This is a companion article to my YouTube video on building a "Nanoleaf®"-style wall display using WLED and a custom controller. Only supporting information (like parts used) and a high level overview of the build are provided in this article.
I would recommend that you watch the related YouTube video for full details on the build, wiring, controller and more. But highlights and features include:
- Over 100 different lighting effects, thanks to WLED
- Optional push button and IR remote control
- Control via web browser or WLED app
- Optional integration and automation via Home Assistant
- No 3D printed parts required
Credit to YouTuber Chris Maher for the original build idea.
Parts Used - Frame
|
QTY |
Descrip |
Notes |
|
8 |
1”x2”x4’ Select pine
board |
|
|
1 |
15 ct. Hefty Styrofoam
10 ¼”” dinner plates |
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|
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Wood glue |
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|
|
Painter’s tape (1 ½”
or wider) |
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Paint and painting
supplies |
Optional |
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1” to 1 ¼” finish
nails |
Optional |
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|
|
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Parts Used - LEDs and Controller
|
QTY |
Descrip |
Notes |
|
1 |
Wemos D1 Mini (ESP8266) |
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|
1 |
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1 |
|
|
|
1 |
5M WS2812b LED light strip (300 pixels) |
May need 2 if more pixels |
|
1 |
May vary upon pixel count |
|
|
-- |
Misc. wire (18-22 gauge) |
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|
1 |
Highly recommended |
|
|
1 |
Optional |
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1 |
Optional |
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1 |
Optional |
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The above links may be Amazon affiliate links. While this will not affect your pricing, this blog may earn a small commission from your purchase to use towards future projects.
Obviously, there are a number of tools and other supplies that are needed. While not a complete list, you will need:
- Miter saw or miter box with the ability to cut precise 30° angles
- Router and bit or way to cut approx. 1/8" x 3/8" grooves
- Pneumatic or electric nail gun (if opting to use finish nails)
- Small clamps (for clamping glued parts)
- Soldering iron and solder
Layout and Planning
You will need to determine the layout and number and size of hexagonal sections you would like in your project. Keep in mind that the larger the display, the more LED pixels you will need, and hence the larger power supply you will need. As a rough estimate, I build 12 hexagons with 4" sides. This required a total of 72 individual pieces of wood and around 309 LED pixels... and I'm powering this with a 5V 15A power supply (really should be 20A if I wanted maximum brightness). Your pixel count may vary depending upon how you route your LED strips.
Consider where and how you are going to route the incoming power, where you might mount the controller (and optional push button and IR receiver) and how you may plan on hanging the display on the wall. These will all impact the build.
Building the Frame
You will need to precisely cut the total number of sides for your build. Each segment must be the same length and all angles as close to an exact 30° degrees as possible. Failure to do so will result in sides that do not join together properly. If you have enough wood, I'd recommend cutting and routing enough spare pieces to create a couple of extra "leafs" for testing when it comes to later steps.
Each piece also needs a groove routed to hold the Styrofoam plate "diffusers". Obviously, these grooves also need to align on the inside (or short side) of each wood segment. You may opt to route the groove before cutting the wood into segments or create some sort of jig to route them after cutting.
I then cut out this paper template, taped to each plate and used it as a guide along with a sharp box knife to cut out each diffuser. Use caution as these plates "dent" easily and significant dents may show in the final build when light shines through them.
Once you have all the parts, you can assemble the hexagons by laying out a strip of painter's tape and carefully aligning six of the hexagon segments in a straight line.
Assure the blocks are in a straight line (I used one edge of the tape as a guide) and that each edge of the block is just touching the next. Apply a little wood glue between each segment. Insert a diffuser in the second slot and carefully "roll up" the segments into the hexagon.
Seal the tape from the last piece over the first piece and set aside to allow the glue to fully set. Repeat for all the remaining "leafs".
Once the glue as set, remove the masking tape and lay out your hexagons, face down, in your desired final pattern.
Mark and route out notches to allow for either wiring connections (if planning on soldering together individual LED segments, or deep enough to route the LED strips themselves. Give consideration to the most efficient way of running the wiring and LED strips. In my example above, I ran the LED strips up on side of each column and back down the other side before crossing over to the next column. Your routing will be dependent upon layout, but if all possible try to have the end of the entire run align near or next to the start. This will facilitate needed power injection when wiring the LEDs.
After notching (and optionally painting if you desire), join each hexagon to its neighbors with wood glue. Clamp until glue is set.
Optionally, you can add a couple of finish nails to each join.
Assembling the Controller
I cover the complete build of the base controller in both a YouTube video and separate blog article. Please refer to those for the build of the basic controller. I did make a couple of additional optional additions to that controller, which I'll cover here. Basically, I add a push button for local control and an IR receiver and remote for additional control as well.
Again, this diagram just shows the optional add-ons. See the above links for info on wiring the base controller. Either one or both of the add-ons can be added, but both are optional.
The push button is wired to pin D3 and ground, while the IR receiver is wired to D2, 3.3V and ground (check your IR receiver pinouts as they may be different than shown above). If these are installed, they are configured for use in the WLED software. See the links at the bottom for more info on WLED.
Installing and wiring the LED strips
How you route and wire your LED strips will be highly dependent upon the design and layout of your hexagons. But you have a couple of options:
I opted to use separate LED strip segments running up one side of each column and then back down, making wired connections between those segments. In all honesty, it was a LOT of soldering (about 130 solder connections for the 12 hexagons... which are a lot of points of potential failure).
The other, and probably better, option is to cut your notches between hexagons deep enough that your can route the LED strip itself between sections, resulting in a single LED strip (or maybe one per column at most) and a lot less soldering.
I opted to apply some double-sided 3M tape to the inside of my sections to assure that the LED strips did not work loose over time, as the adhesive on the LED strips themselves is not very strong. I also used hot glue over the solder connections and to hold the wiring in the notches.
Attaching the controller, final wiring and optional button or IR Receiver
Once all the LEDs are installed, you just need to mount and connect the controller, supply 5V power to the controller and LEDs and mount the optional push button and IR receiver if you opt to include those.
I was using Wago clips during testing in the above picture, but cut the wiring shorter and used small wire nuts for the finished version. While I did use a 3D printed case for the controller, you can easily substitute a small electronics project box or even hot glue the controller directly to the frame if desired.
Finally, the push button and IR receiver were mounted to the lower side of the display. In the current configuration, I just need to plug the power supply's barrel connector into the barrel connector of the display. No other wiring is visible.
Finishing touches
While optional, I decided to cut some thin white cardboard and attach it to the back of the display. This just helps eliminate any light from leaking out of the rear of the display. White allows the light to reflect better internally, but plain cardboard would work as well.
Finally, I just added a couple of eye hooks to the top two sections to allow me to easily hang the completed display on the wall.
Use and Control
The display can also be controlled via WLED in a browser or a mobile app. And since WLED has native integration with Home Assistant, the display can also be controlled via Home Assistant or used in scripts and automations.
Links
Supporting this blog and related YouTube channel
If you'd like to support future content on this blog and the related YouTube channel, or just say thanks for something that helped you out, you can use any of my Amazon links to make a purchase at absolutely no cost to you. Or if you prefer to say thanks directly, you can buy me a one-off cup of coffee at:
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