Introduction: Beyond Infinity Table - the Interactive Coffee Table for the Modern Age
Beyond Infinity Table is a beautiful, interactive coffee table that will leave you amazed, bewildered, and maybe just a little dizzy! The sides are stained, clear coated, and engraved to give an excellent finished look. It features over 960 LEDs, each individually controlled with 24bit color. These LEDs make up a total of FORTY individual infinity mirrors, culminating into one awesome coffee table.
This table features a total of 4 hidden USB ports, each capable of doing a full 2A charging. Additionally it features an inductive charging pad clearly marked with a laser engraving. To top it all off, there is a 2 port AC outlet, for those that would like to plug in a laptop or two for charging.
The final feature is a hidden touchscreen LCD that allows for full control over table functions. Anywhere from setting simple patterns to playing a game of Pac-man (once I have time to program it in, not the easiest thing to accomplish). Programmed with Arduino and run on a Teensy 3.1, adding new features is highly encouraged! Make a table and let me see what you come up with!
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Shout out to those who helped me:
Savan P. for helping a bunch with cutting parts, assembling the table, and helping with the assembly and part drawings.
Nathan H. for lending me his house to take some nice photos in.
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*Work in Progress*
This design is a work in progress. I'll update the change log as I go. The biggest thing that still needs to be completed at the moment of writing this is the programming, which is fairly simplistic due to time constraints. I'll be working real hard though to add new and super cool features, like playing games like Pac-man and snake, adding text abilities, and other LCD and lighting features.
*Important*
This instructable is not for the faint of heart. You need to have very good woodworking skills, electrical skills, and the ability to adapt to any flaws or difficulties during assembly. This is a challenging build, but for those that are willing to attempt it EXTREMELY rewarding and results in a jaw-dropping, show stopper of a coffee table!
I can 3D print any parts you might want for this instructable on 3D hubs!
Step 1: Skills, Tools, and Parts Required
*IMPORTANT*
This is a very difficult instructable. A lot of time and effort will have to go into this. If you feel like challenging yourself, this is definitely the instructable for you. Expect to have to adapt to changes and difficulty. I'll do my best to help/respond, but I usually have a lot on my plate so don't expect a super quick response.
The primary instructions in this instructable rely heavily on the use of CAD drawings. The drawings show individual parts and assemblies, and you MUST be able to interpret these in order to build the table.
Skills
-Need to be able to read and build off of CAD models and drawings
-Be able to design your own parts if you want to make changes
-Run shop equipment
-Have some confidence in wiring and programming
-(Helpful) Be able to open CAD models in case the drawings are hard to interpret
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Tools
Big tools you will need and would simplify some of the items include:
-Chop Saw
-Table Saw
-Table router
-CNC router or laser cutter, or excellent skills with a hand router
-3D Printer (helpful, but not required)
Small tools that you need/are helpful:
-Soldering iron/Wire strippers
-Hot glue gun
-Dremel
-Drill
-Various pliers and the like
I'm sure there are some things that I missed, if I think of anything else important will add them.
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Parts
You are going to need a bunch of small little things, like wiring, screws, breadboards, brackets, etc. etc. Most of this stuff you can get at Home Depot or Mcmaster-Carr. For now though I am going to stick to the big important stuff, and will update the appendix with the full BOM as I have time.
These are the big/major parts you will need:
-(180$) Wood. Lots of it. I used Red oak for the outsides, poplar/pine for parts that werent directly seen. Use the drawings to determine what sizes and quantities you need of wood. NOTE: This is if you buy nice wood from somewhere like Lowes/Home Depot. You can definitely get this cost down depending on what/where you get.
