The past week has been a little different from what i imagined. I got all my materials ordered but some things have been backed up due to slow shipping. I’ve also been waiting on hearing back from the I&E department on their project funding. Due to this, I haven’t purchased any acrylic yet.
Instead, I focused this week on 3D printing the frame for my project. This has proved to be much more difficult than what I imagined it to be due to my inexperience in 3D printing with PETG. At the start, the parts were having adhesion issues with my printer, leading to many failed prints. For the 1 or 2 that did work, I also noticed that the parts were deformed and asymmetrical.
One way I partially fixed these issues was to redesign my frame. I changed the part so that it stands vertical instead of an angle. I also added support material under each end. This seemed to fix the symmetry issue. However, I was still having adhesion issues.
Because of the uncertainty about whether a print will finish, I haven’t been able to print when I’m not at my apartment. I’m hoping that I can figure out how to increase the reliability of the print, but it takes time. So far, I have 6 edges printed.
I did receive my strip of addressable LEDs. I hooked it up to an Arduino Nano and tried to control them. One thing that was apparent from the start is that the Nano couldn’t supply enough power for the strip. If I programmed the strip to light up white, the color would drain as the strip went on, turning into a brownish yellow. This will be solved when the 100W power supply I ordered arrives.
Moving forward, I am going to continue printing edges whenever i can. I hope that the I&E dept gets back to me in a day or 2 so that I can get the acrylic purchased and cut. The one way mirror film will be delivered on Tuesday, with electronic components being delivered on Thursday.