The creator of the video built a custom LED lighting system for their room, inspired by a Batman movie. They installed a drop ceiling with LED strips, creating a unique and practical lighting solution for filming videos. The system is controlled by touch buttons and an Arduino MCU, with the option to add automation in the future. The creator is pleased with the result, which provides a sterile, crisp, and clean look to the room. The system uses 318 watts of power and costs about 72 cents per day to run. The creator is considering adding colored lighting, possibly using addressable LEDs, but is unsure about the best approach.
1. The creator of the video was inspired by a Batman movie featuring pencils that also doubled as a light fixture.
2. The room in the video originally did not have its own light fixture.
3. The creator installed a traditional drop ceiling and then added LED strips to it.
4. The creator initially planned to use two strips of LEDs but ended up using three instead.
5. The LED strips were spaced evenly apart using a stick with markers on it.
6. The creator used a non-permanent installation method for the LED strips.
7. The creator wanted to control the LED sections using large industrial contactors but decided against it.
8. Instead, the creator used small touch buttons that act as momentary switches.
9. The touch buttons were attached to a faceplate made from quarter-inch brass rod.
10. The brass rod was sanded down to smooth out the ends.
11. The creator used 220 to 600 grit sandpaper to sand the brass rod.
12. The faceplate was polished using generic brass polish from a hardware store.
13. The creator made a comparison of the faceplate before and after polishing.
14. The creator used Tinkercad to design hollow cylinder pieces to fit over the touch buttons.
15. The walls of the cylinder pieces were about two millimeters thick.
16. The creator 3D-printed the cylinder pieces and tested one of them.
17. The creator used a buck converter to power an Arduino board.
18. The Arduino board was used to control the LED strips.
19. The creator used relays to control the power to the LED strips.
20. The creator used hot glue to secure the adjustment knob on the buck converter.
21. The creator installed conduit for the wiring to make it look nicer and safer.
22. The creator still needs to add a backing to the transformers and fuses.
23. The creator measured the power usage of the LED strips at 318 watts.
24. The creator calculated the cost of electricity for the LED strips.
25. The creator used 3,726 LEDs, each rated at 0.2 watts.
26. The creator measured the actual power usage of the LED strips at 227 watts.
27. The creator calculated the efficiency of the power supplies at 71%.