Embedded Files
My final project worked a little different from other projects because Catherine and I worked on a sumo bot for a final project, but during class we also worked on our night lights. My sumo bot project for this semester is on the Sumo bot page, click here, and the beginning of my night light project is on the Night Light page, click here. This page shows what I did to improve my night light project during the last part of the year.
Project Ideas: I knew I was going to finish up my night light, but once the required work was done I had a few different ideas of what I wanted to add.
1. Add decals to the Tardis to give it the same look as it does in the TV show.
Pro: It would make the Tardis look more like it did in the TV show.
Con: The letters were really really small and they might not cut out very well.
Most Exciting: I would get to use the vinyl cutter and it would make it look very realistic.
2. Add stronger lights into the Tardis to really make it bright.
Pro: It would really light up the Tardis.
Con: I wasn't sure how I would be able to turn on and off the lights in order to make it light a Night Light.
Most Exciting: The color inside will be really really bright and it will be able to change colors.
3. Add music because the Tardis makes a weird a noise in the TV show.
Pro: It would make the Tardis look really cool.
Con: I have no idea how I would make this work.
Most Exciting: The sound effect would just be super cool.
Choice:
I decided on starting with first adding the decals and the acrylic window. I decided that if I finished that, and I still had time left in the class, I would work down the list of different items I could add to the project. I chose to do things in this order because I thought I would have the most success if I started with the decals and then worked my way towards the sound. At the time, sound would be nice, but is not crucial to the success of my project. A successful project would be a Tardis that lights up at night and turns off in the morning. It would also look semi realistic to what the Tardis looks like in the TV show. Here is a picture of TV version:
Project Inspiration:
I was inspired by the intractable, Instructables link, by Britt Michelsen. I saw this project while searching for inspiration for my Tardis. I then used their inscape files as a starting point for my project.
Differences:
The electrical components of my project are different from the ones in the instructable because I used different inside lights and for my Night light project, I made a special board. Also the decals on the Tardis were made using the sticker machine instead of the paper they suggested. Finally there are a few design differences.
Material List:
Daily Journal:
4/17/17 - 4/19/17 - work on othermill and board design
4/22/17 - 4/26/17 - planning for next part of the project and ordering parts one day of digital portfolio
4/30/17 - Fab Lab Sunday - Today I got my new lights in and started connecting them with wires because just putting them into a box did not work because they did not bend right.
5/1/2017- I did some work trying to connect my lights with wires and soldering and it was unsuccessful.
5/2/17 - I continued my lights work and nothing worked.
5/3/17 - Today in class I did some research on new ways to connect my lights after the utter failure of trying to connect them with individual wire, so on amazon I found these led RGB light connectors that would do exactly what I wanted.
5/4/17 - Today in class I worked on my digital portfolio while I waited for my light connectors to arrive.
5/5/17 - Today in class I othermilled a new board in order for Catherine and me to document the process of printing on the othermill and to make another board that works to put in the top of the Tardis. Then after school I went to Maker Space and learned how to connect my RGB lights. It was not working so we measured the current and found out that the current was running through the wires and it was a problem with the lights themselves. Someone pointed out to me that while I was removing the plastic coating, I had also sliced through the copper that connected the lights, therefore rendering them useless. Once I fixed that problem, I connected all of my lights. Then I drilled a hole to run the power through.
5/7/17 - Today I came to one of the Fab lab Sundays with mom. I put the lights into the Tardis and then 3D printed a character for my Tardis creation. I also drilled another hole in so that the lights could be plugged into power.
5/8/17 - 5/9/17 - Digital Portfolio Work
5/10/17 - Today I worked on building another version of my night light board, but this time with gum drop LEDs. This lead to a new series of problems because the LED gumdrop lights took up more voltage than the normal LED so my resistor was strong and the lights were really dim. To fix this problem, I took out my 1000-ohm resistor and replaced it with a 500-ohm resistor. This solved the problem right up. Then when I tried to use the light transistor nothing happened, so tomorrow I am going to flip the led transistor the other direction.
5/11/17 - Today during class I flipped my light transistor and the whole board worked. Then I packed up all of the Tardis stuff for makerspace that afternoon. At makerspace, I took of the plastic coating on my lights to avoid the problem of them turing off because of a bad connection.
