Introduction: Slide in Slide Out Bookshelf Light

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About: I'm a maker and like making all things from craft and jewelry to robots and drones. My favorite projects include electromechanical stuff with a sense of purpose :)

Add to your Bookshelf this "hidden" bookshelf light that blends in with other books effortlessly. I wanted to design something unobtrusive, simple and very natural in terms of interaction. Just like a regular book you can slide it out to light up the bookshelf and slide it in to turn off. You can add as many as you want to your library and in whatever order you like. Join me to craft this beautiful design piece!

Supplies

This is a very simple project, the supplies are inexpensive and can be easily sourced. I used the following tools and materials:

Tools:

  1. 3D Printer
  2. Soldering Iron
  3. Xacto knife/ Scissors
  4. Hot Glue

Materials:

  1. PLA
  2. Warm White LED Strip (Neon style)
  3. Limit switch
  4. 12V Power Bank
  5. 12V Barrel Jack connector
  6. Double side tape (VHB recommended)
  7. Wires
  8. Green Textured Paper (Or any paper of your choice to cover the book)
  9. Scotch double side tape

And that's it!

Step 1: Wait! How Does It Work?

The fixed "trigger" has a wedge shaped top which is followed by the limit switch. This category of mechanisms is called Cam-follower where an output shaft follows a certain Cam profile. You can tweak the range of motion by changing the position of the trigger along the slot cavity.

Step 2: Print the Book Body & Trigger

Print the attached files. The size is optimized to print on any hobby 3D printer. I printed on my Creality Ender 3. Given that the print covers most of the print bed, you might get some warping. Bumping up the bed temperature helps with warping.

The Book case took me about 13hrs to print, the cover 7hours and the trigger 16 minutes.

Attachments

Step 3: Solder the Electronics

Follow the wiring diagram to create the electrical circuit. Be careful with the Neon LED strips, they're delicate and cutting the diffusing sheath with an Xacto Knife needs attention.

The orange connectors next to the led strip on the cover side are Wago 2 conductor lever nuts. I used them so I can easily separate the two 3d printed parts. They are completely optional. you can just solder the LED strips.

You can use the printed parts to hold the strips in place while you measure wire lengths for the project.

Step 4: Make It Realistic! Design Your Own Book Cover!

Alright, time to click the limit switch and see if the whole thing works. Once everything is ready, it's time to make a book cover. I used a green textured paper to create a vintage book aesthetic, you can get as creative as you like! I recommend going to a craft store and checking out papers and notebooks for inspiration. I've attached some images from my stroll.

My first experiment with a spray adhesive failed and created dark patches on the cover. I made the next attempt with scotch double side tape and it worked like magic. Just line up the whole plastic part with double side tape , cut the cover to size, put it on and put some weight it for a while. Manually creating creases on the paper around the bend lines makes the cover look more realistic.

To cut the slots for the lights, I used a sharp Xacto knife and followed the groove of the 3D printed part.

Step 5: Setup and Light Up!

The setup is very simple. Just put some double side tape at the bottom of the trigger and paste it wherever you want to put the light. Takes a bit of experimentation to finalize the exact position. Now slide the Book in and out and Voilaa!!! you have a bookshelf light now.

I'm calling mine, "The light you've been looking for". What will you call yours?