Micro ATL Light

sunny_nites

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This is one of those projects I've had in the back of my mind for a long time. Finally got a hold of some equipment that let me make it a reality.

Say hello to my little friend:
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Calling this little guy The Micro ATL (Aluminum Triple LED) Light.

Milled aluminum body and top, three Cree 5mm, neutral white, 15 degree LEDs, driven by a X-Light Micro controller and powered by 150mah of rechargeable lithium polymer goodness. Also has three neodymium rare earth magnets so it can clamp onto metal for hands free operation.

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Wow, I need to dust that desk.


X-light micro driver on low:
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And High:
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Approximate dimensions for the Micro ATL are:
L = 49.5mm (1.9"), H=9mm (.345"), W=25mm (1")
The 150mah lipo gives it an approximate max run time of over 2 hours at full brightness. I haven't measured the current on the lowest setting but it would run for a very long time.

The 10-32 set screw in the side covers the charging port:

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Anyone that has been around for a while will probably notice a resemblance to another small milled light that came out a while back.

Saber Wolfs Mini Tag Light saga turned out to be a tragic event for a light with such potential.
I actually tried to buy a couple full metal Tag Light chassis from Saber Wolf to install my own electronics in. Probably turned out to be lucky break for me that he declined as I likely would have paid for them and still would have had to make my own. And I would have missed out on the challenge and fun of designing and building the Micro ATL!

Micro ATL Light all milled up and waiting for its electronics. The custom made silicone gasket in the back ground also serves as the switch cover:
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I'm using the membrane switch that comes on the X-Light controller and a silicone switch cover rather than a hard button cover. This reduces the likely hood of the light turning on in a pocket or on a keychain. So far, all of the people that I have made these for say there have been no accidental power ups (I really didn't intend on making these for sale but so far, everyone that sees the one I carry wants one. Oddly enough, even non flashlight enthusiasts). I carry mine in my pocket daily and so far have never had an accidental power on.
Just realized I don't have a picture of the lights insides wired up. Will post one soon. Not much to see though, similar to under the hood of a modern car; mostly battery and the circuit board for the controller.

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Family photo:
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These are some early prototypes:
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I used a much thinner gasket on these first units and a GID switch cover. Note the smaller charger port in the light on the bottom and no port at all on the top unit.

The light on top was the first one I made and the lid has to be removed to charge it. These lights are not quite as long as the later versions and clock in around 43mm, excluding the tail extension. The tail extension on the lid for the split ring attachment gave way to the, cleaner and simpler to make, notched body version and I went with the much easier to find larger charging jack.

I'm calling these early prototypes, gen 1, the newer ones pictured at the begging are gen 2. I'm currently working on what will probably be the final type, gen3. Primarily the same as the gen 2 but will have a 240mah lipo and will be around 2 to maybe 3 mm longer. Otherwise the same but should run over 4 hours on high.

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The LEDs and charger jack are potted to assist in water resistance but the battery and controller are not and can be accessed for service or replacement.

Thanks for looking!
 

nein166

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These look great!

Hey have you thought about adding a locator light into it so its always glowing? Maybe it could glow through the 3clear 5mm's
 

sunny_nites

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Thanks!

Oddly enough, I do have a 3mm blue LED, running at 5micro amps, added to a really early plastic prototype. It shows through the 5mm white LEDs and actually works very well. I have been thinking about adding them to the full metal versions in one of two ways;
1) As nein166 mentioned and like the plastic prototype, behind the 5mm white LEDs.
2) Using a clear silicone gasket/switch cover which would, in theory at least, provide some level of glow around the entire light.

I'll post some pics with the (let's call it a beacon ;)) blue LED as soon as I can put some examples together.
 
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sunny_nites

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Rough cut of the Gen3 Micro ATL with the blue beacon light behind the beams.
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Thinking about going with an internal gasket on the gen3 as compared to the gen2 with the external gasket. The gen3 will have a thicker lid but will just be slightly taller than the gen2 due to the internal gasket.

Note the middle LED on the gen3 is lower than the two outside LEDs. On the gen2 Micro ATLS, I was placing the middle LED just slightly higher than the two outside lights and this gen3 prototype was an accidental, upside down cut. Going forward the gen 3 and any other gen2s I make will have all three LEDs at the same level.
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The beacon is a bit hard to see in normal light, so I took this pick using a black light. The beacon isn't quite this bright in complete darkness but it does show up quite well.
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nein166

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While the clear gasket with glow would look nice Gen3 with internal gasket looks better
 

sunny_nites

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That's the consensus I got when I showed the mockup around; everyone voted for the internal gasket.

Unfortunately, once I put made a clear gasket and assembled the components, I realized it would not work. The blue LED is under the controller circuit and would not light up the gasket at all.

Just for kicks, I did put just the chassis together without the controller and battery and it did look pretty darn cool. Not sure why I didn't think to get a picture of it but I'll put it back together and take a couple of snaps just for fun.
 

sunny_nites

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Thanks and good idea!

I have been looking around for some hi CRI 5mms and they do appear to be available but crazy hard to obtain.

As luck would have it, there is a nice, warm tint 5mm, Nichia LED that comes with the X-Light Micro controller. I've noticed in the past, that adding the Nicia to the middle of two Cree neutral LEDs does "warm up" the beam nicely.

The first gen3 I'm working on will have that configuration and I will post some beam shot comparisons probably by tomorrow.

Was going to post some pics of the clear gasket (mock up only, as I mentioned it won't work in the current configuration) and an interior shot but my photo hosting site seems to be down.

Stay tuned!
 
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sunny_nites

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As I mentioned earlier, the clear gasket concept unfortunately won't work but I did think it looked pretty cool:
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Under the hood gen3 and side by side with the X-Light donor for a size comparison.

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more_vampires

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SN: I've got a Nighthawk USB cell phone booster that does that "light up gasket" thing. It's a pretty slick looking feature. IMHO, it'd be worth the effort.

Cool work, btw. Cute as a button!
 

sunny_nites

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First gen3 off the assembly line!
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Yeah, I know, they were supposed to have the LEDs all at the same level but I had one blank left with the raised middle LED.

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Thanks, nein166, for the suggestion to go with the beacon! A little more complicated to wire up but the results were well worth it.
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sunny_nites

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Thanks for your interest!

The honest answer is; I'm not sure.

I did sell several of the gen2s, as I'm calling them now, locally without really intending them for sale. I primarily like working on this stuff as a hobby and way to relax but as I mentioned earlier everyone that saw one wanted one, so I did a small run and sold them all out.

What might be the two main sticking points is that it takes an insane amount of time to put one of these pups together and although it may not look like it the $$ for all the individual components adds up pretty quick.

That being said, if I get enough people interested in purchasing a gen3 Micro ATL at what it would be worth for me to invest the time and effort to build, I will look into making a production run.

The price would be $85.00 US and would include the gen3 Micro ATL, of course, a hex wrench to open the charger port and a USB charger with a neodymium magnet to attach the wrench to. There was a hodge podge of chargers that went out with the gen2s but I have a source for a very nice, self contained USB charger that would output over 300mah, if you have a USB port that can provide that.

If your interested, let me know and if I get enough interest, I'll see what I can do.

This will not, I repeat, not be a pre-pay sale! No cash will exchange hands until the light is ready to ship. I would ask though, that you think about it and if your willing to commit that you please not back out down the road
 
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KuanR

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This looks great and you priced it very fairly! Would it be possible to make these in titanium?
 

sunny_nites

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Hey guys, thanks for the interest!

I'll have to check on the titanium. I know they could be made but the price might be pretty steep.
 
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