This isn't your typical schoolroom globe... Create a Persistence-of-Vision LED Globe to display a map, a skull, or message.
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For the release of his latest EP, Dario Marturano brought together electronic music, technology, science, and dance to create an awe-inspiring music video called “Pyrite.” The artist (and STEAM advocate), who goes by the stage name Holograph, built a set of illuminated cubes using plexiglass boxes and LED strips that are MIDI-triggered via Arduino circuitry.
As Make: Magazine explains, the setup consists of an Arduino, some MOSFET for 12V (in the LED cubes), and opto-triac for 220V (for the big lightbulb props). Holograph wrote a MIDI sequence in Ableton Live that syncs with the tunes, assigning every note to a light-up box. The sequence is sent to Arduino, which activates the LEDs as the dancers move through their choreography.
It should be noted that this isn’t the first time the musician has employed MIDI-driven lights either. See the magic in action below!
"It's not only a musical project, but a union between different arts and sciences, where the sound meets design, electronics, and computer science"
The post LEDs and MIDIs: Check Out the STEAM-Inspired Music of Holograph appeared first on Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for Makers.
You can grow a crystal around an LED light that's powered by magnetic induction.
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If you’ve ever wanted your own Times Square-like zipper, albeit a little smaller, you’re in luck. That’s because Josh Levine has created a giant scrolling LED display costing around $15 per foot, which consists of an Arduino Uno, a power supply, and seven programmable NeoPixel strips. The Maker also used a few pieces of plywood with a couple of aluminum angles glued to the top and bottom to enhance its sturdiness and appearance.
Equipped with 2,688 RGB pixels, the 12-foot-long sign is capable of showing text at 80 frames per second. Aside from basic scrolling messages, other features include a countdown timer with lookup-based gamma correction, column-by-column color control, custom fonts, sprite graphics with animation, and more.
The build is so simple, that you should be able to figure it out from looking at the pictures. Stick the strips to something, add some power, connect the Arduino data out pins to the strips’ data in pins.
The secret sauce is in the software. You can read about the parallel processing technique used here.
Bigger is better, right? Levine chose this size for his ticker only because it was the longest thing that could make it down his staircase–plus 400-pixels-long gives a refresh rate of 80 frames per second, which is just fast enough for nice animations. That being said, the Maker does note that he’d love to one day build a 100-foot-long sign “if you could find him a long enough surface to mount it on.” Until then, you can see it in action below and read all about the project on its page.
For a recent column in the Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant, Rolf Hut built a slick longboard with LED strips that respond to speed. If you think that sounds awesome, wait until you see it in action.
As the Maker explains, four magnets and a Hall effect sensor are used to measure the longboard’s speed so the Adafruit NeoPixels can react at the same pace. To achieve this, the magnets are glued to the inside of each wheel, while a Hall sensor counts the number of revolutions and sends that information over to one of two Arduino Micros. The first Arduino translates that into a speed, while the second Micro converts that speed into a signal for the LEDs. Everything is powered by a power bank.
Intrigued? Head over to the Hut’s project page, where you will find a detailed breakdown of his build along with its code.
Lights synchronized to music, what’s not to love? YouTuber “Robert Robert” has done just that using 24 acrylic blocks, an Arduino Uno, four 12-pixel WS2812B addressable LED strips, an Adafruit electret microphone amplifier, a 12000mAh external battery pack, and some code.
The blocks are divided into two sets of 12, held together by threaded rods and nuts, with LED strips hot glued to the back. A 60cm x 40cm stainless steel shelf rests underneath to reflect the light back.
In terms of code, the project uses Adafruit’s NeoPixel library:
The first part of the code is Adafruit’s own mic code which calibrates the sound level so that whether you’re using a big speaker or, as in the video, a tiny iPad speaker, the mic remains sensitive. The second part of the code maps the sound level onto 12 if statements so that when quiet it idles with the NeoPixel library rainbow but then as the sound level gets higher more effects are triggered. Within each if statement I have then included a random() function so that the display stays interesting. You can edit each individual strip pixel to create patterns in an infinite variety of ways and using the random () function you can keep on building so you never get bored. The code works best with music with a wide dynamic range (soft and loud parts).
Honeycomb patterns inspired the design behind this light fixture. The modular design means the shape can be reconfigured.
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A hidden sarcophagus, digital dice, mummy voice over, and desert sound effects. This board game looks like it's fun and educational.
The post These Middle Schoolers Built a Custom Arduino Board Game to Explore Ancient Egypt appeared first on Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for Makers.
Super Ventilagon is the fan based gaming console that employs the Hall effect to play the super addictive Super Hexagon game.
The post Arduino and LEDs Transform Your Fan into a Video Game Display appeared first on Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for Makers.