Creative Switch Project
LED backpack
LED backpack
Today I will be showing you how I added LEDs to the pocket of my Herschel backpack, and used the magnetic snaps as the switch to light them up. Not only does this light you up as a pedestrian and make you more visible at night, but it also allows you to know that your back pocket is securely closed.
Materials Needed:
– spare wire
– 9v battery
– 3 LEDs
– X-acto knife
– Herschel Backpack
– Tape
STEP 1:
First I tested if the snaps were even conductive from front to back, in order to do this, I had to scrape the paint off of the snaps.
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| paint scraped off snap |
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| slit in fabric |
STEP 2:
To access the back of the snaps, I cut a slit in the fabric with an x-acto knife.
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| hidden wires behind straps and top flap |
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| scored and soldered snap |
STEP 3:
Once I knew the snaps were conductive, I proceeded by connecting one side to the other. To do this I took a length of wire and hid it behind the straps, then I cut holes in the top flap of the pocket to feed the wire behind. Once I had the wire to the correct length, I stripped the ends. Then, before soldering the wires to the top of the snaps, I scored the metal with an x-acto knife to ensure a solid connection. Then I soldered the wire to the snaps and tested the conductivity again with a multimeter.
STEP 4:
Next I got my LEDs and poked them through the fabric in the orientation I wanted them. Making sure to connect negative to positive in series, I twisted the LED leads together and applied solder to secure them.
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| orientation of LEDs |
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| LEDs connected in series |
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| wire soldered to back of snap and connected to battery |
STEP 5:
Next I soldered wires to the backs of the snaps inside the pocket. On the positive side I connected it to the LED, and on the negative side to the battery. Then I attached the lead of the LED to the other port on the battery and tested my circuit.
STEP 6:
It was a success! So I covered everything with tape in order to prevent a short circuit.
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| tape to cover LED leads |
