LED Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer

Much of this Instructable is identical to this Instructable, the difference is, in the origional Instructable the Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer contained an LED light bulb to produce light.  In this version, a number of LEDs, including a pair of tri-color LEDs and two white LED bars are used to produce light.

As a college student, I spend quite a bit of time at my desk.  The other day, when I was working on some mechanics of materials homework, I realized that my desk is quite boring.  There is a grey office supplies container and a holder for pending documents in one corner.  In the other corner there is a lamp.  Most of my desk is usually occupied by my computer and textbooks.  I realized that doing my homework might not be so dull if my desk was a bit more inspiring.  So, when I knocked my lamp off my desk and broke the switch on the back, rendering it useless, I got an idea.

A few days later, after a bit of time on SolidWorks, I designed an inspiring and friendly companion in order to begin my efforts to spruce up my desk; plus, it doubles as a much more interesting container for office supplies and as a new lamp.  I named my new friend, Spotlight, it is a pose-able, dog-shaped lamp and desk organizer.

This Instructable will show you how to make your very own Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer to keep you company in the early morning hours as you complete your homework or latest DIY project.  Or, since the holidays are approaching, you could make a Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer as a gift for your favorite desk-lurker.

Step 1 Obtain some Parts

The majority of the Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer is built from laser-cut MDF.  I used Ponoko for the laser cutting since I unfortunately do not have a laser cutter.  I have made the design files for the Doggy Lamp available for free in my Ponoko Showroom.  You are welcome to use the design files to order your own Doggy Lamp parts or you can modify the design.  Be careful modifying the design too much though because, as you will see in later steps, the pieces of the Doggy Lamp fit together with tabs so you want to be cautious not to mess up the alignment of the tabs.  As for a material, I used double sided white-oak veneer MDF. 
If you have access to SolidWorks 2011, I have also attached an assembly file of the Doggy Lamp to this step.
The design file on Ponoko also includes the electrical components needed for the LED Doggy Lamp/Desk Organizer.

Other than the MDF pieces, you will need:

•     Ten 5/8 inch long, 10-32 bolts
•     Ten 10-32 wing nuts
•     Four 1/4 inch by 1 inch bolts
•     Four 1/4 inch nuts
•     Ten small screws (small enough to fit through the holes in the tri-color LED boards
•     One 3 1/8 inch by 4 inch piece of wood.
•     Six adhesive silicone bumpers
•     Five adhesive Velcro pads (sets of Velcro hooks and loops)

You will also need some electrical components:

•  2  Tri-Color LED Kit
•  2  White LED Light Bar
•  1  Arduino Uno Board
•  1 MOSFET Power Control Kit
•  1 9V Wall Adapter
•  1 12V Wall Adapter
•  1 Potentiometer
•  1 Chicken Head Knob
•  1 package Female Break Away Headers
•   1 package Male Break Away Headers
•   22 AWG Solid Wire

Comments

[happi cat #71]

This is truly awesome and how creative! Do you think you could you add a coat of reflective paint or whatnot to the inside of the head so as to make the light brighter/more concentrated? Sorry if I sound nit-picky;). Great instructable, and by the way, Maggie is adorable. =^..^=