge. The PB2S displays the amount of current entering the unit (when charging) and the amount of current exiting the unit (when discharging). It is capable of delivering
Communications come in through the Echo dot (alexa) such as shipments arriving, or important notifications. It's also great for verbally checking a math problem, and hearing the answer audibly over the speaker. When we don't need communication, the dot plays music through the speaker, which frees up the mobile phone to be used for voice chats, discord, and communication with Siri, etc. It's especially useful for taking videos with the iPhone since the Camera App cannot simultaneously record video and play sounds.
Parts:
- micmi USBC outlet, $18
- Roland 30W monitor. CM-30
- usbC cable with power meter, $8
- echo dot bracket, Gen3, printed
- cord organizer, similiar
- battery charger for 18650, Xtar VC4
- portable charger, xtart PB2S
Soldering Station ► This station is for all fine work such as soldering or pick-and-place of electronics on small boards. The rack is made from 30mm extrusion and DIN rail, with holders for the most frequently needed tools. Debris gets swept off the tabletop to a trash receptacle on the right hand. The soldering iron rests in a safe tube near the back, where it is insulated. Then the iron remains hot without wasting power, and the user avoids a burn risk. 120v powered devices like the heat gun can plug in directly to the station power and we can measure the power level of the device in this way. The whole station plugs into any 120vac outlet, and then measures with the DIN-mounted meter, and distributes power to the 3-prong receptacle mounted at the upper right.
Key Functional items include: Din-mounted Power Meter which measures the power of the whole station. While using this, I can notice the heating patterns of my soldering iron, verify it has gone to sleep. I can plug in any device into my USB-PD and know it is activated, and how much current it draws. When preparing a circuit for an actuator, I can bring the actuator to source power from my DC supply and verify it's current draw is suitable, and on and on. This unit is wired in directly after 120vAC power arrives from the wall and before any electronics are connected.
The power panel is first of several panel-style stations. It is mostly storage, and periodically given an active function.
Preview some panels in the images below.
** Power Panel** ► Ridgid brand is chosen for our lithium power tools for one reason: the lifetime warranty & free replacement. The Ridgid battery performance competes with leading brands like DeWalt, Bosch, Milwaukee, etc. However, only Ridgid gives us a free replacmeent for any registered tool that fails. When we run tests on motors, power adapters, or any high-current DC equipment, the 18v packs are the starting point. For quantitative design work I use a pre-characterized pack. So, the battery pack will be tested on our CBA power testing machine to verify it matches the normal values for capacity and current ratings. Then, the battery is ready to support measurement or calibration of a DC-driven actuator.
Posted in March 2026, this corner of the lab contains most cleaning supplies. The sink and supplies here are used many times per day and they are fundemantal for any lab, even a robotics lab. This station has an integrate source of purified water with a reverse osmosis filter, places to hang and dry items, a rack for scrubbing utensils, and dispensers for soap to clean hands and parts.
The next three photos are edited with labels for major supplies for reference. Sometimes these parts are concealed from video content but they are super important! The utility sink with hot and cold water, the Revese Osmosis water filter setup, and the wall-mounted rack with common cleaning substances are shown.
The Reverse Osmosis Filter is fantastic and I have purchased 3 of these kits since 2019. The manufacturer is Aquatic Life and it's truly a remarkable value with durable cylinders, tubes included, and modular parts that can be replaced. There are 3 stages in this system with the RO membrane at the center (final) stage. Once you assemble the kit, it's far more simpler than trying to understand online literature about these systems. There is one type of case that is unsuitable for this system and that is when you do NOT have continuous water pressure in your facility. The system uses the pressure in the plumbing to drive the water through the membrane and gradually output clean water. If your site is off-grid, then it's necessary to have a pump to build pressure and a reservoir for the cleaned water (perhaps 2 gallons or so). It's also unsuitable if you have no drain at your site. There is a continuous flushing taking place where the contaminated water flows out to the drain. My system fills a 5-gallon bottle in about 50 minutes and produces about an equal amount of wastewater when it's flowing. The wastewater is routed directly into the drain line of the sink in this setup. The filter should last about 400 gallons before replacing the $15 RO membrane. It removes nearly ALL particulate contaminants and dissolved solids like salts, chlorine, etc. We can reintroduce the desirable salts & minerals using ordinary high quality sea salt. My target PPM measures 50 parts per million of total dissolved solids (TDS) after supplementing a salt solution.
