Inspired by this project

• YouTube Video of CNC Carving a Purdue P
• YouTube Video of CNC Carving a Pokemon Character
• YouTube Video of Purdue P Lit

This project allows you to build a small box that projects LEDs into an acrylic sheet. The sheet is etched by a CNC machine. You will need to create an account with the Easel online drawing platform. This is where you will make your design for the acrylic sheet.

• 9V Power Supply
• 9V Battery Clip
• 9V Battery
• Arduino Nano
• 1 1000F Capacitor
• 1 10K Ohm resistor
• Bumper Feet
• Neopixel Strip
• Project Box
• Mini Bread Board
• DC Jack
• Diodes
• Switches
• Poster Putty
• 40x1 Pin Header

1. Download the code here
2. Open the Arduino IDE
3. Import the Adafruit NeoPixel Library into the Arduino IDE
   1. Go to Sketch -> Include Library -> Manage Libraries...
      
   2. Search for 'Adafruit Neopixel'
   3. Select the 'Adafruit Neopixel' cell and then click install
   
4. Compile the Source
5. Send the Program to the Arduino. Instructions here on how to do this.

1. Create an account on Easel online
2. Setup your project for a 8"x12"x1/4" sheet of Acrylic
3. You can import an SVG or PNG of something you want to trace.
4. Ensure the image only uses the top half of the acrylic, as we split the sheet into two halves.
5. Leave at least 1-1.5" of space on the bottom of the drawing for the slotted cut out that will be done after.

1. Cut a 1/4" x 1-15/16" rectangle out of the box top. It should be directly in the center of the lid

2. On one side of the box (which will end up being the back) drill a 1/4" hole whose center is 1-3/4" over from the side of the box, and 3/16" up from the bottom of the box. This will serve as the hole for the DC jack/plug. 3. On the same side of the box (the back) cut a 1/4" x 1/8" rectangle (for the switch) that is flush with the bottom of the box and 1/2" from the side of the box (about half way between the DC jack and side of the box).

4. Place the two bread boards inside the box, opposite the switch and DC jack cutouts. Make sure the tabs on the boards face inwards so that the boards are flush against the side of the box.
5. Solder two wires to the switch as in the diagram and glue the switch to the bottom of the box so that it aligns with the cutout and can be used from the outside when the lid is closed. Pin any two adjacent pins (e.g. the left and middle or right and middle) as they will be connected when the switch is closed. If you wire up the switch to only use the outer two pins, the switch will never close. Note, you will have one unused pin on the switch, which is expected.
6. Solder three wires to the DC Jack as in the diagram and glue the jack to the bottom of the box so that it aligns with the cutout and can be used from the outside when the lid is closed. In the diagram, the red wire connects to the pin farthest from the insert (hole in front where the plug goes). The middle pin is where the yellow wire goes. The green goes closest to the insert.
7. Solder a 4-pin header to the 8 LED strip on the input side (cut off 4 pins from the 40x1 header)
8. Under the LED strip, solder the two ground pins together using a very small wire
9. Place three female-male wires on the 8 LED strip (GND, VCC, and DIN) as in the diagram
10. Put some putty (poster putty) on the bottom center of the box and adhere the LED strip to the putty

11. Wire up the rest of the parts as indicated in the wire diagram. Be sure to orient the parts accordingly. Note the orientation of the capacitor and the diodes.

12. Test out the wiring with a 9V battery, then with a 9V power supply, and then with the 9V battery and power supply. It should work in all three cases and the switch should always turn on and off the power regardless of the source. This allows you to move around with the 9V (no wires) or plug it in for longer periods of time.

• Ensure the diodes are facing the correct direction
• Ensure the capacitor is in the correct orientation (gray paint helps you identify the correct position)
• Ensure the three wires from the DC jack are correct. In the wire diagram of the entire setup below, the red wire goes to pin #1, the green goes to pin #2 (the common wire), and yellow goes to pin #3. Pin #1 is the shorter pin opposite to pin #3 (which is the longest). Pin #2 is the one on the side that does not have a pin opposite it. Pin #2 is the common/ground pin. Pin #1 is used to drive the wall power from the 9V power supply. Pin #3 is for the battery's power, and connects to the negative terminal of the battery. Pins #2 and #3 ohm out when not plugged in (meaning they short together). If you measure the voltage with GND on pin #2, and Vcc on pin #1 it should read 0V. If you plug in a power supply (or a 9v Battery with a DC plug adapter) it should read 9V.
• Seek out help if the unit powers on with just the 9V battery or just the wall power, but not both

Arduino Source