Hexagonal Nanoleaf - Hexaleaf

prusaprinters

<p><strong>*I designed my own version of the Hexagonal Nanoleafs.</strong>*</p><p>*<strong>For people who look for an easier project without the soldering, please check out my No Soldering Version.</strong>* <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5207176">https://thingiverse.com/thing:5207176</a></p><p><i>Why is this version better than others?</i></p><p><strong>+ better light dispersion</strong> The panels are homogenous illuminated <strong>+ cover design</strong> Do you want a clean cover or a little more extra? Let your creativity run free. <strong>+ all kind of panel arrangements</strong> If you want 5 or 50 panels, this design will suit your creativity <strong>+ long time stability</strong> LED Strips are held without adhesives that stops sticking after some time <strong>+ easy connectable</strong> Panels are slotted together without glue or extra pieces <strong>+ No funky wires</strong> wires are easily managed with cable shrouds <strong>+ clean outside</strong> No holes or extra connectors on the outside of your panel arrangement <strong>- plan first, print second</strong> Due to the connectors being different on every piece, you need to plan your arrangement first before you can start printing <strong>- long print time</strong> The panels are intricate and take longer to print than other designs <strong>- Do not scale</strong> The panels are designed with the thickness and spacing of your LED Strip in mind. Scaling will result in your LED Strip not fitting perfectly <strong>- soldering</strong> beginner level soldering skills required</p><p>*<strong>Instructions</strong>* <strong>Step 1: Planning</strong></p><p>I supplied a lot of files enabling all kind of shapes and configurations for your very own Hexaleaf. Plan<strong>how</strong> you want<strong>to arrange</strong> them on the wall. Extravagant irregular shapes are possible!</p><p>Make a<strong>list</strong> of what<strong>number</strong> and<strong>kind</strong> of Hexaleafs you need to print and what kind of LED Strips you want to use.</p><p>I used<strong>WS2812b</strong> LED Strips with 60 LEDs/m.</p><p>Every Hexaleaf takes 60 cm of Light Strip, so 18 or 36 LEDs depending on whether you use<strong>30 or 60 LEDs/m</strong>. Both work fine.</p><p>Depending on whether you use<strong>IP30</strong> (non-waterproof)<strong>or IP65</strong> (waterproof) Strips there are different file versions due to the IP65 Strips being a bit thicker.</p><p>All pieces will be a bit different due to the<strong>connectors</strong> being on<strong>different sides</strong>. This enables clean outside faces without unnecessary connectors and also all kinds of different arrangements. I used the following method to labeling them:</p><p>*<strong>m</strong>* – male connector / connector on the outside (three bottom sides) *<strong>f</strong>* – female connector / connector on the inside (three top sides) *<strong>0</strong>* – no connector / outside face</p><p>If you<strong>draw</strong> out how you want the finished pieces<strong>to be arranged</strong>, it should be easy to make a list of all the pieces you will need. The labels for the pieces I used in my arrangement can be seen in the<strong>Arrangement picture</strong>.</p><p>Each LED draws up to 50 mA at full brightness. My Arrangement has 516 LEDs, therefore I am using an external 20 A Powersupply.</p><p>The WS2812 LED Strips call for<strong>extra power delivery</strong> every 5 m.</p><p>If you plan for large arrangements make sure to route extra power cables. I went a bit overboard and made extra connections about every 1 meter which is probably unnecessary but better be safe than sorry.</p><p>Lastly what kind of<strong>cover</strong> do you want? I designed my own<strong>tree cover</strong> (<a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5025463">https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5025463</a>) though I also left a file with<strong>just the rim</strong> if you don’t want anything special. I do recommend designing your own or checking out the<strong>100Hex Project</strong> for a bunch of inspirations (<a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2477471">https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2477471</a>).</p><p><strong>Step 2: Printing</strong></p><p>The pieces are all connected by just<strong>slotting them into each other</strong>. To make sure they will fit perfectly I recommend printing two of the<strong>Connector Testpieces</strong>. They should twist perfectly into each other. If you are using CURA, you can adjust the tolerances with the property "Horizontal Expansion" that can be found under "Walls".</p><p>I printed my pieces with a 0,4 mm nozzle at 0,2 mm layer height without any brim or raft. Every piece took about 6 hours to print and weighs about 50 g.</p><p><strong>Mark</strong> every piece to not lose track of already printed pieces and its position.</p><p>I cut out all the<strong>diffuser panels</strong> from<strong>paper</strong>, but you can also use the supplied diffuser file to<strong>print them</strong>.</p><p><strong>Step 3: Assembly</strong></p><p>I<strong>soldered</strong> every LED Strip to some wire with pin connectors so I can finish all soldering before assembly.</p><p>To fit the LED Strips into their position I recommend<strong>bending</strong> the strips every 3 / 6 LEDs (for IP65 Strips I recommend cutting away the insulation at the bends) and then slotting them into position without using their adhesive tape.</p><p><strong>Connect</strong> all the Hexaleaf pieces and route<strong>extra power</strong> cables.</p><p>I glue stripped the Hexaleaf arrangement onto a piece of<strong>cardboard</strong> and made some holes in the cardboard to hang it on the wall. It should be fine without the cardboard, but you also eliminate some light bleed on the wall.</p><p><strong>Step 4: Programming</strong></p><p>I used a<strong>ESP8266</strong> (WEMOS D1 Mini) to control the LEDs.</p><p>Using the<strong>WLED Project</strong> you have access to an easy control interface with<strong>numerous presets</strong> and a very well documented help guide.</p><p>This allows you to control your Hexaleafs with an<strong>App</strong> or a<strong>website</strong> over<strong>WiFi</strong>. Using the start-up guide you can program the ESP8266 with a browser-based interface <a href="https://install.wled.me/">https://install.wled.me/</a> and do everything else using the App.</p><p><a href="https://kno.wled.ge/basics/getting-started/">https://kno.wled.ge/basics/getting-started/</a></p><p>The App allows you to create<strong>segments</strong> to group all LEDs in a Hexaleaf together so that you can color each one individually.</p><p>*<strong>Hope you like my design. I would love to see your creations!</strong>*</p><h3>Print Settings</h3><p><strong>Printer Brand:</strong></p><p>Creality</p><p><strong>Printer:</strong></p><p>Ender 5</p><p><strong>Rafts:</strong></p><p>No</p><p><strong>Supports:</strong></p><p>Yes</p><p><strong>Resolution:</strong></p><p>0,2</p><p><strong>Infill:</strong></p><p>10%</p><p><strong>Filament:</strong> GIANTARM PLA</p><p>Black</p><p><strong>Notes:</strong></p><p>Print without Brim or Raft.</p><p>Print time ~ 6 hours</p><p>&nbsp;</p><figure class="media"><oembed url="https://youtu.be/_d2WedCOt9g"></oembed></figure><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Category: Art</p>