Many moons ago Osram introduced a rather neat little LED light called a Dot-It which was a robust little battery operated light with three LEDs that could be turned on and off by pressing the front.
It was inevitably ripped off big-time by the Chinese, helped greatly by the fact that it was originally considered a trendy designer light and carried a matching price tag.
The Chinese copies do not carry a high price tag. In fact you generally get between one and three for a pound! The internal construction is usually a small triangular PCB with an LED at each corner, resistor and a latching push-switch in the middle, But there have been versions with no PCB but just a bit of plastic with the LED and switch leads stuffed through holes and the leads bent and soldered. Sometimes the resistor is used as one of the battery connection leads, or sometimes it's on the PCB.
The construction is usually a twist-off self adhesive base that reveals the battery compartments for three AAA cells. The internal body is either screwed (rare) or glued into the outer housing. A chromed plastic reflector serves to keep the LED PCB aligned and also flexes enough (due to slots) to allow the clear cover on the front to push the whole reflector back against the push-on-off switch.
They're very hackable if you are lucky enough to find some that aren't glued together too well. You can change the resistor for a longer run time, or change the colour of the LEDs to your own choice.
As mentioned in the video I adapted some of these with different coloured LEDs for existing lights used quite effectively as part of the giant killer robot costumes (Roboidz) used on Mission 2110 (the robots also ended up being used again in a Doctor Who episode called Dinosaurs on a Spaceship.) You can also adapt them to be powered by a standard 5V supply or battery pack like low-power downlights. Again, I adapted some in this way for the same robots when they were put on display in the BBC's Pacific Quay studios in Glasgow. A common 5V supply was used to power all the push-lights and also the scanning eye PCB.
It was inevitably ripped off big-time by the Chinese, helped greatly by the fact that it was originally considered a trendy designer light and carried a matching price tag.
The Chinese copies do not carry a high price tag. In fact you generally get between one and three for a pound! The internal construction is usually a small triangular PCB with an LED at each corner, resistor and a latching push-switch in the middle, But there have been versions with no PCB but just a bit of plastic with the LED and switch leads stuffed through holes and the leads bent and soldered. Sometimes the resistor is used as one of the battery connection leads, or sometimes it's on the PCB.
The construction is usually a twist-off self adhesive base that reveals the battery compartments for three AAA cells. The internal body is either screwed (rare) or glued into the outer housing. A chromed plastic reflector serves to keep the LED PCB aligned and also flexes enough (due to slots) to allow the clear cover on the front to push the whole reflector back against the push-on-off switch.
They're very hackable if you are lucky enough to find some that aren't glued together too well. You can change the resistor for a longer run time, or change the colour of the LEDs to your own choice.
As mentioned in the video I adapted some of these with different coloured LEDs for existing lights used quite effectively as part of the giant killer robot costumes (Roboidz) used on Mission 2110 (the robots also ended up being used again in a Doctor Who episode called Dinosaurs on a Spaceship.) You can also adapt them to be powered by a standard 5V supply or battery pack like low-power downlights. Again, I adapted some in this way for the same robots when they were put on display in the BBC's Pacific Quay studios in Glasgow. A common 5V supply was used to power all the push-lights and also the scanning eye PCB.
So in Other words Through the PEASE OF SHIT AWAY
I have tried rechargeable batteries in then but they don't work at all with them not sure why at all so was thinking of wireing 5 of them up to a power supply for my display unit how many volts would i need to use.
Crack the ice on the LEDs, makes much more useful light than the 3 otherwise rather uselessly tight beams.
Wow… I just checked out Mission 2110 and those robot costumes were sweet !!! You can definitely spot the pushlights !!!
Interestingly, the sponsored products are showing me a submersible version and a wireless version of these same lights… I've had one at the top of the stairs for years to let me see where I'm going in the middle of the night… handy things !!
where to get the light bulbs from if they blow because it's 3 of them bulbs ?
I don't think Osram made the pushlite first. I have a really old one, made by Sylvania, with "Dot-It" molded into the case, displaying the "TM" trademark symbol. It is held up by a magnet.
I put one on the underside of my desk so when I inevitably drop a small component it makes it easier to find.
at this rate if they come up with a live action Danger moose er Mouse (good grief .) which alas I grew up on am a dire fanatic X_X (not the one that is missing Sir David Jason's voice and we lost Penfold in the early 90s 🙁 ) I could just see some tweed in Hollywood go hmm Danger Mooose er Mouse (after mutilated Ghost in the Shell imho) my opinion.. Your bound to have something to do with it provided they used British references. Although the only way Danger Moose er Mouse (Nein Nein Nein , is 27 you said that before ) 😛 still Moles
These sorts of little "tap lights" are being used a lot now in DIY traps for Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs. So far the UK doesn't seem to be overrun with these Asian Invaders, but wow we sure have them in the US now. If only you had a quick/cheap hack to add a sensor facing out a hole drilled in the edge (hidden from the LEDs) to turn the light on at dusk and off at dawn. Might extended the battery life when left on for a few days without attention.
Lol took A look at that mission 2110 thing,lots of props ended up in the new Doctor Who series 😀
I've had these cheapo ones for years and they still run on the included batteries. I guess AAs would be better but the light would then be a lot heavier and larger.
I agree Clive, whoever designs things powered with AAA cells should be publicly flogged. The more average current draw the more lashes (1mA = 1 lash).
I had an old Osram Dot-It at one point and I remember very well that to change the batteries you had to unscrew the back. I tad hard when its stuck to the bottom of a desk.
We had a similar use for these at the theatre where i work: 2 of these lights were coloured red and inserted into the head of "The Giant" prop used during a production of Jack and the Beanstalk. The batteries were taken out of the radio mics after every 2 performances and used in the Giant's "Head lights"…..