OpenLabs 3D Printed Lamp

This month at work we moved to some brand new office. Along with the new space we are also working in some new initiatives and most important, a Maker Space. So, new logo and no customized office (for now). We though of building a simple LED 3D printed lamp with the new OpenLabs logo. And that we did. This experiment also pretends of being the first one of the Makers Program developed at OpenLabs

Here are the instructions of what we did and how.

First we need a 3D design. Our most talented designer, Jesus, helped out creating a gorgeous design with a top plate printed in transparent plastic and holes for cables and space for the circuit. Our plan was to design the most simple lamp we could, so no interruptors or batteries, just a micro usb connection for power. We used 123D Design which is a pretty easy to use software for 3D modelling.

With the design in hands, we printed the base with grey PLA and the top plate, where the light must go trough with transparent plastic, also PLA. The two pieces must perfectly fit together with no screws or glue, at least that did in the original design. In the real world 3D printers are not that precise, so we had to scale a little bit down the top part that gets fixed in the base. That's called tolerance, and

We wanted to build a simple lamp, with 12 LEDs and powered by a 5V input. Here is the list of componentes used:

+ 12 x White LEDs

+ 12 x 22ohm resistors

+ 5V power supply

+ 1m long cable

In order to find out the resistors we need to use, we used this app. We did the maths with the 5V input, the number of LEDs and their characteristics. That will be diode forward current and current needed for proper lightning. You can find those numbers easily in the datasheet. Finally, the LEDs will be connected in parallel as shown in the schematic.

The first thing we did was to solder the resistors to the cathode(short leg that goes to ground) of the LEDs, after that we cut the legs to the minimum length, as we needed the diodes to fit into the lamp. Then you will need to solder cables through all the legs of the LEDs, making 2 long cables, one connecting ground and the other one the 5V. After that connect the wires to the power supply.

Before sticking the circuit to the board or applying any glue, it may be a good idea to test the circuit. Just check that everything works as expected.

Finally, we use some hot glue to stick the LEDs static to the plate. Try to measure the distance to make sure you don't have a monster with all the light in one place. Afterwards, just fix the two pieces together. Be careful and don't strip any wire or break any LEDs or resistor, as the legs are very sensitive.

There is only one more step: fancy around your lamp at events and stick it somewhere where it can be seen