Detailed BOM of wood:
0.5"x5.5"x36" Pine x2
1.5"x1.5"x48" Pine x2
1.5"x1.5"x36" Pine x2
0.5"x1.5"x48" Pine x2
0.5"x1.5"x36" Pine x2
0.5"x1.5"x48" Red Oak x2
0.5"x2.5"x36" Red Oak x4
0.5"x2.5"x48" Red Oak x2
0.5"x3.5"x36" Red Oak x2
0.5"x5.5"x36" Red Oak x2
0.5"x48"x36" Birch Plywood X1
-(20$) 2'x3'ft 1/4" Mirror from Lowes
-(110$) 2'x3'ft 1/8" One way Mirror from Canal Plastic
-(60$) 2'x3'ft 3/16" Tempered glass sheet from local glass shop (sits on one way mirror to protect from scratches. Alternatively you can get the same piece off McMaster-Carr out of polycarbonate if your local glass shop doesnt carry it.)
-(35$) 2'x'3'ft 1/16" PVC Sheet from McMaster-Carr (Note that if you slot is too high/too low on the BottomInnerPanel parts, you will need to adjust these thicknesses so that it properly supports acrylic. Mine was too high, so I ended up using 1/32" on top instead of 1/16".)
-(30$ x 4) 4M 60LEDs/m Addressable LED Strips from Amazon or anywhere else (16meters total)
-(20$) Teensy 3.1
-(40$) Adafruit TFT touchscreen display
-(30$)(OPTIONAL) Inductive Charging pad and circuit
-(45$ x 2) HSN-300-5A Meanwell 5V 250W PSU from Jameco
-(42$) USB programming cable (male/male), USB extenders (x2), USB panel mount ports (x2)
-(24$) USB AC to 5, 5V outputs 40W total
-(12$)(OPTIONAL) 5V to 12V converter if you want to run a cooling fan. Maximum power the LEDs pull is 288W and the Meanwells are designed to not require cooling at these loads, so you should be just fine.
-(40$) Assortment of other things, like wiring, breadboards, electrical tape, magnets, etc.
Total Cost:
Around 850$
Step 2: CAD Model, Drawings, and Other Assorted Files
The CAD models and drawings below should show all the parts that you need to fabricate in order to make the table. The assemblies show how the table goes together.
*IMPORTANT*
There are definitely some mistakes on the CAD drawings, it is a little hap-hazard at the moment. In the next week or two I'll be doing a clean up of the files and make a final version matching all the parts I used, to prevent any confusion. For now I included all the files I currently have and will add a final release version when completed.
Step 3: Fabricate Your Parts
Fabricate all your parts according to the CAD drawings. I called out suggested places for pilot holes, and mentioned in various places where things don't have to be perfect.
Don't be discouraged if a part doesn't fit perfect. I had to re-cut several parts because I didn't quite get the dimensions right. Hey, I'm an electrical engineer, not Ron Swanson, give me a break ;) .
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For detailed instructions on fabricating your parts, see Appendix C.
Step 4: Fit Check Your Parts
Fit check your parts according to the assembly. You'll want to make sure that everything goes together fairly well before you start assembling things, as its easier to make tweaks and changes before putting things together.
Step 5: Finish Your Parts
Finish your parts however you like. For mine I routed the edges to a simple rounded edge, sanded them, stained, clear coated, and finished them off with a 1500grit sand to get a very smooth finish.
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For the top edges, I engraved them with a CNC router. If you arn't familiar with the process, here is how I did it.
Engraving Process - CNC router
Apply a vinyl coating to your clear coated part. I've found vinyl works the best for not peeling up while engraving the parts and tends to stick even with the details are pretty fine.
CNC your engraving with a V bit. I used a general pattern I liked online and V-Carve to make the pattern.
Cover any exposed surfaces you dont want painted with painters tape.
Spray paint with your choice of color.
Wait to dry and peel off vinyl/tape.
Optionally finish with another clear coat.
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See Appendix C for more details on finishing and engraving.
Step 6: Assembly of the Base
This assembly consists of the following parts:
BottomBase_Short.pdf
BottomSide_Short.pdf
jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Long.pdf
jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Short.pdf
jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Long.pdf
jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Short.pdf
jledden_BottomSide_Long1.pdf
jledden_BottomSide_Long2.pdf
USBMount.dxf
TopCutout_Cover.dxf
UChannel.stl
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Use assembly drawing Bottom.pdf
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Pg1) Overall view of assembly
Pg2) Start with assembling the frame around the mirror, with the reflective surface facing towards the slots.
