"Help!" for: Electronics

[thatdecade]

That plasma rifle is one of my favorite toys. Love how they implemented the force feedback kick. Uses a motor and a linear actuator to move the ENTIRE battery compartment, moving all that mass back and forth can shake it out of a youngsters hands!

 

[Spartan 010]

Thanks again for the info! np I can Google ^^

OK, so to my understanding, Arduino's only limit is your imagination? (excluding memory space)
Would it would be possible to use the Arduino for EVERY prop?

Spartan Laser, Fuel Rod, Battle Rifle, etc. etc. (so far as the lights and vibration motors, [and sounds perhaps??]) If so, tee hee I'm getting goosebumps!

Oh! Has anyone taken apart the Plasma Rifle and the Plasma Pistol toy just to learn how it works?

 

[ventrue]

That plasma rifle is one of my favorite toys. Love how they implemented the force feedback kick. Uses a motor and a linear actuator to move the ENTIRE battery compartment, moving all that mass back and forth can shake it out of a youngsters hands!

Oh you just did it again. Struck me with inspiration :-D
Moving the batteries themselves... ingenious. Why didn't I think of that?

Thanks again for the info! np I can Google ^^

OK, so to my understanding, Arduino's only limit is your imagination? (excluding memory space)
Would it would be possible to use the Arduino for EVERY prop?

Spartan Laser, Fuel Rod, Battle Rifle, etc. etc. (so far as the lights and vibration motors, [and sounds perhaps??]) If so, tee hee I'm getting goosebumps!

Oh! Has anyone taken apart the Plasma Rifle and the Plasma Pistol toy just to learn how it works?

More or less, yeah. And computing power as well. And it's not so terribly accurate, you can't really compare it to a calculator. This does not necessarily wreck your project, but you may need to get a bit more creative than you would while programming with PHP or something like that (where computing power, memory, data types, etc. aren't really an issue).

Not sure how to do sound with an Arduino, I'm not that far yet. But controlling servos/motors, displays and LEDs and making the "logic" behind a gun prop is fairly easy.

 

[thatdecade]

Easiest way for sound are those fangled sound shields. Like this one
http://www.adafruit.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=17_21&products_id=94

I can't think of any limitation of the arduino itself. Has a great community that can help you debug your program. The limitations I run into are things I connect to the arduino. Part selection for switches, sensors, motors, etc can be important. Check the arduino forums for recommendations.

And it's not so terribly accurate, you can't really compare it to a calculator.

Not sure what you mean by this. Should be as accurate as it's programmed.

For comparing to a calculator, LCD / 7seg display? Very useful when debugging.

 

[ventrue]

Not sure what you mean by this. Should be as accurate as it's programmed.

I mean that calculation precision is limited, at least with the Arduino libraries. The hardware itself can probably do more, but even then it's not really designed to do highly precise math with a thousand digits.

 

[thatdecade]

I see what you mean. Need some math nerds to write extended libraries. Even without the basic math library, you would be limited to numbers you could fit in 8bit binary.

 

[Scheme86]

Hey folks, I got a question. I'm planning to make a Dead Space 2 cosplay, specifically Isaac Clarke in his Advanced Suit (http://images.wikia.com/deadspace/images/6/65/Isaac_Suit_1_Advanced.jpg). I haven't purchased any of the materials yet, as I'm putting a lot of effort into planning before I start spending.
I'm going to make the helmet (and possibly the chest and back/RIG) out of cast plastic. I'm planning on putting in some LEDs: the triple-level visor in the helmet, the data terminal on the front of the RIG, the health bar strip on the back, and the stasis display on the back (This is the back, not including the numbered holograms: http://diehardgamefan.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/DeadSpace2sc01.jpg).
What are some tips as to the installation of these little lights? Especially for the health bar strip on the back of the RIG; I'll need some kind of clear tube with the inside lined with LEDs to get the desired effect.

I'm completely new to this, including processes and terminology, so please, for my sake, be as clear as possible. Thanks!

 

[thatdecade]

As soon as you said tube of LEDs, I got ya.

