Bendy Boards demonstrate articulated PCB NeoPixel LED chain #NeoPixels @GeekMomProjects @HacksterIO

Revisited a fun old project that I never found a good use for. Presenting: Articulated PCBs (or as I like to call them, "Bendy Boards") pic.twitter.com/uahYD1z6xy

— Geek Mom Projects (@GeekMomProjects) June 1, 2021

The latest project from Debra Ansell of Geek Mom Projects combines form and function with PCBs forming an articulated chain that passes power, ground, and data. And, of course, the data line controls multicolor LED NeoPixels!

The chain links are an assembly with two PCBs, an acrylic spacer, and a plastic retention piece. On the top PCB piece, one side has three 2020-case sized NeoPixels, while the other side has three metal rings. These represent the power, ground, and signal.

Those three pads make contact with six pressure contacts on the bottom PCB piece. (There are two contacts for each ring for redundancy.) Because the pressure contacts are fragile, Ansell laser cut an acrylic piece that removes some of the mechanical strain on the connections.

See the video below, read more on hackster.io and Twitter.