Who needs such a filter? Well I have used it for 3 main purposes: Firstly, drinking water because Texas lacks good quality tap water. Second, for aquarium setup & refill if you have pets or aquatic animals. Thirdly, I have used this for hydroponic plants experiments and of course the indoor plants too. Using the plain tapwater for potted plants can gradually accumulate salts and chlorine byproducts in the soil because it has nowhere to go. Below, also find a link to a meter for measurement of the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in your water. This choice is similar to mine (no longer available) and they are quite reliable despite the low cost. The sensor measures the water's conductivity, makes a temperature-correction, and outputs a TDS estimation based on a predefined curve. By experimenting, you will find that ordinary carbon filters perform nearly zero removal of TDS from a water source and the RO filter removes nearly all of it!
- buy RO filter kit on Amazon, $70
- buy compatible RO membranes two for $33 as replacements
- buy connector kits for $14 to build your own water lines as needed.
- buy TDS meter for only $8 to measure water contamination
Below, find more photos of the wash station. The hanging hooks are a small detail but they continuously benefit our workflows with a spot to hang drying paintbrushes etc. All of the hanging items are arranged in a place where they can drip water without any issues for the lab. The tubing connectors and valves linked above are the same type I have tested with zero leaks or failures for 7+ years now. They have performed incredibly well and they are now my standard components for routing fluids (including pressurized air) that move in small volumes. The tubes cut swiftly and accurately with a utility knife and the tool-free joints assemble rapidly, remove without damage, can tolerate 200 PSI of pressure, and even allow for the tubes to be turned without breaking the seal. The value of these simple and affordable connectors I only discovered in 2018 when I assembled my first RO kit. From that time, these connectors displace dozens of would-be NPT fittings, tapping effort, and thread-sealing taping effort that goes with them.
Tapes Panel ► Tapes are organized here. The tapes are explained in my video from 2024.07, embedded below. List of tape supplies is included in the shopping lists section under tools►shopping. Jump to (tools).
<iframe width="800" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W0sAR_jI4b8" title="More than you ever wanted to know about tape" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>A space which has stored materials and no workspace.
Two large shelving units, subdivided into spaces for fasteners and categorized parts for fast retrieval. The goal is to collect or return any part in 10 seconds. There are probably 1,000 unique parts altogether in one shelving unit. This space does NOT include tools, only supplies. These photos date from 2025.02 and I think they will maintain 80% accuracy for at least 3 years. (Estimating based on continual improvements in the lab and the past year's changes).
hardware-bins These bins are the main source for hardware selections in new designs and builds. The green marked section with metric components are the preferred, highest priority parts sources. Specifically M2.5 and M6 are the default choice for designs with small & large fasteners respectively. (posted Feb 2026)
The following section of hardware is one step more miscellaneous and lower priority than the above. (Posted Feb 2026)
Doors are used as further storage. Tall items which don't fit in toolboxes are good for the doors. We don't want a large number of items but we want to utilize the space. Many items makes it more difficult to reconfigure or remove the storage. Too much mass would overload the door hinges. Lastly, we cannot allow items to teeter or fall down when the door swings, so these items must be fixed in all axes unlike most parts. Just observe the photographs to see how parts are fixed from moving forward off the doors, moving up when jarred, and moving to the sides with wooden brackets or with the clamps themselves.
The rack design is modular and easy to modify to suit your needs. It looks simple but it's more than 10 years of decision making embedded in a shelf. Design goals: easy to roll, adjust reail heights for various bin depth, build from standard supplies, minimal weight, and sufficient rigidity to support heavy bins full of hardware. More details on bins under Tools ► Bins section.
The components are:
extrusions, 3030 metric style
corner brackets, aluminum, or concealed corner brackets, from steel
steel DIN rail, 35mm height, standard electrical DIN bar
fasteners, M6x12mm for most screws, philips head, wide diameter
bins, standard industrial parts bins, hdpe, rugged & divider-friendly
You can build most of this rack without any CAD model, so there was no need to create a solidworks assembly. If you wish to build this rack and want further documentation, just reach out and please let me know what you need! Everyone has a different level of readiness to copy a design straight form photos. I am happy to post docs of the exact part numbers if others wish to actually order the same parts (which is recommended but not the most affordable way to go).
