CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- A Chesterfield County entrepreneur created a wall-sized board of colorful lights that users can twist to change the colors. In 2024, Chesterfield Public Library customer Josiah was sitting around his Thanksgiving table when his sister discussed the challenge of fi nding screen-free features to entertain kids in the waiting room of her pediatric dental practice. Though his sister found some light board options, they "didn’t come in the right size or price range," county officials said. (Photo Courtesy: Chesterfield County Government) Josiah then went on to develop "Knobbles," his own wall-sized board of colorful lights that users can twist to change the colors after diving into research, learning about electronic design and engineering to work with a light-emitting diode (LED) circuit board. “At first, I thought, ‘this is going to be so easy,” Josiah said. “Then I got started and realized, ‘this is going to be so hard.’” According to the county, Josiah received help from YouTube and books on practical electronics and invention to design the product. He also used a 3-D printer to make three-inch square base plates and cylindrical casings for the lights and ordered LED circuit boards to mount on the plates under the cylinders. As a result, the light would shine through said tubes. He also found acrylic material to create a precise acrylic cover that would allow the light to shine through "without revealing the circuitry within," officials said. Josiah brought his acrylic sheets and worked with Terron, who manages the Makerspace, to cut the discs. Eight months later, Josiah's product was complete -- now sitting in the waiting room of his sister's dental practice. In fall 2025, Josiah took his Knobbles demonstration board to the Virginia Library Association annual conference, and later formed a relationship with a local STEM education company after receiving a tip about RVA Makerfest. Now working on Knobbles Version 2 -- which plans to develop a handheld version -- Josiah aims to connect more with the internet to provide more interactive experiences. ...read more read less