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  • Yet another project…working Pip-Boy!

    Posted on by Xoff Comment

    I haven’t posted recently due to some medical issues, but I’m itching to get back into things now!

    There is a series of video games called “Fallout” set in a post-apocalyptic future, where the tech is based on 1950s style things, but often with a humorous twist. One of the key features is that some people survived the nuclear war in special “Vaults” (made by Vault-Tec). Each Vault member (called “Vault Dwellers”) wore a wrist computer called a “Pip-Boy” — it had a GPS, stats, giger counter, etc, etc.

    Pip Boy Closeup

    Several people have made them for cosplay, either with an entirely fake screen or using looped video on an ipod Touch. I know that with an Arduino I could control a real usable screen, so that’s the goal!

    It will need:

    1. Light-up LED buttons for the buttons across the bottom of the screen
    2. Working rotary encoders for the wheel on the left side of the screen and the select switch (lower left)
    3. Speaker and mp3 player (playing sound effects and radio stations found in the games)
    4. Screen that works and is programmable!

    I’ve ordered a bunch of stuff for it:

    1. LED tactical buttons that might work (they may be too small)
    2. A couple of rotary encoders to play with
    3. Really nifty 3.2″ TFT LCD screen complete with touch interface and SD card slot and an Arduino Shield for it
    4. An Arduino Nano (its *tiny*) and an mp3 shield for it
    5. A resin casting of the Pip-Boy case

    As stuff arrives, I’ll detail it!


    Arduino & Electronics Pip-Boy Projects 📎and tagged

  • EL Wire arrives…and I’ve got more to order now!

    Posted on by Xoff Comment

    The EL wire that I bought on ebay arrived today! It was a pretty good deal, straight from China: $7 for 7.5ft including a AA battery pack and shipping…but it took 2 weeks to arrive. Prices for US suppliers run in the $1.60-$3.00 per foot range, without the driver (battery pack) you need and often needing to be soldered (which is ok since it probably doesn’t have the right connector).

    Electroluminescent wire (EL wire) is also called things like “cool neon” and is a flexible wire that gives off light for its entire length when high-voltage (but low amps) is applied. Its really a copper wire coated with phosphorous and an outer colored plastic layer that lets you make a variety of colors. Its flexible and safe for clothing and props, and can be powered by something as simple as AA batteries.

    Here is some video of the wire I just ordered…the battery pack has a constant and flashing mode (the flashing really doesn’t show up on video well):

    Its pretty nifty stuff!

    But…the wire I ordered uses a different connector than the Arduino EL wire shield I’m using (from Sparkfun, its the El Escudo) so now I have to get those. Probably can buy the connectors (and apparently a special crimper) for really cheap in bulk, or as a jumper wire set for $0.95 from Sparkfun. In retrospect, I probably just should have bought the EL wire from Sparkfun (which already has the right connector on it) when I bought the EL wire shield, but it would have been more expensive ($9.95 for the inverter) I guess there are some other things I need from Sparkfun…

     


    Arduino & Electronics Projects 📎and tagged

  • Electronics stuff purchased!

    Posted on by Xoff Comment

    I bought a lot of electronics stuff for upcoming projects today:

    • Electroluminescent (EL) wire (I got it off ebay for $7 for 7.5 feet, shipped from China) – nifty wire that is flexible and glows!
    • An Arduino Shield (an Arduino Shield is an addon module for an Arduino to perform a specific function) to control the EL Wire
    • Some SMA (Super Memory Actuator) actuators – these are ultra cool “metal muscles” for a super-secret project for The Artist Wife
    • Blue LEDs (I’m hoping these are really bright!)
    • Breadboard and supplies (for building electronic circuits without having to solder them, which I can’t do yet…)

    Now the waiting for all the shipping begins!

     


    Arduino & Electronics Projects 📎and tagged

  • First electronics/arduino bit! (LED, part 1)

    Posted on by Xoff Comment

    Lighting an LED is easy: power and a resistor so you don’t blow out the LED.

    Apparently making that LED do something else, like fade in and out, takes something more, like an Arduino microprocessor that supports Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). PWM is basically a method of turning the power on and off rapidly, so the LED in this case appears to fade in and out, or pulse. If you looked at it with a high speed camera, it’d be flashing on and off, each time it came on a bit dimmer. Since this is happening faster than the human eye can detect, it looks like its just fading.

    This is all explained in the Arduino PWM Tutorial I followed, which I followed and produced this:

    Hurray! I’ve accomplished something a 10 year old can do!

    But it was fun…and I’ll do more!

    To Do:

    Buy resistors and LEDs!


    Arduino & Electronics Projects 📎and tagged