Lithopane Lamp with Rotating Shade

I am not new to instructables but I tend to be more of an observer of all of the great ideas rather than present one.  However, once I found out about the ShopBot challenge well, how I could refuse – this is definitely one contest I am very much interested in!

The project I would like to share is a custom designed lithopane lamp with a rotating shade.  To keep within the Instructables spirit, this is a project that anyone with basic wood shop tools such as: a table saw, scroll saw, router, and some basic hand tools, can complete the project.  I took it a step further to show how cool a CNC router can be – and I don’t have a CNC router with near the same capabilities as a ShopBot.  My router is at best a worn out, low tolerance, entry level router with a 12” x 18” table, a Rotozip for a spindle, and powered by a HobbyCNC controller.  The software I use is borrowed from my work (after hours of course) and is SolidWorks for design and BobCAD-CAM for the CAM which we use for networking product design and manufacturing assembly fixtures.  I am not in the wood industry but do like wood working as a hobby. Should I be fortunate enough to win the ShopBot and AutoCAD software, I would like to design and build larger woodworking pieces such as kinetic sculptures and clocks - mostly moving wooden assemblies.

Step 1 A brief summary of the design

The lamp was designed to incorporate several 2D and 3D features of the CNC software.  Bobart (Art package within BobCad) allows tool-paths such as V-Carving and the creation of a lithopane from a picture.  Other tool-paths in Bobcad such as profiling, pocketing, and 3D profiling are also used in this design but as mentioned prevously, the basic lamp can be made without a CNC router.

The lamp uses a fixed base and the lamp shade rotates slowly about the base so the pictures can be easily viewed.  I am expecting a full rotation in ~3 minutes using a motor with gearhead running a 6 RPM and then geared down with wooden gears to approximately a 16 : 1 ratio.

I have provided full size drawings for all parts although some drawings may be too large for a standard printer so either you will need to have them printed at your local print shop, print several sheets and tape them together,  or scale them and work off the dimensions.  All the drawings are at the end of this Instructable along with a STEP file of the entire assembly that can be imported into most 3D CAD software.

The wood chosen for this project is fir – that’s right, 2x8” and 2x10” building lumber.  Depending on where you would like to display the lamp, the variety of woods are plentiful.  The cheaper softwoods like fir, knotty pine, and cedar work well with a country or rustic look.  Poplar and clear pine are also good choices at a slightly higher cost and the more premium woods such as oak and walnut and exotics can also be used if elegance is what you are after.  Given the amount of time you spend in the workshop, don’t let the initial cost scare you especially if the wood is correct for the setting. 

Since I have a planer, any material thickness can be achieved however, all of the parts for this project are made from either ½” and ¾” thickness and these thicknesses are available for a few species at your local home improvement store.  As an alternate, plywood can also be used and comes in ½” and ¾” thicknesses and is veneered with a fir, oak, birch, and others and is a more stable building material than solid woods so this may also be the better option for some of you.  If you use plywood, the assembled lamp shows very few cut edges and these can be hidden using veener edging. 

Comments

[l8nite]

Very impressive project and well laid out "ible"

[stringstretcher]

Gorgeous! Cool idea.