Solar Candle

cults3d

The Solar Beacon captures sunlight and emits light in darkness. When placed in direct sunlight for the day, two 30mm square photovoltaic panels charge a rechargeable AAA battery. At night, the battery powers two LED bulbs. A built-in switch turns the Solar Beacon on and off. A recommended 600mAh capacity rechargeable battery stores unused energy to be carried over to the next day. The large capacity battery enables energy banking for continuous operation. The Solar Beacon is a 90mm diameter sphere. Pictured are two Solar Beacons with unique top designs: one in Colorfabb Translucent Orange PLA/PHA and Light Brown PLA/PHA, the other in Colorfabb Translucent Yellow PLA/PHA and White PLA/PHA. Both Beacons were printed on a Felix 3 printer. The cell holder and bulb ring are secured to the bottom shell with two M3 x 15mm bolts. The solar panels, LEDs, and printed circuit board are salvaged from two solar garden lights. The printed circuit board from the garden light includes a switch that should be left in the "on" position for the Solar Beacon. A Dremel or similar rotary tool can be used to cut the solar cells from the garden lights with a circular saw blade or abrasive disk. Required are a single AAA battery holder, large capacity AAA battery, and a micro switch. The switch turns the Solar Beacon on and off. Slide the switch to the "on" position for charging. No supports are necessary for printing.