This video might be also helpful if you are interested working with mdf. Box is versatile so it can be used with other types projects too. Main material is 20mm MDF. See www.instructabl... for more info. music : www.incompetech.com
This video is proof of how when something matters to a person, that person could make miracles happen. This box is SO well finished, I literally thought it was from a store, or at least a factory prototype. Highly inspirational, the fact that you pushed it through and made it, it counts beyond measure, to me... I’m gonna get working on my recent project: shelves for a 7 foot tall 19” rack frame! I really think that you’ve demonstrated just how far our minds can push us. Absolutely motivational and incredible! Thanks!
Это просто шедевр! Такую работу не грех и похвалить! Самое главное, что очень нужная вещь, но купить её нигде невозможно. А здесь пожалуйста, вот она и даже лучше, чем могла бы быть!
Wo-ow. Thats just a perfect video. I admire people that are able to make their projects so perfectly, cleanly, and work-able. I didn't know that wood can look like a metal too..
I haven't found UV LED strips with s/m 360nm.. so it won't be working efficiently. all the strips I've found around the Ali has s/m 395-405nm only. Please let me know if you find the ones.
you are a master of wood! My low budget variant is an old scanner housing made of plastic, inside are UV Tubes from a "Toaster" Ballasts are from dead energy safing Bulbs and Time makes a 555. It works too ;)
Great woodwork. Not sure if your LEDs are cooled well being sticked to the plastic sheet. Also I would paint internals of the case into deeep black to avoid any reflected UV light to reach the exposed PCB.
Really good design I just built one on your design but put another set of LEDs in the lid to make double sided and made a vacuum Frame with square Aluminium tube and Mylar to suck down on the board but forgot about the power supply as both set of LEDs take 2 amps each also put relays in to switch lamps from Top, Bottom or both
You could do the same by finding (usually for free) and dismantling an old flatbed scanner (parallel-port ones from the 90s are pretty much useless nowadays). They already have the glass, the box, the cover, and the sponge: all you need to do is to remove everything from the inside and place the LED panel on the bottom.
Thank you for showing exposure box sir I learn about it how about my Patten the Lamp above the light show down 10 inches distance so process at the screen image lower part what time need to expose thnx again
If you call that "quick and dirty," I would like to see your stuff. This is WAY more attention to cosmetic details than I would even begin to put in. This is a GREAT project box for ANY purpose. Suitable for sale. Cheers!
Very nice craftsmanship. I was jealous until I saw your soldering ;p Perhaps consider raising the LED panel so that it's right up under the glass and using quartz glass or some other UV transparent material. The light will be less spread out and more intense. Less diffusion means the light stays more columnar between the sheet with the PCB artwork and the photoresist, leading to sharper traces. Having the LEDs closer and using a glass that doesn't block as much UV will also shorten the exposure time and shorter exposure time will also lead to sharper traces.
nice box but lacks of optical background: 1 to obtain the sharpest possible projection you must use a single point led (with or without collimating optics, otherwise you lower the etandue = making a lot of semishadows) 2 uv source has to have spectral characteristics matched to photoresist (in my experience very powerful but soft uv lamp doesnt polimerize the film well, but correct led works perfect even with low intensity (that was a must to success in 0.1/0.1mm traces with 50um film))
Very nicely done! As others have noted, an interlock switch in the lid to turn off the light and pause the Arduino would be good safety enhancements. I'd also test the LEDs to be sure they all work before cutting and installing them. So how well does it work? Can you make boards clean enough for 0.5mm runs and 0402 SMD parts with the box?
Fantastic design, both mechanically and electronically, congrats. But *COMPLETELY MISSING THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION,* or I could not find it: where is the test petern of certain size realized, what are the results? *What is the minimum track width that can be reliably realised on this UV unit?* This design is like a beautifull car from outside but we know nothing about it's performance.
something like '3w star uv led 370nm' or so on ebay. 400nm is not enough (my resist glowed bright green at correct led). anything random even like tanning bed lamps made crap (+long exposure). correct led needs no more than few seconds (no more than 30 at all)
ok... i get the whole "hobby thing", but.....photosensitive pcbs are not that light sensitive, and turning off the light with a switch, or even just pulling the plug works just fine....i made an exposure light with a roll of uv leds stuck onto cardboard.....maybe $15 for the whole thing? comon, guys ......leave the microcontrollers for things that really need them?
In the prototyping lab of my school we had a proper industrial double sided UV exposure unit, and yes, the photosensitive pcb's are very sensitive to light when you want good results it matters how long you had them in there, with every batch of pcb's we ordered we had to evaluate the proper exposire and etching times, often needing test batches of around 100 small sample pcb's with different trace and pad sizes. 5s more or less do make a big difference sometimes when you want to get down to 10-8mil
Hello! Awesome project! I am building something very similar (some differences since I started from scratch a while ago and just seeing this). I am wondering, since I am building this for photographic purposes, did you find you had hot spots on your exposures? How did you find the spacing and distance to glass for the LED's? Just a lot of testing? Thanks!