5/12/17 - I took pictures of my finished project and everything was working till the end of class when it stopped, but that is okay because I got all of my pictures.
5/15/17 - Today I am going to finish up my digital portfolio.
Final Summary
I learned all about persistence during this project, and I learned about the othermill. I started out by learning the othermill and that was really important because I had to learn about traces and the importance of putting the traces on the back of the board. I also learned about changing the bit and how to print. Finally, the othermill taught me that I can make any sort of electrical board myself.
The process of completing a long project was not quite the same because I completed two small projects. With the robotics project, I learned about working with a team. Team work is a lot harder than it should be, and I learned about compromising with teams mates. I also that preparation is very important to the success of a team. In terms of completing a large project for my night light, I learned about the importance of time management and not leaving anything to the last minute.
For the next part of my project, I would add sound to the project. This would make the whole project function even better and it would be supper cool. I think that sound we be really really cool.
Instructions:
Here is a list of the materials that you will need to complete this project:
*Depending on what you want to do the light connectors are optional.
Step One: First order all of the parts that are listed on the materials list.
Step Two: Laser Cut the Tardis Box
All of the SVG files are on the bottom of the page. Makes sure all of the pieces cut out all of the way through of otherwise the box will be very hard to assemble.
To laser cut on the MakerSpace laser cutter is actually very simple.
1. Open up your .svg file in Inkscape.
2. Download RetinaEngrave from HERE.
3. On Inkscape click file print to full spectrum engineering driver. If you do not already have RetinaEngrave open this step will not work.
4. In RetinaEngrave click the tab in the top to take you to only vector. Then set your speed to about 50 and your power to 100%.
5. Next, click the blue box on the top with four arrows around it to run the perimeter of your project just to make sure it will fit on the board.
5. Make sure the fan is turned on. Click the green run arrow. *hint if you do not have a connection on the bottom of your screen, your project will not print because it is not connected to anything.
6. Make sure to keep an eye on your print.
7. If at any time the machine tells you that laser is not homed, that does not matter and hit okay.
8. Collect your fantastic print from the machine.
Step Three: Stain the box blue
To use the stain, you will need a paper plate and a T-Shirt you want to rip to pieces. Also, you will need to wear painting clothes because the stain will go everywhere. First, place some stain on a paper plate. Second, dip one strip for your torn up t-shirt into the stain and apply a generous coat over the wood. Third, set a timer and wait five minutes. Fourth, remove the stain by wiping it off with a new piece of shirt. Finally, allow the stain to dry overnight before assembly.
Step Three:
Assemble the Tardis box. In order to do this, CLICK HERE in order to look at this page which has detailed pictures of how everything is assembled.
Step Four: Cut out stickers
Use the vinyl cutter to cut out the stickers located in the add files named: Tardis Decal Sticker.pdf
In order to use the vinyl cutter, start by cutting out a piece of vinyl from the wall.
Here is where you should pick a color.
2. Place your piece of vinyl onto one of the special sheets.
3. Insert your sheet into the vinyl cutter by placing the arrow at the top and then hitting the load button on the machine.
4. Go over to the computer and go to the silhouette studio and import the PDF file. Then click the trace button to get the traces.
5. Click the button to send to the vinyl cutter and there you go!
Step Five: Put in Lights
Remove the plastic coating from the top of the lights and glue them into your box at whatever angle or arrangement that you want. Also, make sure you follow the directions given when you ordered your box in order to make sure that the bluetooth is all hooked up.
Step Six: Drill a Hole
Drill a hole in the side of your box so that you can plug in a power source. This should be done at the top of the bottom section. Then run your cord through and plug it in.
Step Seven: Download app
The lights that you bought should have come with a QR code. Ask Mr. Dubick whether you are allowed to use your phone. Then remove your phone and connect with the lights.
Step Eight: Control with a phone.
On the app, there should be a button on the top left that will allow you to open a side screen and it will give you the option to connect with your light strip. If the light strip is not plugged in then it will not work. Congratulations you have completed making a Tardis.
Here is my QR code:
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