{"id":414,"date":"2019-03-31T13:32:06","date_gmt":"2019-03-31T13:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/?page_id=414"},"modified":"2019-05-07T18:56:53","modified_gmt":"2019-05-07T18:56:53","slug":"lights","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/about-2\/2019-2\/lights\/","title":{"rendered":"LED board display"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_zigzag el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988634650{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Students<\/h3>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][vc_single_image image=”1309″ img_size=”medium” css=”.vc_custom_1557255341126{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;}”][vc_column_text]Andrew LeRoux
\nEconomics, 2020[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_zigzag el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988638130{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Project Description<\/h3>\n

This project is a 10×10 matrix of RGB LED lights, each individually controllable through the use of an Arduino board. Each LED light is part of a LED strip. These LED strips are flexible circuit boards that have LED\u2019s imbedded within the circuit board. The LED\u2019s are RGB (red, green, blue) and have a variety of color combinations that are possible. Each strip has 10 LED\u2019s in it, and each strip is laid out side by side and connected through the use of wires. All of the LED\u2019s are then connected to an Arduino board that had preloaded code that is used to control each individual light. The LED\u2019s and the Arduino are powered through the use of a 12 volt power source that is connected to the Arduino. The frame of the board is made out of wood with a glass panel in front. This glass panel has been coated with glass frosting spray in order to diffuse the light and give the display a more cohesive look.
\nThe main purpose of this project is to display information through the use of a grid of lights. Almost any type of display is possible (within the constraints of a 10 by 10 grid), such a text displays, symbols, or light displays.[\/vc_column_text][vc_zigzag el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988641874{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Technical Background<\/h3>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]LED\u2019s are light emitting diodes, which are semiconductors that emit light when an electric current passes through them. There is a wide variety of LED\u2019s that can be used, many having different functionalities and forms. One variety is individually addressable LED strips. LED strips are essentially flexible circuit boards with built in LED lights than can be cut to adjust their length in order to achieve the correct amount of lights and strip size for your project. These strips can come in a single color or be RGB (red, green, blue) which gives them the ability to change colors. Single color LED\u2019s emit one specific certain wavelength of light, while RGB LED\u2019s are actually a combination of 3 LED\u2019s in one, where each LED will emit red, green, or blue at varying intensities. The combination of these 3 emissions together will produced the desired color. Each color has 255 different output, achieved by varying the voltage given to each input power rail. Therefore by combining all three colors, there are more than 16 million different color combinations.
\nHowever, in order to use LED lights it is necessary to understand how basic circuits work. LED\u2019s are a type of diode, which Is a semiconductor device that typically conducts current in one direction. LED\u2019s needs to connected in a circuit in order to be functional. A circuit is a closed path in which electricity can flow through. In a circuit electricity flows through a material that is conductive, such as copper wire, and typically enter and exit at the same place (the power source). A very basic type of circuit could contain a power source such as a battery, an LED, and a resistor. The power source is used to supply power to the system, and the resistor is used in order to decrease the current. LED\u2019s are connected in the circuit using the cathode and anode. In a simple circuit, current would flow from the power source, through the resistor, to the anode, through the LED, to the cathode and the back to the power source. The resistor is necessary since most power sources supply far more current than is necessary to power the LED, and the resistor reduces the current flow. If there is to much current supplied to the LED, the LED could burn out. It is important to wire a circuit properly since if the circuit is not fully connected, or one of the wires is crossed (in this example if the current was trying to flow into the cathode), the circuit may not work or it could short circuit.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Aasvik, Mads. \u201cProgramming Digital RGB LED Strips with Arduino and the FastLED Library.\u201d Norwegian Creations, Norwegian Creations, 16 Jan. 2018, www.norwegiancreations.com\/2018\/01\/programming-digital-rgb-led-strips-with-arduino-and-the-fastled-library\/.<\/em><\/p>\n

Buckley, Ian. \u201cUltimate Guide to Connecting LED Light Strips to Arduino.\u201d MakeUseOf, MakeUseOf, 25 May 2017, www.makeuseof.com\/tag\/connect-led-light-strips-arduino\/.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cLED Strip Lights: Everything You Need to Know.\u201d Waveform Lighting, Waveform Lighting, 2019, www.waveformlighting.com\/led-strip-lights.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cLesson 2 – Resistors.\u201d A Rough Guide to Electronics – Lesson 2, MadLab, 2010, www.madlab.org\/electrnx\/lesson2.html<\/em>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_zigzag color=”black” el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988646466{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Design Drawings<\/h3>\n

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Fabrication Process<\/h3>\n

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\n
\n
The LED board had several components that had to be assembled. The first was the wooden frame, which had a base piece of 15 inches x 16.5 inches, and wooden pieces on either end to hold the glass frame in place. Each one of the wooden pieces had to be cut to size using either the table or scroll saw and were glued together using wood glue.
\nThe next step was attaching the LED strips. Each LED strip of 10 lights had to be cut to size, evenly spaces on the board, and then wired together. LED strips are adhesive on the back, so they are easily attachable. Each strip was connected with 3 wires that were each soldered to the pads on the end of each strip. This had to be done in between each of the 10 LED strips. One end of the first LED strip has wires that connect to an Arduino board, which is used to control the LED strips. The Arduino had to be wired and coded correctly for the board to function. Code can be uploaded to the Arduino by using an ethernet cable connected to a computer. Attached to the Arduino is an external power source that provides power to the LEDs and Arduino.
\nAfter the wooden frame has been constructed and the LEDs and wiring were complete, the glass panel was the final step. This project uses a 15 inch by 16.5 inch acrylic glass panel. This glass panel was coated in glass frosting spray in order to diffuse the light from the LEDs and give the display a more cohesive appearance. This glass panel is help in place in part by the wooden frame, as it has a slot for the panel to be placed. Also, glass door retainer clips that are help in place with screws on the side of the project help to hold the glass panel in place.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1557255304549-a60a6552-6ce3-9″ include=”978,979,980,981,982,983,984,985,986,987,988,989,990,991,992,993,994,995″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_zigzag css=”.vc_custom_1553988664868{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Final Result<\/h3>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1557255304551-5b93e991-fd29-3″ include=”1306,1308,1307,1305″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_video link=”httphttps:\/\/youtu.be\/nGqAjwrvedk”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtu.be\/UtqOUcCD3hs”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtu.be\/Rkls96V26VA”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_video link=”https:\/\/youtu.be\/4LgM3_e1ksM”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_zigzag el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988634650{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text] Students [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][vc_single_image image=”1309″ img_size=”medium” css=”.vc_custom_1557255341126{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-bottom-width: 0px !important;}”][vc_column_text]Andrew LeRoux Economics, 2020[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/3″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_zigzag el_border_width=”8″ css=”.vc_custom_1553988638130{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”][vc_column_text] Project Description This project… <\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1379,"featured_media":985,"parent":212,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-414","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-12"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1379"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=414"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/414\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1310,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/414\/revisions\/1310"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/212"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/commons.princeton.edu\/epics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}