HATs and other add-ons • Re: 1U rack-mount kit

Hi everyone. I'm new to this board but I'm planning on using a pi for a project which will require it to be mounted in a rack. I know there are options and products to do this but I haven't found one that quite fits my needs, so I'm probably going to have one made.

My requirements are:
- 1 x Pi (probably 3B or 4B) in 1U of rack space
- powered by a PoE extractor
- ports NOT visible from outside the rack
- a number of LEDs visible outside the rack

This got me wondering whether I could create something that would be useful in other future projects? Could I create something that would be useful to other people, too?

I've come up with a modular design that would allow:
- up to 4 x Pis, all powered by PoE
- up to 12 x D-type connectors on the back of the rack (most would be blanked in my case)
- up to 4 plates on the front, each of which could be blank, 3 x D-type, I2C LCD + buttons or LEDs
- plates will probably have daisy-chain 40-pin connectors so, for example, you could drive the I2C LCD, buttons and LEDs from the same pi.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I'll upload a drawing if somebody can tell me how.

Statistics: Posted by ejolson — Wed Jan 21, 2026 1:32 am