Continuing my design for a light marker for tabletop gaming, and currently have the pictured design. This one is functional enough that we were able to utilize it during our latest session – although the group didn’t actually need any lights. And it is durable enough now that it didn’t break during use.
The design remains simple – a pair of leads on either side of a battery, connected to the LED. The LED is now a nano-LED, the light is actually smaller than the two wires together, though it gives off plenty of light. Next to the battery, I am using adhesive copper tape, which is conductive, and holds the wires nicely.
The challenge remains in the battery slot itself – which is still a bit wide – and in an on/off switch mechanism. To solve both temporarily, I used a folded piece of the copper tape – this fills the gap and makes the circuit connection and can be removed to turn off the light. I do have some options however to switch to a physical switch instead though, which hopefully will be more reliable.
The big (or small) challenge remains the size of the parts – 3d printing is good, but rather finicky at these scales. The lantern top itself is fairly easy to print, but the base has a tendency to separate from the print bed and/or the layers are thin and weak in some spots.
I have a couple more sets printed up however, and plan on using them for our upcoming session this weekend before I make any more alterations however.
