Lightmybricks Technic DIY Designer Kit User manual

INSTALLATION GUIDE 1LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE
Light My Bricks Technic DIY Designer Kit
Installation Guide

INSTALLATION GUIDE 2LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE
Hello, we’re Light My Bricks.
We’re here to help you get started on
the Light My Bricks - Technic DIY
Designer Kit.
This PDF lists instructions for the LED
light kit only. If you are wishing to
purchase this product, please click here
to view the product page.
If you run into any issues, please refer
to the troubleshooting section towards
the end of this guide.
Have fun and enjoy!
PACAKAGE CONTENTS
PACKAGE CONTENTS:
8 × White 30cm Bit Lights
8 x White 15cm Bit Lights
1 x Rotating 30cm Bit Light
1 x Multi Effects Board
2 x 6-Port Expansion Boards
1 x 8-Port Expansion Board
1 x 12-Port Expansion Board
2 x 5cm Connecting Cable
2 x 15cm Connecting Cables
2 x 30cm Connecting Cables
1 x 50cm Connecting Cables
8 x Adhesive Squares
1 x USB Power Cable
1 x AA Battery Pack
(requires 3x AA Batteries)
LEGO PIECES:
2 × Trans Red Plate 1x1
3 × Trans Orange Plate 1x1
4 × Trans Clear Plate 1x1
2 × Trans Red Round Plate 1x1
3 × Trans Orange Round Plate 1x1
4 × Trans Clear Round Plate 1x1
1 × Trans Orange Cone 1x1 with Top Groove
1 × Light Grey Technic Pin 1/2

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 3
Contents 4. Introduction
5. Lighting Chain
6. Bit Lights
12. Powering
14. Multi Effects
17. Rotating Bit Light
20. Extras
21. Beyond The Kit /
Upgradeing
22.. Conclusion
23. Troubleshooting
38. Contact
CONTENTS

INSTALLATION GUIDE 4LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE
Introduction
Included in your kit is a range of handy components for lighting Technic sets. Using these components, you
can create your own lighting system for any Technic set on the market - from headlights and taillights for
the 4 x 4 Off Roader, to realistic industrial ashing beacons for the Bucket Wheel Excavator. The following
information will have you covered to light up your Technic set. Let’s begin!
We’ll now go over several of the most versatile and effective lighting techniques you’ll utilise to light your
Technic set. We’ve featured several of our favourite LEGO Technic sets, but remember these techniques can
be applied to any sets.
Same components, same LEGO Technic pieces, different sets!
To start with, let’s go over some broad concepts when approaching your lighting design.
INTRO

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 5
Lighting Chain
The idea of energy ow brings us to our next point. By using our connecting cables and expansion boards, you can create an electrical chain or loop
as the foundation of your lighting design. The diagram below will give you an overview of how our systems function and an example of how you
might think about laying out your design.
INTRO
EXPANSION
BOARD
EXPANSION
BOARD
MULTI
EFFECTS
EXPANSION
BOARD
EffectsHeadlights Tail Lights
LEGEND: BIT LIGHTS ROTATING BIT LIGHT POWER
SOURCE
CONNECTING CABLE
Your power source is at the beginning or head of the chain. Then your expansion boards and connecting cables serve as the body from there,
providing you with the ports you need to connect lights and other components or limbs to. Never connect more than one power source per chain and
keep in mind you can extend your system out as far as you need, provided you continue adding expansion boards via connecting cables in order to
allow the ow of power to continue.
LIGHTING CHAIN

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 6
Bit Lights
Now let’s take a closer look at some of the components you’ll be using in your system and how they interact with
your LEGO pieces to light your Technic set.
Bit lights are the most common and versatile light you’ll nd in any Light My Bricks kit.
They can be used in many different ways to produce many different lighting effects. For example, these bright
individual LEDs can be used for headlights, taillights, spotlights, interior lights, just to name a few. The light head
can t comfortably under any 1x1 plate, and the connected wire can snake and wind through and around almost
any hole, wedge, cross or pin you’ll nd in a Technic set.
One instance where a bit light will not t, is under a standard LEGO at tile. You’ll nd included in your designer
kit a series of the most common square and round transparent LEGO plates to swap out these kinds of tiles.
They have all been selected with aesthetics in mind so as not to compromise the look of any Technic build.
On the opposite end to the LED is the connector, this plugs into any port on an expansion board or specic port
on certain components.
INTROBIT LIGHTS

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 7
Connecting Bit Lights and Connecting Cables
INTROBIT LIGHTS
Take extra care when inserting connectors to ports of Expansion Boards
and Effects Boards. Connectors can be inserted only one way. With the
expansion board facing up, look for the soldered “=” symbol on the left side
of the port. The connector side with the wires exposed should be facing
toward the soldered “=” symbol as you insert into the port. If a plug won’t
t easily into a port connector, do not force it.
Incorrectly inserting the connector can can result in bent pins inside the port
or possible overheating of the expansion board when connected.
The next few pages will provide you with some common methods used to
install Bit Lights to a few different Technic models.

