I glued a sheet of pressed paper over the LEDs
as a light diffuser. Hot glue is my go-to for the
paper and for setting the LED matrix in place
(Figure
E
). Before you do that though, figure out
which side is up. My matrix has no clear marking,
so the best thing to do is mark the top after you
run the code and see the orientation of the image.
Glue the lid bottom to the lid top, using the
tabbed top rim piece to help center them. Don’t
glue this rim, as it needs to be attached to the
enclosure. Now fold the enclosure around and
use a hammer to gently tap its tabs together. I
used a 2×4 over a pair of sawhorses to act as my
anvil (Figure
F
). Take your time and you’ll be
rewarded with a satisfying whap! each time they
snap in place. Tap the enclosure bottom piece in,
and then the top rim that holds the lid.
Once the lid is dry, screw in the switches and
potentiometer and reinsert the wires into the
breadboard. Snake the power supply through
the back hole and plug the 5V and ground wires
into their respective rails. Now that your code is
uploaded, you can add that jumper wire from the
5V rail to the USB pin. If you plan to upload new
code, be sure to remove that jumper because
Adafruit says so! Finally, place the breadboard in
the enclosure and add the lid (Figure
G
).
SMILES FOR MILES
Plug in your LOL-Ra Lamp and select the emoji
and color that suits your mood (Figure
H
). Be
sure to share that emoji with your BFF — no
phone or internet required!
MAYBE NEXT TIME…
Technically, this project was a success — I could
broadcast an image to the partner lamp over a
mile away! These LoRa modules easily transmit
2km (1.2mi) with quarter-wave antennas, up to
20km (12.4mi) with directional antennas.
Unfortunately, I made the classic project
management mistake and didn’t confirm the
requirements with the client before beginning.
According to my daughter, the emojis I created
are “too retro” and only a Boomer would use
them. To keep up with the times, I might have to
build an animated clock option to replicate this
TikTok thing she keeps going on about.
PROJECTS LoRa Communicator Lamp
E
G
F
H
98 makezine.com
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