Borealis Update October 2018
As Borealis was on the backburner for a while, I decided to pick it back up and work on finalizing the design and start to push for release. Some design alterations were made to the case, namely a beveled edge on the white top, in order to solve an issue with light diffusion (the unit was darker along the edges). The concept of a metal base was also scrapped, as it caused a Faraday Cage effect on the bluetooth chip, causing issues with transmission and receiving of data.
I also worked on utilizing Atmel’s ATMEGA328p instead of the current ATMEGA32u4, however, this proved cumbersome in that the end user would need a serial programmer in order to update the firmware or hack the unit. While the 328p is cheaper for mass production, this lamp would be released as a limited-run. Ultimately, I decided to stick with the ATMEGA32u4.
Top of the revised unit
A beveled edge was added to the lid in order to better assist in light diffusion along the edge.
Bottom of the revised unit
Not many updates were made to the bottom of the assembly, however, as it sits and looks fine. Initial CNC prototype designs utilized a metal chassis, however this caused a Faraday Cage effect with the bluetooth module. Release versions will be produced using either plastic or wood.