DiyLightAnimation
Fun => The Porch => Topic started by: tng5737 on April 20, 2011,
-
Laying in bed one night - dreaming of Christmas displays to come - I was suddenly taken with this GREAT idea - SOLID ACRYLIC RODS!!!! The plan was to bore holes in the bottom (albeit VERY slowly), insert a pixel node and I could make a sort of Wurlitzer Pipe Organ of Light.
Well, it doesn't work - ok, sort of - as long as you look into the other end of the rod. DUH!!!
Now off to the next BIG IDEA!!!
-
What you would need is something in the rod to "catch" the light.
What I have seen done is similar type projects is to drill or etch where you want the light to show.
Maybe drill small holes at various depths and orientations around the rod to diffuse the light as it travels through the rod.
-
Well, I had some other ideas along the same lines - including routing or sawing a small groove lengthwise. Also checking into diffusing by spraying some frost coating on its surface to see if that will help. What I need is a laser cutter. Hmm! - maybe if I bought out my local OfficeMax's supply of laser pointers... :-)
-
What if you just used a sander on the back side - that might be enough to show off the light for the length of the rod ???
Ted
-
Your idea has and can be done.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibJrSKjqxGM
-
in his video, at lower intensities, the color fades out... i'd play around with it to see what works for you.
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=37958&catid=440 (http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=37958&catid=440)
1" diameter clear extruded acrylic rod $2.31/ft (sold in 6ft lengths)
For decorative use or for manufacturing in production of high quality clear acrylic products. It will not warp, crack, craze, or corrode when subjected to prolonged exposure outdoors. It meets FDA standards and is UV stabilized. It has a forming temp of 350° F. Max continuous temp of 180°F
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=40788&catid=440 (http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=40788&catid=440)
1" diameter clear cast acrylic rod $4.22/ft (sold in 6ft lengths)
This rod is ideal for overhead lighting like giant fiber optics. It is the best quality rod manufactured for clarity, machining, or cementing. It will not warp, crack, craze, or corrode when exposed outdoors. High tensile strength, good electrical properties. It meets FDA standards and is UV transmitting. The forming temp is 350°F
-
Yes the first item you listed is are the ones I got! The vid was very interesting - I went back in and re-tried and am not getting anything near the light output seen in those videos. I have emailed the owner of those videos asking for technical details. Thanks to Steve for pointing them out.
-
Good luck with it, I hope you figure it out. I think it is a great idea. 8)
-
yeah, and post a video, once you get it! <pop..
-
I remember seeing this video earlier and I believe the owner said he put lights on both ends of the rods.
-
There is a sample of this on D-light.us website. A gentleman took the Firefli Pixel strings and epoxied clear acylic 6 foot rods to the pixels. He them roughed up the opposite end to create reflection.
In the video section their is a tree made up of this and it looks pretty cool.
In the forums section of the same website under 2009 contest (i think), another gentleman with a large channel count built a fence out of acrylic rods attached to firefli pixels and did exactly what you are talking about.
Looks pretty cool!!!
I will point out that the Firelfli pixel looks alot like the 5050 RBG led modules that we are used to purchasing from Ray Wu. Specifically the square modules.
EDIT!!! I found the links:)
you might want to check here:
http://www.d-light.u...&p=13375#p13375 and watch the fence!
Or here:
http://www.d-light.u...d=137&Itemid=77
and watch the video entitled "Light Saber Tree"
These were both done with LED Pixels and solid plastic rods.
Mike.
-
yes, I 've seen those and have also contacted him for details.
So far, I have used frosted paint on a smallsection -which worked a little better. Next I used sandpaper to rough up a small section - works better. I have also tried putting scotch tape on the back side which also helped. I think my next step willbe to use a low flame to 'polish' where I drilled the hole for the led. That should help get some more light output. O am experimenting with an extra rod which I purchased just to experiment with. I did find out that I should have gotten the cast type of acrylic - I bought the extruded since I thought it would be more 'monolithic' and xmit light better. So if anyone is thinking of doing this - buy the cast acrylic!
-
i was going to mention that.
The clear cast mentions...
"This rod is ideal for overhead lighting like giant fiber optics."
-
how about sandblasting it to create the finish? I am looking into something kinda similar for a small feature and might use 1/4" plastic ans simply sandblast it to create an opaque finish and help diffuse the light while maximizing the output an glow of the plastic. Just a thought.
