Glow Doodle

Project:

Assemble a circuit that produces light from an LED when a button is pressed.

SAFETY:

Always where eye goggles while using power tools (soldering iron, Dremel tool, etc.).

NO EXCEPTIONS.

Materials:

  • LED (1) - Light Emitting Diode (LED), any color

  • Button (1) - this is a normally open (NO) switch

  • Battery pack (1) - holds 2-AA batteries

  • Wire - as little as needed, (measure twice, cut once)

  • plastic bottle (1) - approx. 500ml in size

  • soldering iron

  • solder

  • hot glue gun

  • hot glue

Make the Circuit

Sketch

    • use TinkerCad to construct and simulate the circuit

    • draw (pencil) a circuit in your design notebook that shows each element

    • seek approval from teacher

Construct Circuit

  • gather materials listed above

  • layout your circuit on table

  • connect your circuit by twisting wires lightly (you will need to undo them later)

Testing

  • Add two (2) AA batteries to the battery pack

  • Test the circuit by pressing the button, does the LED light up?

  • Does the light flicker or stay on consistently?

  • How do we troubleshoot (debug) the circuit?

Troubleshooting

  • Did you press the button?

  • Are there batteries in the pack?

  • Are all connections secure

  • Are the LED leads touching (short circuit)?

  • Can you isolate the problem area(s)?

Assemble the Bottle

  • Once the circuit is working reliably, determine a way to get the battery pack in the bottle. How might you fit it in there?

  • Use the PDF file above to setup the LED and button in the cap

PLAY!

Once your Glow Doodle bottle is complete, visit www.glowdoodle.com, turn out the lights, and paint with light!

NOTE: the GlowDoodle website does not work with the Chrome Browser. Please use another browser like Firefox.

Glow Doodle Circuit Diagrams.pdf