Laser Cut Hanging "Living" Hinge Lamp With Snaps

After hours of researching living hinges and compliant mechanisms, we decided it was time to design our own. With only three unique pieces, this living hinge lamp creates an amazing radial light display with satisfying snapping connections.

The body of the lamp can also be cut out of carboard, combined with the plywood connector piece and snaps.

If you are looking to get started right away and not make any changes to the design, the SVG, PDF, and Adobe Illustrator files are provided below to load onto your software of choice. Refer to step 1 for assembly instructions.

If you are looking to learn about the design process and make some edits of your own, skip to step 2 for the design process and further research and resources. Attached are the Fusion file, STEP file, DXF file, and STL file to load onto your software of choice.

Supplies:

• 3mm (0.1 in) plywood - at least 10 x 27 inches.
• Hanging lantern cord: 2 pack - 25$
• Laser cutter (we use the Epilog Laser Fusion M2 with a 75 watt C02 laser)

Laser cut parts (to be cut out of the plywood):

• Lamp shade
• Pronged connection piece
• Snaps x 3

Here is a visual guide for assembling the lamp.

The three unique parts to the lamp are: the shade, the connector piece, and the snaps.

• First, snap the three prongs of the top connection piece to the lamp shade body until it wraps around.
• Next, push the three snap pieces through one side of the lamp shade
• Last, layer the other side of the shade on top of the snaps and push them through until the lamp is fully assembled!

Note: Be careful of exerting too much force on the snaps, as the lamp shade is pretty delicate. 

The hanging wire connection fits into the hole of the three-pronged connection piece, which the lightbulb then screws into. After assembling the lamp, you can hang it from a hook in the ceiling or set it on a table for viewing. 

We watched this Youtube video to understand rectangular patterns and the specific parameters that are essential for creating a living hinge pattern in Fusion 360.

After we created the design for the lamp shade, we spent a while thinking about the best way to create structure for the lamp. Originally, we had had a connection at the seam that was similar to puzzle pieces. After experimenting with compliant mechanisms and snaps, we designed the compliant design seen on the snaps and connector piece. Snaps are extremely useful for makers working with laser cutters, as the piece allows for a strong connection between pieces that can be separated at will. We are looking forward to creating other applications for the snap piece joint, and seeing what others may create as well.

While our research on compliant mechanisms and lattice hinges wasn't as conclusive as hoped for, we compiled a list of links to articles, videos, and academic papers that discuss compliant mechanisms, lattice hinges, and material sciences for others to dive into:

• Living Hinges Minimum Bend Radius Video
• Trotec Bendable Applications Article
• Lattice Hinge - Choosing Torsional Stress Article
• Mastering Living Hinges Fusion Tutorial
• How to Design 3D Printed Hinges
• Lattice Hinge Design — Minimum Bend Radius Article
• Hal Open Science - Computational Design of Laser-Cut Bending-Active Structures
• Missouri University of Science and Technology - Analysis of Laser Cut Living Hinge Pattern Design 

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en 

This design is licensed under a cc-by-sa 4.0 creative commons license. Tag Make Studio JUMP as an author if you modify and reshare.

Enjoy, and bask in the light!

Jack's Urban Meeting Place

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