The bin tops are made from 1/4in expanded PVC material, easily cut with a utility blade. This version has rigidity, is lightweight, and easy to clean off. The tops protect fine parts from collecting dust from the lab space. You can use the same material for making your own dividers.
The wheels are made from outdoor sports wheels, fully documented on grabCAD with the 3D printed adapter bracket. Download the 3D print design at grabcad under roller_bracket
The DIN rail is cut just long enough to reach from the front columns to the back columns. Use steel rail, found on amazon in packs of 10 at 1 meter length each. The DIN rail cutter is also a great investment that will last a lifetime. amazon din rail 10-pack amazon din cutting tool
The fasteners use a variety of M6 parts but you can almost exclusively use M6x12mm screws, and drop-in nuts or slide-in nuts, featured on several other lab inventions. The drop-in nuts are recommended for all areas except corners, where maximum strength is desired and the larger slide-in nuts give more strength. Washers may be used to adjust fine spacing, such as clearance from the screw to the base of the extrusion groove, or gaps between the din rail and the bins.
Storage or working spaces relating to administrative functions.
Let's call this the admin station. The tools here are interwoven with the processes of the rest of the lab, so it cannot be excluded. The most key part here is the scanner, necessary for digitizing manuals, shippers, etc. There must be seamlessness between the world of data and the material world in the lab. The closest match to the Epson DS-510 presently offered is the newer Epson ES-400. I've been using the DS-510 from 2016(now it's 2025) with no complaints, and gradually building more sophisticated processes to get our PDFs refined for minimal document size, best clarity, and managment of colors.
We follow after Toyota for many methodologies in SCUTTLE robotics and other engineering work. Posting these graphics on display creates opportunities to interlink 100 years of wisdom into our everyday tasks & design efforts. Collectively, the key methodologies in the Toyota work culture are called the "toyota way" and they have been adopted by thousands of engineering companies in pursuit of excellence. For example, modern manufacturing leader refer to "lean manufacturing" which originated as a collection of best practices in the Toyota manufacturing system, including "just-in-time manufacturing."
Key components are used throughout all stations, panels, and storage. CAD Models are posted on grabCAD, with descriptions and some instructions for implementation. On grabCAD, see models all in one place by visiting the library and searching keyword: openlab.
Here's a video tour of the lab based on actuators. An actuator is any device that performs physical manipulation or actuation. For robotics designs, every machine is ultimately just one or more actuators controlled by logic. This topic is comprehensive in that if you learn all of the actuators, how to implement and control them, you have learned how to design anything you can imagine.
<iframe width="700" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/23hqRMnvwW4?si=MSMpWSMvXb0LsW6m" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>Images below feature actuators, divided by categories from the pure engineering point of view. All mechanical actuators in the lab have a function of moving energy through heat, pressure, or motion. That energy is applied to solids, liquids, or gases and the actuators are driven by electrical inputs. More rudimentary actuators may be driven manually, but for each manual actuator in the world there is now an electrically driven equivalent. So, every actuator found in your machines like a car, a mill, or desktop printer belongs in a category shown below, without exception. This is how we verify that the diagrams are complete and comprehensive. Actuators that fall outside this list such as lights, lasers, or electromagnetic actuators are considered non-mechanical for the discussion at hand.
Popular Actuators in Mechatronics Are you a beginner with actuators? Grab these links for tutorials, for the most popular actuators for learners of mechatronics. These tutorials invariably include an MCU for control, which causes them to fall under mechatronics, not just electronics. We're sending you to HowToMechatronics.com, where they published world-class explanations & graphics for each of the actuators listed.
Components such as the hex-rack and battery adapters get many questions on my social media, so I'm providing the base-level parts which comprise the lab solutions. The images below are just some previews of invented parts, functioning in the lab.
- Hex rack stores common hex bits on DIN rail, bits size 1/4in for standard drills & drivers, for easy reach.
- Socket Hanger mates with standard socket rails, adjustable for balancing weight and vertical hanging.
- Bit Box is a component of the OpenBox Project series of designs, fits in the handybox & stores bulk quantity of hex bits.
Four basic adapters have been designed for customizing power delivery to 18v DC power tools. They each have been published in various youtube shorts and they are made for four functions, listed below with CAD models linked:
- Access power from a battery ► battery terminal
- Deliver power to a tool ► battery dummy
- Affix a battery where desired ► battery Rack
- Affix a tool where desired ► battery Jig