Pg3) Next assemble the secondary frame below the mirror, and the two sides below it. The corner edges should match up.
Pg4) Assemble the sides to the bottom. The USBs are shown installed in this drawing, but hold off on this step until the legs are attached.
Pg5) Install the power supplies, fan (optional), AC plug into one side. You can install your magnets now or wait till later. Note that several of the magnets go in the Top assembly but are shown here.
Pg6) Hot glue the UChannels onto the UChannel Cutout. One side the middle row will be empty, so make sure you dont do both sides identically.
Pg7) Finally, you will install the LEDs in the U-Channel in a zig-zag pattern.
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See Appendix D for more details on assembling the Bottom.
Step 7: Attach the Legs and Shelf
This assembly consists of the following parts:
Legs1.pdf
Legs2.pdf
Shelf.pdf
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Use assembly drawing Legs.pdf for assembling the legs.
Use assembly drawing Main.pdf page 2 for attaching the bottom to the legs.
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Pg1) Overall view of assembly
Pg2) Attach the corner brackets at the same heights on each set of legs, to whatever height you want the shelf. I used 5" from the bottom.
Pg3) Use the bottom bracket to attach the shelf as shown.
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Pg2) Attach Bottom to Legs as shown on page 2 of Main.pdf.
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See Appendix D for more details on assembling the legs.
Step 8: Wiring and Programming
Follow the wiring diagram attached.
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The LED strips don't quite fit perfectly, so will need to cut and add a small amount of wire to get them to line up perfectly with 6 on each side. See pictures for details.
You will need to cut the 120LEDs in this pattern, then solder back together with the extra wire lengths.
6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 12, 6, 12, 6, 12, 6, 12, 6, 6
The 12 lengths you can fold in half to get both sides. Before inserting into the channels use electrical tape to cover the exposed pads on the underside of the strip as necessary.
I would wire the controller in first and put the basic test program on it first, so as you add LED strips you can wire and test each one.
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Programming is pretty basic at the moment, the only function I have had time to program is a rainbow pattern. The rest are all example programs from the Octows2811 library.
Follow the instructions at https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/first_use.html to setup your Teensy for use with Arduino.
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See Appendix D for details on doing the wiring and assembling the wiring into the table.
Step 9: Final Assembly of Top
This assembly consists of the following parts:
TopSidePanel_Long.pdf
TopSidePanel_Short.pdf
TopCutout_Cover.dxf
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Use assembly drawing Top.pdf for assembling the top.
Finish with the assembly drawing Main.pdf
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Top.pdf
Pg1) Overall view of assembly
Pg2) Start with attaching the 4 side panels together. Use some thin tape to attach the TopCutout_Cover.dxf parts to the sides. The lips on the top should hold the one way mirror and tempered glass in place. You can wait to drop these in until after you attach the top to the bottom.
Main.pdf
Pg3) Install the USB parts shown in the bottom assembly now, since the legs are attached.
Pg4) Install the 90deg brackets as shown, with a 0.5" gap to the top of the sides. The top should sit nicely on those brackets within the sides.
You will need to finish off with installing the magnets on the top that were shown in the bottom assembly.
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See appendix D for details on assembing the Top to the table.
Step 10: Show Off Your Hardwork!
If you've managed to make it to this step, Im giving you a huge CONGRATULATIONS! This is certainly not a simple instructable, but you rose to the challenge and succeeded. NOW GO SHOW OFF YOUR WORK!
If you add features, or do some other versions of the code, or have any tips/tricks to help out others, feel free to share! I'll add them into the appendix so others can benefit from your work.
Now go out, party, and try not too get dizzy staring into your amazing new piece of modern art.
Step 11: Appendix A: All Files Used in This Instructable
Below is the entire folder I have currently for the table CAD. Will soon release a Ver 1.0 which will be a final CAD model with any extra junk I have cleaned up.
