Report on Factory Visit in China

Thank you for your eager anticipation for the arrival of GrabShell.

Recently, our COO and CTO visited the factory in China to make final adjustments, including checking the status of GrabShell.

We have compiled a report on the factory visit,
Please take a look.


< About the Chinese company with which we do business >
Upon arrival in China, we were first greeted by our business partner and introduced to the company.
We were welcomed in a magnificent 7-story building.

Inside, there were PCs connected to cameras all over town, face recognition flapper gates, and other exhibits, and they were busy releasing a new version of their product the following week. The atmosphere was like that of Silicon Valley.

< GrabShell mass production system >
We have had meetings with several affiliated companies to confirm and discuss the mass production system of GrabShell.


< Mechanical design and assembly >
First, we visited the company that designs and assembles GrabShell's mechanism.
This company has been making keyboards for a long time, and there were many keyboards on display. They also make hand-held wireless keyboards for medical facilities.

This factory assembles the assembled parts, tests the keyboards, visually checks them, and packages them.

After the tour, with the visiting staff,
actual specifications and made adjustments to wheel positions, etc.

Specifically, the following items have been changed and finalized.

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The hinge has been changed to metal for reasons of strength and space.
In mass production specifications, the cable connecting the front and rear boards has been changed to a flexible cable that passes through the hinge.
The key switches are interchangeable.
The lower left wheel is now optical, similar to a mouse wheel, and the layout has been changed to make it easier to use. LEDs are also mounted on the back side.
The battery capacity is 2000mAh.
Sleep mode has been implemented. It will be restored by pressing a key.
Keycaps are molded by double-shot (two-color molding).
The case of the housing is made of ABS.
In addition, the connection part between the belt and the main body might be fragile, which was a concern we received at the recent GrabShell trial meeting held in Tokyo. We have strengthened the joint part by adopting a through shaft.
========================================

<Printed  Circuit Board>
We asked a development company in Shenzhen that is in charge of GrabShell's electronic design and software. The PCB (printed circuit board) for the keyboard is produced at this factory.
Here, we confirmed that the main board, joystick, toggle switches, LEDs, and other components are working.
The QMK/VIA also works fine.

< General Comments >
We have visited each of the factories and have confirmed that, in general, development is proceeding without problems. As for the future flow of the project,

1. Finished products (samples) are shipped from China to Japan.
2.Final testing and adjustment at our company
3.As soon as the shipping system is ready, we will ship the products to the purchasers sequentially.

The shipping process is as follows.

We plan to start shipping products in mid-July, and to customers who ordered via the web, we plan to start shipping in August.

We are very pleased to be able to provide this notice to all of you who have been looking forward to GrabShell.
We hope that we will be able to deliver to you,
We will send you information as soon as possible.
Thank you for your continued support.