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SNAP LIGHT
Who said office lights need to be bland? Modular LED triangle lights snap into the magnetic back panel to create many lighting configurations.
OVERVIEW
In 2014, Company LED Trail pitched a contest to design an LED office light for standard panel ceilings.
Our project, SNAP, focused on a modular design with simple and easy to replace bulbs.
Result: Our project won the contest!
ROLE
Product Designer, along with my partner on the project, Dan Wilson.
DURATION
Three months part-time.
Product Design Bachelor of Fine Arts, University of Oregon.
DESIGN PROCESS
Design Process
Modular.
Soft, even lighting.
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PRODUCT GOALS
A thin, low profile.
RESEARCH
To understand how LED lights work, I disassembled an LED Trail light.
LED Light Components:
An electrical circuit, a voltage adapter, diodes, a heat sink, and a light reflector.
To create soft, even lighting, one key consideration is the placement of the diodes next to the reflector.
Honeycomb & wave modular lights.
Triangle interlocking & folding lights.
Sliding & tilting leaf-shaped spotlights.
Sketches
Prototypes
HINGE:
Folds to adapt to corners of the room, or tilts to create spotlights.
With feedback from LED Trail, we decided to adapt SNAP directly into a panel for a standard T-bar ceiling.
Prototypes made of laser cut acrylic, LED strips, wiring, a hinge, and magnets.
SNAP:
Lights magnetically snap on the edges to create larger light installations.
"What if the bulbs could plug into a ceiling panel via magnets?"
We tried passing the current through a magnet, and success- it worked! However, this led to a new electrical problem for our design: short circuits.
We consulted an electrical engineer and found the key to our problem: an electrical part called a bridge rectifier, allowing a two-way current.
FINAL PROTOTYPE
Using Solidworks, we created our prototype’s housing, manufactured the parts using a CNC router and laser cutter, and soldered the electrical components.
Front Panel
ENGINEERING SNAP
Back Panel
Front Bulb
Back Bulb
Engineering
SNAP LIGHT
LED triangle lights snap into the magnetic back panel to create many lighting configurations.
Design Features
Square
Pinwheel
Chevron
RESULTS
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Our final product, SNAP, was selected as the winner of the contest! Led Trail intended to patent and manufacture the lighting design.
Results
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