Also attached are all the pictures I took when assembling the table.
Step 12: Appendix B: Tips/Tricks/FAQ
First Tip!
Ask questions. I'm sure there will be plenty with this being a work in progress.
Second Tip!
Please be patient and nice to me. I have a full time job and work on multiple projects at once, so might take me a several days to get back to you.
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-Prevent chips from blowing out when routing edges by first doing a small section on the wrong end. Start by putting the RIGHT hand end of the board in the router and very slowly feeding it in. Be careful as the board will catch and try to jump away. Once you do this, feed the board in from the LEFT hand side how you normally would for routing edges.
Step 13: Appendix C: Detailed Part Fabrication
This section includes some more detail instructions on how to specifically fabricate the above CAD drawings, for those that might need some detailed how to instructions.
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BottomBase_Short.pdf x2
-Start with 0.5" thick board, I used a 5.5" by 36" long boards. Use chop saw to cut down to 26.5" long. Use table saw to trim down to 5.25" wide. Set your chop saw to a 45deg angle and cut 1.5" in from each edge. I suggest cutting it too short (I.E. 1.25") and slowly trimming off parts until you get the the correct dimensions cut. To get your fan and AC outlet cutouts, use BottomBase_Short.dxf and cut on a CNC router or laser cutter. Note you only need to do this on one of the boards, the other the fan and AC outlet cutouts can be ignored. Drill the holes on the edges to the size diameter of the magnet you bought, in this case instead of 8mm I had 6mm magnets. You don't have to drill too deep, just enough to place a magnet or two in the hole. Finally, drill the various top down holes shown. The 1" and 0.5" holes dont have to be perfect, and the .2" holes are all just pilot holes so its only vital they be .25" from edges of board (note .2" hole is based on screw size. A .125" hole will work well with a smaller screw).
BottomSide_Short.pdf x2
-This part is an outside surface, so I made it out of Red Oak. I bought pieces already 2.5" wide and 0.5" thick, and used a chop saw to cut it down to 26.5". I then routed the edges with a 1/4" bit on a table router. Just make sure your height is set correctly on the table router to ensure you get a smooth cut (see Tips about preventing blowout). Only route the two edges shown on the drawing. To finish, see Finishing at the end of this appendix. If you want to engrave it, see Engraving at the end of this appendix.
jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Long.pdf x2
jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Short.pdf x2
-Start with two 1.5"x1.5" square board 48" long and two 36" long. Trim the board on a table saw to 1" x1". Use a chop saw to cut down to 37.5" and 25.5". Set your chop saw to a 45deg angle, and follow the same procedure as in BottomBase_Short.pdf to prevent overcutting your part. Cut some pilot holes on the 2 angled cuts you made, they dont have to be specifically measured, just enough to keep the frame together later. Do the same along several points in the wood, about .25" from the edge on the long side of the board. Setup your table router with a 1/4" Straight bit. Measure the height to 1/4" above table to make a 1/4" deep cut in the wood. Set your table router stop .4" from edge of bit. Cut the slot into the wood on the SHORT side of the wood, as shown in drawing. Finally, cut some channels on the .4" thick side of the slot, for wire routing later. They dont have to be remotely perfect, as seen in the pictures.
jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Long.pdf x2
jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Short.pdf x2
-Start with two 1.5"x0.5" board 48" long and two 36" long. Use a table saw to trim to 1" wide. Use chop saw to cut down to 38.5" and 26.5" long. Set chop saw to 45deg, and trim the edges down in the same manner as BottomBase_Short.pdf , but only cut 1" in instead of 1.5". Lastly, drill some pilot holes on the short edge of jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Long.pdf that line up to the pilot holes on jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Long.pdf. Do the same for jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Short.pdf and jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Short.pdf. The two angled cuts on them should line up identically their matching parts. For jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Short.pdf add some larger 0.5" holes that line up to the 0.5" holes you made on BottomBase_Short.pdf.
