Summary

This is a lithophane light box that I have designed myself as a side project. To light up the lithophane from the back, an LED strip is attached at the back, with a USB-C connector to power the LED. Assembly instructions are written in the Usage section.

Usage

Bill of materials:

5V LED light strip 3528 (I got mine here)
USB-C female plug (I got mine here)

To be printed:

1x main body.stl
1x back panel.stl
1x lithophane (generate this for yourself, instructions below)

1. Generating a lithophane

Go to the ItsLitho website to generate a lithophane from an image. Ensure that your image is cropped to a 4:3 aspect ratio for compatibility with this Light Box. Upload your image on the site.

Click on the "model" tab to generate your lithophane.

On the left panel, ensure the settings correspond accordingly:

height x width = 105 x 140 mm
min thick = 1.2mm

Download the model with the button on the bottom right.

2. Printing the lithophanes

Load the generated stl into your slicer (I'm using Bambu Studio but you may use Cura, PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer or other slicers)

Material wise, I use a matte white PLA filament, but any white filament should work. Avoid using white filaments advertised as warm / cool. Surprisingly, I find cheaper filaments work better as they're less opaque.
Slicer settings for lithophanes:

Layer height: 0.12mm
Brim type: Outer brims only (basically enable brims)
Wall loops: 99999999
Top surface pattern: Concentric
Bottom surface pattern: Concentric
Infill: 100% Concentric
Speed: to your liking, preferably slower

For the light box itself, use the following print settings:

Layer height: 0.20mm
Brim type: None
Wall loops: 2
Infill: 15% Lightning (avoid using gyroid, the infill might look gross when the light shines from the inside)

1. Solder the USB-C connector to the 5V LED strip and test that it works

2. Slot in the USB-C connector and LED strip through the hole of the `back panel` and snap the USB-C plug into place

3. Stick the LED strip around the sides of `back panel`

4. Insert the `lithophane` into the `main body`

5. Fit the `back panel` and `main body` together

6. Light up the light box with a USB-C charging cable (for some reason apple chargers don't work. try using a power bank)

Further customisability

Since there has been a lot of requests to make the light box parametric, please find the parametric design from Onshape here: https://cad.onshape.com/documents/65d23fa038ac208fbd452f23/w/20597ed778b9913bac8a0d1c/e/2e4d336d0892fe4b9d5497c3?renderMode=0&uiState=6746c9a4d15b4b767e0756a4

To edit the parameters, go to the "lithophane dimensions" tab and key in your custom lithophane size.

Future Ideas

Create a battery-powered version instead

More

Printables: https://printables.com/@SiahYeeLong_2539073
Thingiverse: https://thingiverse.com/syeelong/
Makerworld: https://makerworld.com/en/@yeelong
GitHub: https://github.com/siahyeelong/3D-Printing-Projects
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/siahyeelong/

Lithophane Light Box