Today we are making a very simple RGB desk light that you can control from your cell phone. The light is designed to allow for seasonal attachments to celebrate or draw attention to whatever is going on in your life at the moment!

Supplies

3D Printer

White or Translucent Filament

Adafruit Circuit Playground Bluefruit

Micro USB Cable

Sandpaper - Optional

Step 1: Code

To allow the Circuit Playground to interface with the app, later on, we need to upload a bit of code.

The files above both need to be in the same folder when they are compiled.

In a nutshell, the code just reads in the day sent from the application and parses out the numbers representing the red, green and blue colour channels. It then sets all the pixels to be the corresponding colour. If you were to select something other than the colour picker option in the app, the device would not respond.

This could easily be upgraded, add more precise controls on an individual LED level or add preset colour sequences for added fun!

Note: If your Circuit Playground is not yet set up, make sure to follow the Getting Started Guide on the Adafruit website before trying to et anything running on it:

Getting Started with the Adafruit Circuit Playground Bluefruit

Step 2: The App

Rather than trying to build an app ourselves from scratch, we are going to make use of the graciously provided Bluefruit Connect App available on Android and IOS.

Once you are in the app, make sure your Bluefruit has the code installed and search for devices.

You should find one labelled Bluefruit.

From there select "Controller" and then "Color Picker"

Pick a colour here and press the select button to see your Bluefruit light up to your selection!

(Hint: If you ever want to turn the light out simply unplug the device or set the colour to black)

Step 3: Customization and 3D Printing

We designed a simple cover to prevent exposing the internals of the light and give a bit of diffusion. Using the plus-shaped hole at the top you can attach anything you want to get in the festive spirit. Model your name and have it light up or check out the Christmas Tree and Valentine's Heart we made. Anything is possible!

(Hint: If you want to make your own attachments you can use acrylic for better light dispersal)

(Hint Hint: The plus is symmetric! It's made from a pair of 1mm by 5mm rectangles with a common centre. Go nuts!)