jledden_BottomSide_Long1.pdf x4
-This is an outside piece, so I used Red Oak for it. I used the leftover wood from BottomSide_Short.pdf to make these parts. Use a chop saw to cut your leftover board down to 4.25" long. Drill out the holes shown to just enough depth for a magnet, about 1.25"-.25" deep depending on what magnet you use. Route the edges shown. The edges should all be pretty easy to do, aside from the 0.5" thick edge. For this one, I suggest just using an orbital or belt sander and free-hand a smooth edge to your part. To finish, see Finishing at the end of this appendix.
jledden_BottomSide_Long2.pdf x2
-This is another outside piece, so use Red Oak for it. Start with a 2.5"x0.5" board, 48" long. Trim the board down to only 2" wide. Use a chop saw to cut down to 38.5" long. Routed the two edges as shown, following same instructions as in BottomSide_Short.pdf. To finish, see Finishing at the end of this appendix. If you want to engrave it, see Engraving at the end of this appendix.
jledden_UChannel.pdf x96
-This one is pretty simple. Just 3D print the UChannel.stl file. Use a translucent material, I used ColorFabb XT-Clear. Print in 100% infill, use 4 wall thickness.
Leg1.pdf x4
-This is another outside piece, so I used Red Oak. I used two boards 2.5"x0.5"x36". Use a chop saw to cut the required number of boards to 17.5" long. Route the 2 edges shown on the drawing same as before. See Finishing at end of appendix.
Leg2.pdf x4
-This is another outside piece, so I used Red Oak. I used two boards 3.5"x0.5"x36". Use a table saw to trim the boards to 3" wide. Use a chop saw to cut the required number of boards down to 17.5". Route the 3 edges shown on the drawing, same as before. See Finishing at the end of the appendix.
Shelf.pdf x1
-For this you can use a simple piece of Birch Plywood and cut to 45"x25.5". If you want to do it exactly like mine, I cut two pieces to 45"x12.5" and one piece to only 45"x0.5". I then stained them different colors. To finish them off, I used a 36"x6" board underneath to keep them all together.
TopSidePanel_Long.pdf x2
-This is a top surface so I used Red Oak. Start with a piece 1.5"x0.5"x48". Use a chop saw to cut down to 38.5" long. Set your chop saw to a 45deg angle and use the method from BottomSide_Short.pdf to trim the edges to the proper length. Drill some pilot holes on the 45deg cut. Then use a larger drill from the long edge to make a chamfer/pocket cut. This will let you screw head sit inside the wood so that it doesn't interfere during assembly of the Top to the Bottom assembly. To finish it off, put a lip on the short edge of the board. Cut the lip 1/4" in from the edge, and unlike the drawing, cut it to .1875" from the bottom of the wood. To clarify, this means you will be cutting a slot .25" deep by .3125" thick. PM me if this still isnt clear.
TopSidePanel_Short.pdf x2
-Another top surface, so make it out of Red Oak. Use a 5.5"x0.5"x36" board. Use a table saw to trim down to 5.25" wide. Use a chop saw to trim to 26.5" long. Set your chop saw to a 45deg angle, and trim the board exactly as before. Make a slot exactly as you did on TopSidePanel_Long.pdf. Finish off by lining up TopSidePanel_Long.pdf edge to the edge on this part, and use the pilot holes you made on TopSidePanel_Long.pdf to add pilot holes to this part.
Screen.stlx1
-3D print this part out in your choice of color. I used 100% infill for as much stiffness as I could get.
TopCutout_Cover.dxf x4
-Use a CNC router or laser cutter to cut this part out of 1/16th in material. Black is the best, but I had to use gray PVC since it was the only material I could get fast enough for this project.
USBMount.dxf x2
-Use some of your scrap pieces of 1.5"x0.5" to make the USB mounts. Cut your scrap pieces to 3.75" long. Place in your CNC router or laser cutter and cut the given dxf. See Finishing at the end of the appendix.
