When 3D printing filament company Functionalize electrified the market with their F-Electric PLA filament earlier this year, makers had an opportunity to print in PLA with conductivity in mind. Functionalize, which is based out of Seattle, has even released creative little DIY kits and projects for their customers, helping them to unlock the full potential of their F-Electric material. Take their Flashlight Kit for example, which is a print-it-yourself project that creates up to five keychain flashlights.
And, now, in the spirit of a spaced out Christmas, Functionalize has just released their spaceship ornament kit, which not only lights up, but also comes equipped with a laser-shooting circuit board. After downloading the spaceship STL files, the circuit board base is to be printed in normal PLA, while the circuit traces and connectors are printed in their specialized F-Electric PLA. In addition to the STL files and filament (and obviously a 3D printer or printer service), makers undertaking the project will also need a capacitor (for laser blink speed), an 8-pin 555 timer chip, a laser component, two multicolored LEDs, and a silver conductive pen (for attachment of components).
The Functionalize team specially designed the circuit board for 3D printing on a single head printer, and also printed the resistor component in their F-Electric PLA to avoid any trouble with the timer chip. But the design itself is not quite flawless; Functionalize did have a bit of trouble printing the spaceship ornament without support material, and are asking their user-base to summon the warm Christmas spirit to help improve upon their design.
If you manage to complete the spaceship project (I don’t think you need to be a rocket scientist to do so!), Functionalize asks to have your iteration of the spaceship ornament shared with their team and community. The spaceship ornament and circuit board STL files can be downloaded from Functionalize’s website. This project seems fit for (at least) moderately experienced makers looking for a fun DIY kit to light up the holiday with Functionalize’s conductive PLA, and could even make your Christmas tree look out of this world!