Hi. Led distance from the glass is around 70mm. There's total of a 500 led with viewing angle of 120 degrees. My older exposing machine got almost same distance so I decided use same here. There might be some spots where UV is weaker. Also the glass might block some of the UV rays. I'm only exposing a small PCB with this one.
woah! im normally not a safety nut. but cutting a bevel with the blade tilted toward the fence is just begging for a serious kickback accident. I know from experience, and i was lucky to get away with only a bruise from the wood hitting me.
Nice :) very nice, me like it :) Oh about the magic smoke, you do know that all electrical devices work on gray smoke, and when that smoke exits the device, then device stops working. Its fundamental of electronics :) that gray smoke ;) It happens, those Chinese and their chinisium :)
You could link the lid switch to the Arduino which could pause the exposure timer while the lid is up. If you're making a lot of PCBs you may consider it. If you rely on the timer though and it's always off when you open it up again then not so bad but always nice to have safeguards. Plus I like to bevel all my edges using a router, otherwise very nicely made, video too.
Thx for the reply, but sure if you take the most expensive brands there you can burn some money ;). It would be helpful to know where you live, maybe you have only expensive stores , i dont know. Just some examples: "Professional" Ear and Eye protection 100$ ? earprotection costs 10-15$ in new in local stores, and i gont mine from 2 $ from china (big red headphone version). They work very very (which i dont expect!) Other alternative are ear plugs (2-3$ in store ) Eyeprotection, Polycarbonate Googles cost 10$ in stores, 2$ in china. + Add a face shield (10-20$) , from china 6-8$ So just this, if you would buy DOUBLE ear + eyeprotection it would cost ~47$ in a store and ~14$ from China if you buy onle single protection its13$ in a store and 4$ from china. All polycarbonate (same material so "cheap" as argument doesnt count) For the electric tool this goes on, i bought 200mm wheel grinder for 36€ new from ebay comercial seller buw you can buy smaller ones cheaper. its a Motor+grindingstone+bearings+switch, nothing you could make a professional markup on xD. for the drillpress why do you need a 1000$ Bosch drill press to drill Holes in wood? Bosch doesnt produce them anymore, could find a new offer, but other brands and big Drill press version costs 300-350€ (the "pro" versions) I got a drillpress for 69€, it drill holes in wood and metal. Ok to be fair i added a "professional" heavy chuck for 20€ so 89€overall. Overall you can build the wooden box here with less tools than he showed. A circualsaw(even handheld) + Power Drill some sandpaper and screws ;D . I got a circular handheld power saw for 55@ + a drill for 25€ (where the same lithiumpack fits thats why its so inexpensive) so you need maybe 100$ woth of tools and get it done. Just one example www.lidl.de/de/parkside-akku-handkreissaege-phksa-20-li-a1-mit-akku/p243375 Its not metal where you need a lathe and a Mill, its only wood. I mean i you say you cant do it since you need 10k for tools is just an excuse on this build :).
I'm using basic spray paints and laguers. Check link below for more info how to polish surfaces. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-K0pXjV4zGDM.html
Bad design due to regular [window] glass is about 50-70% (at most) transparent for UVA (320-400nm), those ones obviously used in your strips. At least you have 30% LEDs' power loss in the glass. And the thicker the glass, the more UV lost. I'd go with direct exposure with the LEDs mounted on top of the box, or at least used the UV-transparent glass, like acrylic or [coated] quartz glass.
It is your comment that is critical and bad. His design is excellent. Do you not read his instructable. He is using a glass panel from inside the unit from an old scanner, which is not window glass. Your critical assumptions are all based on your false presumptions.
No it does not have to be, the glass on scanners is ultra clear low iron float glass which passes UV due to its clarity. Normal float glass has a slight green tinge which does not pass UV so easily.
I think in this case a terrible mistake! Inner interior must be maximum black for UV! And leds mustn’t be wide angel! Try to find about parasitic illumination.
White or silver reflects light. A black background absorbs light. Just because UV is not in the visible spectrum does not mean that a white/silver reflector is not going to work.
i am making the pcb for the lcd and buttons. but i dont know what wires from lcd screen goes to the pcb header as there not marked on the schematic for example lcd pin1 to D2 on arduino.would you be able to help ?
Thank you :). i did not see it at first. i had to click on first picture then scroll though them to see it. the 5k pot that controls voltage to the Fet. how would i tune this ? why the countdown timer is on then turn the pot till the Fet turns the leds on ?
I think my idea was that 5k pot is limiting the current going to to FET :). It's a logic level FET which is fully open at 5v (arduino operates at 5v). So u can basicly change it to small resistor if u like. When timer is on, arduino sets "FET pin" high so the current can go trough UV leds to the ground.
What value resistor do you think would work best ?i suppose it depends on how much current triggers the fet.. There are 4 connections on the led pin part of the pcb. do i just connect all 3 led negative pins to the last pin that has a resistor to gnd ? or shall i add separate resistors to each led to gnd ?
Fet is "triggered" with voltage not current. It's just safety thing. You can connect all leds trough that one resistor. Only one led is lid at once. I'm bit confused with my design, its over year now when I done it :)