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Engraving
-If you want to engrave the edges of your parts, you have two options. You can laser engrave or CNC route. If you know how to use a laser engraver/cutter, its very simple to do so, so I won't write it all down here. However, CNC routing an engraving and then painting a specific color can be a bit trickier so I'll outline the process here. First make sure your part is finished as described below.
Cut some simple vinyl adhesive or transfer paper to about the same width as your parts. Use a hard squeegee to apply the vinyl to your board. Place in your CNC router and engrave using a V-bit. I used V-Carve software, which easily lets you convert images into engravings. I just found an engraving I liked off google and used V-Carve to engrave it onto the board. If you don't have the software to do this, I suggest going the path of laser engraving as its much simpler. After engraving, cover any exposed wood with painters tape. Spray paint your part with a color of your choice. I used black, but gold or copper would looks pretty sweet too. After drying, peel off all your tape and vinyl. Now you have a sweet engraving on your parts!
Finishing
-Finishing the parts takes a bit of work. Start with thoroughly sanding all your parts with 400grit sand paper. Stain with a stain of your choice, I used Red Oak (on Red Oak, I know I know....). After staining, brush on your clear coat finish. After it dries for about an hour, throw another coat on there, and then again. I put 3 coats on total. After the final coat dries, use 1500 grit sand paper to ensure your clear coat is nice and smooth. This last part is only required if your clear coat is cheap and likes to bubble, like mine did.
Step 14: Appendix D: Assembly Drawing Detailed Instructions
This section includes some more detail instructions on how to specifically assembly the table according to the CAD drawings, for those that might need some detailed how to instructions.
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Step 6 Details
-Use parts jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Long.pdf and jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Short.pdf to make the frame for the mirror. Start with screwing 2 of the short pieces to 1 of the long pieces, at an angle as shown in the drawing. Make sure all the slots on the sides of the parts are facing the same direction. Then take your 2'x3' mirror, 1/4" thick, and slide into the slot on the parts, with the mirror surface facing TOWARDS the side with the slots for wiring routing.
-Assemble the secondary frame composed of jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Long.pdf and jledden_BottomInnerSpacer_Short.pdf together as shown in the Bottom.pdf assembly drawing, page 3. Screw BottomBase_Short.pdf to this secondary frame. The angled cuts should all line up if you followed the procedure for drilling pilot holes in Appendix C. Attach this secondary frame to the Mirror+Frame assembly shown on page 2 of Bottom.pdf. Again, if you drilled the pilot holes according to Appendix C, this should all line up.
-Next you will want to assembly some 90deg brackets to BottomSide_Short.pdf and jledden_BottomSide_Long2.pdf. It doesnt matter exactly where they go, but I put one on each end of the boards and one in the center. Make sure the brackets are 0.5" from the edge of the part. If you can't find a 90deg bracket that is only 1/2" length, I attached a STL file (Part4.stl) that you can print that you can use instead. Once these are attached to each side, assemble them to your current assembly as shown on page 4 of Bottom.pdf. The edges of the parts should line up to the sides/edges of your current part.
-Assemble your power supplies and fans to the base. The fan should line up to your pilot holes. The power supplies arn't as important, just make sure the dont interfere with the fan or the AC outlet. Screw down to BottomBase_Short.pdf as shown onpage 5 of Bottom.pdf. Finally, go ahead and hot glue your magnets into BottomBase_Short.pdf with hot glue. I stuck the magnets on a hammer, applied hot glue into the hole, then used the hammer to press fit the magnets in.
-Hot glue UChannel.stl to TopCutout_Cover.dxf. Do this by putting 3 spots of glue on the UChannel and then pressing it on the cutout until the glue cools. One side will have 5 extra channels only half on the cutout. Trim off any extra glue so the parts look fairly clean. Place the cutouts ontop of the mirror in your current assembly, as shown on page 6 of Bottom.pdf.
-Lastly you will run the LEDs in the channels in a zigzag pattern. Refer to step 8 first with regards to adjusting the LED strips to properly fit in the channels and the correct direction with which to install them.
