Kinetic Desk Lamp

A couple months ago the halogen bulb in my desk lamp finally kicked the bucket. I replaced it with an LED for a couple weeks but it wasn't bright enough and quickly overheated without the proper control electronics. Something that always bothered me about this old lamp was that it could only bend at one joint so I had to constantly the base around my desk to get the light where I wanted it. I wanted to build my new lamp and while looking online for inspiration, I came across Matt Gilbert's elegant Crane Lamp which became my primary inspiration for this project.

The stainless steel spring inside the base of the kinetic lamp allows you to easily adjust the height of the lamp. The scissor lift mechanism is made of milled 6061 T6 aerospace grade aluminum and laser cut birch ply sandwiched together, carrying power to the lamp head without wires. The lamp head travels up and then outwards making it an ideal light source for detailed work or spread out studying. Additionally, the lamp head tilts outwards as the lamp is extended to illuminate a larger area and a smaller focused area near the base when the lamp is compressed. It's also very light making it easy to move whenever necessary.

Though I used a CNC and laser cutter to make the arms, you can probably cut them using a a scroll saw, band saw, or by hand if you 3D print a stencil arm and then trace it onto the wood and aluminum.

Parts List:
M5x12 304 stainless steel bolts (30)
M5x1.4 18-8 stainless steel press nuts (34)
M5x85 18-8 stainless steel bolts (1)
M5x75 18-8 stainless steel bolts (3)
1/8" frosted acrylic (1)
12v 1A power supply (1)
2.1mm barrel connector (PCB mount style (1)
16awg silicone wire (a couple inches)
10x15mm mini rocker switch (1)
6000k LED strip (1)
3M VHB adhesive tape (1)
1/8" birch plywood
1/16" aluminum plate

*Note: If you decide to use press nuts, you may need to drill out some of the bolt holes to make them fit depending on your CNC and laser tolerances. You can also just use regular M5 nuts.

*Note: I live in California where the weather isn't too humid so I was able to use stainless steel bolts. If you live somewhere with humid weather or you expect the lamp to get a little damp, use black oxide hardware to prevent galvanic corrosion with the aluminum arms. Also make sure to protect your plywood from the moisture to prevent warping.

For a 3D model to assist in building, check out our public Onshape document.