-
My thought would be to use a medium grit sandpaper to ruff the surface.
Larry
-
be careful how much you gouge it. each scratch will show up, so if you have a lot of scratches going in the same direction, it will show up that way.
-
I will point out that the Firelfli pixel looks alot like the 5050 RBG led modules that we are used to purchasing from Ray Wu. Specifically the square modules.
You'd be correct - here is a close-up of a firefli pixel module:
(http://www.holidaycoro.com/images-general/P1280038%20(Large).JPG)
-
I have been in contact with the maker of the Saber Tree (compfire). He said that he used the same extruded acrylic tubes which I purchased. Furthermore, he used two sets of firefli's - one set for the tops of the tubes and another at the bottom. He also said that he did nothing to the tubes - he did not drill into the ends to place the lights nor did he frost or sand the exterior in any way. He said he would send some pictures - if he does, with his permission, I will post them here!
I was using pixel nodes - if I have any any pixel squares left over after I build dmoore's coroflakes - I will try those instead of the nodes.
-
I have been in contact with the maker of the Saber Tree (compfire). He said that he used the same extruded acrylic tubes which I purchased. Furthermore, he used two sets of firefli's - one set for the tops of the tubes and another at the bottom. He also said that he did nothing to the tubes - he did not drill into the ends to place the lights nor did he frost or sand the exterior in any way. He said he would send some pictures - if he does, with his permission, I will post them here!
I was using pixel nodes - if I have any any pixel squares left over after I build dmoore's coroflakes - I will try those instead of the nodes.
Nice, good info. I would like to make a tree like this one of these days. After I finish the other 50 things first..
-
here is a photo of a little experiment I did. The tube on the left has been sanded linghtly with metal oxide paper. the tube on the right is clear. Both are illuminated from the bottom using the SS squares (one each). It is hard to tell in the photo since the camera really picks up the light, however the sanded tube gives a uniform light where as the clear is brightest at the bottom and top. The acrylic really shows red color up the best and the white the least. I routed a 1/4" dado along the bottom of a 2x4 the width of the squares. then I routed another thinner grove down the center of the previous dado to allow the wires to pass freely. Finally I bored 1" holes for the tubes which are situated directly over the squares.
-
that's pretty cool, now it's got me thinkin....
i wonder if the intensity would be different with a smaller diameter rod...
like 3/4, or 1/2"
-
the problem would be in how you lighted them - if you use the squares as I did then you might even want to go to a slightly larger rod. simply because of how the leds are placed in the squares. Haven't played with that aspect yet but ultimately I might use pvc pipe on the ends and move the squares back a bit in order to get a more complete lighting. Also, placing another square at the other end would light them more evenly. Of course that will limit how one uses these. For example, that arrangement would not be suitable if you were making say a LIGHT Pipe Organ. The sanded or frosted give a more uniform light but I sure do like the way the clear acrylic looks. BTW, orginally I had drilled a 1/2" hole in the end of the rod to put a single pixel node. However, the drilling caused the surrounding acrylic surface to cloud and the light transmission was much reduced. You could probably use a low flame to re-melt the acrylic - I didn't try that . Just too much work!
-
the clouding comes from the high speed of the drill bit, try drilling at a slower "plunge rate" into the plastic, and even try wetting the surface, like one would wet brick of tile when cutting. i fear melting, would make it worse.
-
Would this kind of thing work with the rainbow flood or are these Firefli's super bright or something?
-
b/c of the size of a rainbow flood, you'd need a really big diameter rod. which would be expensive.
-
The idea is to put the light into the end of the rod, making it glow from within. In the Firefli, the LEDs are physically closer together than either of the sqare modules or the rectangular module giving better light transfer in a smaller rod. Also the 3 x 5050 LEDs are brighter than a single pixel net node.
The rainbow flood would also be shining a lot of light on and past the rod.
RM
-
OK so this is a smart string square project. I get it now. I showed the picture and video to my wife and she said "wow we should use those for stair rails." I made it in on the pixel net co-op but faced the reality that the smart strings would have to wait next year. However a tree made of these & a small number of smart string squares would have a huge wow factor and be easier on the wallet. I look forward to hearing how your PVC test goes.