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 8
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
BIT LIGHTS
1

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 9
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
2
BIT LIGHTS

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 10
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
3
BIT LIGHTS
4

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 11
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
5
BIT LIGHTS
6

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 12
Powering
When choosing a power source, consider the type of LEGO set you are designing for.
Is it a small vehicle? Or a large, more stationary structure? How long and often do you
intend on displaying your system lit?
As a general rule of thumb, if you’re designing for small vehicles, you should opt for a
battery pack.
For larger stationary structures, USB to mains power is better suited. Battery packs as
a power source will allow your vehicle to be manoeuvred unencumbered by wires and
depending on the build, may be hidden inside the set. However, batteries drain faster and
need to be replaced, whereas mains power connected via USB will allow for non-stop
energy ow.
The next few pages will provide you with some common methods used to connect our
power sources to different Technic models.
INTROPOWER SOURCE

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 13
2
POWER SOURCE
If you experience any issues with the lights not working and suspect an issue with a component, please try a different port on the expansion board to verify where the fault lies
(with the light or expansion board). To correct any issues with expansion board ports, please view the section addressing expansion board issues on our online troubleshooting guide.
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
13
USB Power Bank
sold seperately

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 14
Multi Effects
The Multi Effects board is a great component to add an additional layer of depth to your design.
It has three different effects - emergency, pulse and icker, which are all adjusted in terms of intensity
via the control wheel. While you can use any of the three effects listed, emergency is a great all-
rounder to begin experimenting on your Technic design.
The board has an input port (labelled +5V) to link via a connecting cable to your available expansion
board and two output ports to simulate left and right, A and B, or 1 and 2 etc. When the board is
engaged and powered on, the lights will emit left to right in sequence, whichever effect you have
selected, at the intensity you have adjusted via the control wheel.
Of course you aren’t limited to a single bit light per output port. Simply extend the chain by connecting
an expansion board to each output with a connecting cable, the same as you would with the rest of
your design. Then connect as many bit lights as you like, provided there are available ports!
Keep in mind only static LEDs will work with the effects board, so any bit light with a ashing or
rotating effect built-in, will not function correctly with the Multi Effects Board.
The next few pages will provide you with some common methods used to connect our Multi Effects
Board to different Technic models.
INTROMULTI EFFECTS BOARD

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 15
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
MULTI EFFECTS BOARD
1
2
3
Connecting cable
connects to the
IN port (+5V)

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 16MULTI EFFECTS BOARD
If you experience any issues with the lights not working and suspect an issue with a component, please try a different port on the expansion board to verify where the fault lies
(with the light or expansion board). To correct any issues with expansion board ports, please view the section addressing expansion board issues on our online troubleshooting guide.
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 17
Rotating Bit Light
One of our more unique components is the Rotating Bit Light.
Perfect for mimicking an industrial beacon, this particular variation of the standard bit light is
comprised of four identical LEDs arranged in the light head in a circular fashion. It also contains a
built-in program chip that when powered, each LED is activated in sequence to produce a rotating
effect.
These t perfectly in a range of LEGO Technic pieces, including a 1x1 round brick/cone or inside the
axis of a 2x2 round brick.
If you take a look at some of the LEGO pieces included in your Designer Kit, you’ll nd a 1x1
transparent orange cone as well as a Technic half pin which together, will allow you to connect and
place your Rotating Bit Light to any Technic hole.
The Rotating Bit Light’s effect is built-in and operates independently of any additional effects board
and needs only to be connected to an open port like a regular bit light to function.
The next few pages will provide you with some common methods used to connect our Rotating Bit
Lights to different Technic models.
INTROROTATING BIT LIGHT

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 18
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
ROTATING BIT LIGHT
1 2

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 19
LEGEND: DISCONNECT TURN / FLIP TWIST / BRAIDDIRECTIONAL POWER ON / TESTCONNECT / RECONNECT
ROTATING BIT LIGHT
3

LIGHT MY BRICKS TECHNIC DIY DESIGNER LIGHT KIT INSTALLATION GUIDE INSTALLATION GUIDE 20
Extras
That leaves a range of miscellaneous items like Adhesive Squares,
LEGO plates, pins and cones.
We’ve included a number of Adhesive Squares in the Designer Kit for
you to use in a variety of ways. They are great for mounting small
battery packs inside of a vehicle or attaching bit lights to areas
where no studs or plates are available. Use them also to neatly
organise wiring on a more complex design that strays from the
typical automobile structure.
The variety of transparent plates included in your kit are reserved
for swapping out specic LEGO Technic tiles that will not allow a bit
light to sit under. We’ve included the most commonly used and most
practical pieces for these kinds of situations, however you aren’t
limited to these specic tiles! Should your designers intuition take
you further, you can source any kind of LEGO component you may
need from an authorised LEGO retailer.
INTROBEYOND THE KIT / UPGRADING