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Step 7 Details
-Measure the height -0.5" you want your shelf to be at. I wanted mine to be at 5.5" off the floor, so I measured 5" off the bottom of Leg1.pdf and Leg2.pdf. I then used a standard bracket from Home Depot that was 90deg as shown on page 2 of Legs.pdf. Use it to assemble Leg1.pdf and Leg2.pdf together.
-Once you have all 4 pieces assembled, screw Shelf.pdf onto the bottom bracket of each leg as shown on page 3 of Legs.pdf.
-Use the pilot holes on BottomBase_Short.pdf to attach the assembly from Step 6 to the current assembly from Step 7.
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Step 8 Details
-Follow the wiring diagram provided. Start with wiring AC power to the two power supplies. The switch on the AC port controls power to Line voltage. You will have to wire this on the AC port yourself. Its hard to see from the pictures, but wire the pin labed with L to the switch, then wire the switch to the L on your power supplies. For E and N you can wire them directly from the AC port to the power supplies. Next to maintain the same ground potentials, use a 18ga wire to connect V- from both power supplies together. Use the potentiometer on each power supply to adjust the output so V+ on the power supplies match. Run 12Ga wire from the power supplies through the space between jledden_BottomInnerPanel_Long.pdf and jledden_BottomSide_Long2.pdf. Splice in 18ga wire to the 12ga wire before passing through the channels into the wire as shown in picture.
-You will need to cut the LED strips and add wire between the cuts to ensure the LEDs line up correctly in the channels. See attached picture in step 8 for details and follow the cuts listed in Step 8. This is definitely the painful part, which I intend on improving in the future. Before inserting LEDs to the channels, add some electrical tape to the bottoms to prevent the exposed tabs from short circuiting on other LED strips. Insert the LEDs in the channels as shown in the picture in step 8.
-After inserting the LED strips into the channels, splice them into the power wires you ran earlier. You will also have to run some data lines to come out the side, as shown in the pictures, in order to connect it to the microcontroller. NOTE: Splice both ends of the LED strip to power and ground, this will prevent severe voltage drop in the center of your strip when pulling large amounts of current. Additionally, Splice DOUT to ground on you very last LED, this will reduce noise on your data line.
-Wire all the pins up as shown on wiring diagram. Note that you will have to add an extra ws2811 on each line. This is an issue with the Octows2811 Library. If you use FastLED library, you dont have this issue, but the LEDs have more of a flicker then they do with Octows2811. I found the quality of Octows2811 to be better, so I wired in the extra LED needed for it to work properly.
-IMPORTANT: Wire the D-/D+ pins of the micro to one of the external USB ports. I did this by cutting a micro USB cable and splicing it into with the external port wires. This will allow you to program the microcontroller after the table is fully assembled.
-Lastly, follow the instructions at https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/first_use.html for how to program using Arduino. A basic program is provided to test out your table.
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Step 9 Details
-Attach TopSidePanel_Long.pdf and TopSidePanel_Short.pdf to each other through the pilot holes drilled during fabrication. This will give you a frame of sorts that has a lip on the inside. Use same thin tape to attach TopCutout_Cover.dxf to this frame, so they stay in place when you install it onto the rest of the table.
-Go ahead and install the USBMount.dxf to the bottom, using some 90deg brackets. Set the parts in very slightly from the edge so that the screws you use to assemble the panel mount USB ports dont interfere with jledden_BottomSide_Long1.pdf. This will correspond to page 3 of Main.pdf.
-Assembly some more 90deg brackets as shown on page 4 of Main.pdf to BottomSide_Short.pdf, exactly 0.5" offset from the edge. This will act as support for the Top assembly. Drop the Top assembly from the first part of Step 9 into the rest of the table.
-Finally, drop your one way acrylic mirror onto the lip and then the 3/16" tempered glass on top of that.
Attachments
Step 15: Change Log
Change Log:
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7/29/17
-Added Snake code and SlowFade code to step 8.
6/4/2017
5/31/2017
-Added gif of soon to be uploaded Snake game program
5/29/2017
-Instructables messed up change log, overwrote it. Not sure what full change log was before this, sorry.