Modular honeycomb coffee table with built-in storage and pop-up light

A modular, honeycomb coffee table with two types of soft-open built-in storage and pop-up ambient light. 

Internal mechanisms are printed. Structural elements can be printed or made out of plywood (or other similar sheet material).

The table is built out of three types of hexagonal modules, each about 310mm tall and 165x190mm wide:

1. Lift mechanism storage module
2. Soft-opening lid storage module
3. Pop-up light module

A short video showing the modules in operation below:

More pictures in the assembly guide.

Purpose

Why storage this way?

We wanted a coffee table that is unique, attractive and practical. For our use case, these two storage method work nicely. The modules with the lid are great for tall objects (remotes, bottles) while the lift modules are perfect for coasters or other small objects that you wouldn't want to reach in too deep to grab.

I also wanted a project that would challenge my limited woodworking skills and put to good use that 3D printing hobby of mine. I wasn't going for a quick project but rather something that pushes myself.

Also, this makes a great conversation piece and amazing entertainment for children (hide and seek of some small objects in the table was great fun for some friends’ children).

Why hexagons?

While squares (or even triangles) would work, I chose hexagons because I love them and because “Hexagons are the Bestagons” (source below): 

Why the overall shape?

Because my wife did not want something symmetrical. I made the modules, she chose the overall shape.

You can get creative with the choices of modules, overall shapes and uses. A coffee table, end table, bedside table and more…

Construction choice and alternative options

I built this table mostly out of 9mm plywood for the structural parts. It can be fully 3D printed (as seen in the pictures above) but it takes A LOT of filament and needs quite strong prints as I found with my test pieces that delamination can be a big issue with PLA.

There are differences between the printed Hex Bodies and the plywood ones, mostly because I only have basic woodworking tools and facilities. For example, the wood parts do not have the chamfer around the top Hex Lids and top of Hex Bodies. I also did not bother with the fixing features as I could screw together the Bodies.

Irrespective of the build material, all modules should be secured to a flat surface (again, I used 9mm plywood) cut to roughly the overall shape (smaller by about 10mm than the outer outline). I used some 100mm legs to lift the table from the floor. You can omit those if you wish.

BOM

Most of the parts for this project are fairly common (at least in Europe) furniture hardware plus a few inexpensive parts (mostly sourced from Aliexpress). For this guide I will not mention in great details the fasteners. I mostly used M3 screws and some M4x8 pan head (for attaching things to the runners). A lot of small self-tapping screws were used for various purposes. The exact type of screws will depend on the building material choice. This is not a project for beginners so I trust you will be able to figure out what fasteners to use.

Printed parts

The module file also include some of the hardware needed to make it easier to understand the assembly. I marked those files with “DNP” suffix (Do Not Print).

I recommend printing the small parts out of PETG or ABS/ASA. Be generous with perimeters, top/bottom layers and infill.

The Hex Bodies are split halfway to allow printing on a 200x200x200 or smaller printer. They are meant to be glued together. The two halves self locate.

If you do decide to print the large parts, keep in mind that they us A LOT of filament. Also, the gas struts can exert a lot of force and, for some components, that can lead to layer delamination due to the print orientation. Additionally, if you use wood screw for the large printed parts, the screws will tend to delaminate the parts if you don’t have good layer adhesion and enough perimeters. Do your tests and find what combination works best for you.

Lift module

Lid module

Light module

Assembly guide

Tools

I strongly recommend a 90 degrees drill adapter or a ratchet driver to be able to access the screw from within the Hex bodies.

Lift module

Parts
Connect one end of GT2 belt to the runner coupler and screw to the bottom of the runner using 2 M4 screws Assemble the gas strut idler using the 4 bearings and the printed parts. Use M3 washers if needed to endure the bearings spin freely. Thread the idler on the piston of the gas strut. Be careful not to split the idler up. Create an M6 thread with a tap, if you have one, before attaching the idler to the strut.
Fix the rails to the inside of the Hex Body. Take care to install in the correct orientation. Fix the touch latch at the top of the Hex Body using the printed cover. Suggest to tape the latch in the cover so it doesn’t slide out, if too loose.
Attach the acrylic side panel to the lifting platform Slide in the side panel and lift platform assembly inside the Hex Body and attach the bottom of it to the rails using M4 screws. Attach the touch latch’s striker hood to the top lid. Attach the top lid to the rails and side panels. Test the mechanism to see how well it closes. Now would be a good time to make any adjustments. Attach the bottom gas strut bracket to the hex body
Insert the other end of the GT2 belt in the top gas strut bracket. Make sure the belt wraps around the strut bracket so the two sides of the belt are parallel. Slide the gas strut through the top bracket and put in place. Check if the length of the belt is ok and adjust it by re-inserting into the top gas strut bracket. Fix the top gas strut bracket in place. Trim the excess GT2 belt.
Done

Lid module

Parts
Insert two M3 nuts into the gas strut clamp. Add two M3 screws
Remove the housing from the damper and insert the damper into the damper clamp Secure damper clamp to the gas strut
Remove the springs from the hinges with the help of a slotted screwdriver (wear PPE) Secure the gas strut ball end to the Hex Body
Mount the touch latch on the Hex Body
Mount the hinges to the Hex Body (beware of the orientation)
Secure the touch latch striker to the top lid Mount the top lid, remembering to also add the gas strut ball end (the ball end might need to be slightly bent to clear the hinges)
Push in the gas strut onto the lid’s end cap Push in the other end of the gas strut
Screw in the gas strut cover
Done

Light module

Parts
Connect the switch inline on the USB cable, between the cable and the LED strip Add an M3 nut and screw in the gas strut clamp Mount on the hex bottom plate the switch, touch latch and (optionally) the charging USB cable extension Fix the touch latch striker on the bottom braket Fix the bottom bracket into the bottom on the Hex Body (screw it onto the of the table support structure) Attach the acrylic hex tube onto the base plate Put in the power bank and LED strip into the module Slide in the entire module into the Hex Body and test the latch mechanism Some furniture felt pads are handy in taking up the slack between the Hex body and the hex tube Glue in place the top lid to the hex tube after checking the fit and height. Double sided tape work just fine but feel free to use a stronger adhesive
Done

Dummy module

One could use some corner brackets screwed into the Hex body walls and rest (or glue) a top lid on those to create a dummy module. I did not include such a bracket as it will depend on your built material choice.

Overall assembly

Connecting multiple hex bodies together depends on your chosen build material. For wooden Hex bodies, wood screws between adjacent walls works just fine.

For the printed hex bodies, cut away the very thin wall at the top of the body on adjacent modules. A 25mm binder clip can then fit into place. Remove the wire arms after inserting the binder clip. The bottom of the hex bodies will only be attached to the base surface, by screwing them either from within the body into the base surface or, through the base surface into the hex body.

Disclaimer

I designed this table with the upfront expectation that I would build it out of plywood (which I did). The printable version of the Hex body and top lids I created for this competition, using insights from the wooden version build experience. 

The printed Lift module was assembled with spare components I had. The back/side panel was quickly made out of MDF as I was out of acrylic. I made it to test out the fully printed models. The printed Lift mechanism worked (apart from print delamination due to filament quality). I did not try out the printed lid mechanism or tried attaching two printed hex bodies together. While they should work just fine (as the wooden parts closely match the model) some misalignment issues may occur. I attached the .STEP files for the Hex Bodies and Lids in case you need to make any adjustments or you have the option to print the Hex body in one piece. The other parts I printed and used for the wooden version as well so they should not need any modifications.