Making a Cardboard USB Mouse!
In this tutorial sent to us by one of our community members we'll be showing you how to make a cardboard USB Mouse with an LED nose that lights up when plugged into a USB port!
To do this you will need the following materials:
Bare Paint Pen
Drawing Pencil/Pen
LED
Cardboard
Ruler
Scissors
USB plug/port
Step 1: Mark your USB contacts
Using a ruler, mark out two points 5mm apart from which you will draw your Bare Paint lines. These should be centered within two 12mm lines which will mark where you will cut the cardboard to fit into your USB port.
Using a Bare Paint Pen, draw the circuit outline of your mouse. Make sure the two bottom lines are 5mm apart so that the tail won't short circuit in your USB port!
** Notice the gap at the top of the Mouse's head? This is to ensure your circuit works. Make sure you leave this space!
Using your Bare Paint Pen, glue your LED at your Mouse's whiskers. This way it will make a lovely nose for your new pet.
Step 4: Cut out your Mouse
Using your scissors, cut around your mouse to outline its body. Remember the tail must be 12mm wide in order to fit into your USB port.
Step 5: Let your circuit dry
Once your circuit is drawn out and your LED attached, let your drawing sit for 5 to 10 minutes until it is fully dry. Once it is no longer tacky at the touch you can bend the tail forward at a 90˚ angle so that your mouse will be upright when put into the USB port. If you think the corner may crack just put an extra dollop of paint in the crease to reinforce the bend of the circuit.
Make sure the paint is 100% dry so that you don't introduce any wet paint into the port. Once you are confident it is dry you can carefully place your Mouse's USB tail into your USB port.
Congratulations! You've made your very own USB Mouse!
Many thanks to Ross for sending in this great tutorial. We hope this is the first of many. If you have any projects of your own which you'd like to see featured, please email us your images to info@bareconductive.com