Controllable RGB LED system for your home or office

Step 4 LED assembly

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The most tedious part of an RGB LED array is the LED construction and connections. This step usually involves lots of wire cutting, striping, crimping, and soldering. Not to mention the double checking of each connection to make sure it was done right. If you find ways to improve this process, let us know in the comments.

Again, this step takes time. Plan the debut of your system accordingly so you don't have to rush at the last minute to finish all the work that needs to be done. Staying up all night to create your master piece will result in damaging your components because of miswiring. Take your time and double check connections.

Our systems were designed in modules so we could easily assemble the system on site. The systems were also easier to test as we assembled them. For instance, the LEDs for the Island ECC system were assembled on panels that were 1 meter long by 0.4 meters tall. Each panel was identical so we made a pattern for where to mount the LEDs, how to route the wires and where to place the LED Painter.

This step is pretty easy technically, just repetitive and time consuming. If you use the RGB LED Ribbon then you can mount the LEDs to a surface by removing the covering over the adhesive backing. Make sure to mount the LEDs to a clean surface. Add wires, connectors and harnesses as required. We like to have connectors in case we need to remove a piece of equipment for inspection or replacement. You may choose to solder all the connections and forego the expense and time required to add connectors.

Once the LEDs are ready, plug them into your LED Driver circuit or LED Painter assembly and test. You might want to plug each LED channel in one at a time rather than all of them at once.

If you assemble the system in modules, then you will have to install each module in its final location. When you install them, be sure to power them on one at a time. Again, checking your connections before you power them on.

As mentioned in the other steps, our systems use the Prop Blade. The Prop Blade has two groups of I/O. Each I/O group can run up to two LED Painters in a series, so that is four LED Painters for one controller. More could be run, but you need to pay attention to details of wire length and signals strength, and we have found that buffering circuits should be built to increase reliability. Be aware that the LED Painter needs to be close to the Prop Blade controller. Installing an LED Painter 20ft from your controller that uses 3.3V DC logic signals will produce poor results or no results at all. Consider your mounting locations carefully.

Once you get the LEDs installed you are nearly there. At this point you have no doubt done some power-on test and felt the excitement of the system coming alive!