Jump on ebay and type in 'smd led strip'
Can be cut to length needed, can bend around simple shapes, comes in full rainbow of colors, has 3M adhesive tape back for easy install, ideal runs on 12V but can also be run on 9V batteries

Edit: I just checked the current prices on ebay. Going price+shipping is ~$20 per meter. One meter is plenty for all the lighting you need.

 

[ventrue]

Hey folks, I got a question. I'm planning to make a Dead Space 2 cosplay

Well, I have zero knowledge of this game, but based on the screenshot, you might want to play around with clear casting resin. I guess that might yield some cool effects, even with very few LEDs. The electronics themselves are relatively simple here, it's more about how you build them in. For just some glows, anyways. But I doubt anybody will be shooting you, so a functional health bar is pretty useless anyway

 

[Scheme86]

@thatdecade: In the words of the Staples motto, "That Was Easy". Depending on the thickness, in order to get the desired effect for the health bar, I might have to align two strips parallel to each other, side by side. For the stasis module (the little 3/4 circle on the back), I could simply bend it into the proper shape.
As for the helmet lights, it's a little trickier. Unlike most Halo armor helmets, which tend to have large visors, the helmet for this "Advanced Suit" has three "visors" (the top is the one you see out of), stacked one on top of the other. They're very thin, too, which means that I can't have a LED strip obstructing my vision. How would you (folks) recommend me putting those into the helmet?

@ventrue: Clear casting resin... I know I sound like a derp, but is resin what the final product is made out of? What you cast out of your mold?

 

[thatdecade]

I've seen the 3 slits done a couple of ways. The way I most like is to have three layers. Outermost is the helmet with three slits, behind that is a piece of acrylic, and behind that are the lights shining from the edges into the acrylic.
If you give a slight bend to the acrylic, the lighting effect is pretty cool. The light shines straight through to the other edge of the acrylic, but the slight bend causes it to reflect outward.

I have never seen anyone use led strip tape in the helmet, sounds like it could work well. You would just need to have a hidden opening in the helmet so you can see out.

 

[Scheme86]

Noob question to the rescue: so would the piece of acrylic serve as the "visor" inside? And where would I be able to purchase this? I've only heard of "acrylic" used in paint, so...

Also, one basic question that's fundamental to my armor construct: when attaching other pieces to the final build, what would I be using as an adhesive? Super glue? Hot glue? Saliva? Hot wing sauce?

 

[thatdecade]

This thread isn't place for this discussion, please ask in one of the other 'Help for' threads.

You can find most items at your local hardware store. Acrylic is the cheapest kind of clear plastic sheet, it has to be babied during the cutting process or it will crack. Lexan is the most expensive, but it can be cut and sanded like wood (doesn't crack under pressure, bends easy). You can find this in the glass section of the hardware store.

Epoxy works best with gluing plastic parts together, the 2 part mix stuff.

 

[Spartan 010]

OK, new question =P

Ya know those Ol' Digital Pedometers? The Step Calorie Walk Counters that people use to count how many times they've stepped? I was wondering if I could rip the guts out of one and use it for the digital display? Is it possible?

As I have no clue what so ever has to how they work exactly, I need advice on what to do:

By reversing the polarity would the counter display 9999 then count down to 0000, verses counting up 0000 to 9999?
(Can't afford Arduinos atm, this is why I am exploring other "resources" if you will, haha)

 

[thatdecade]

I don't know about your plan to re-purpose a pedometer as an ammo counter. Doesn't really work that way. Those kinds of circuit boards have the microchip under an epoxy black dot (difficult to rewire / reprogram).
You could technically take the digital display, separate it from the black dot board, and add it to your own circuit. Would need an LCD driver chip and some other logic to do the counting. Not really saving any money.

Only money saving way I know how to do a functional ammo counter is look for gun toys that already have an ammo counter and strip it out. Dollar store and Rummage sales.

 

[Kasaron]

Actually it's easy to hack a pedometer, but the issue is making it count down instead of up. Best bet is to go with a regular countdown circuit and use a microcontroller. Mircocontrollers are cheap, easy to use and well documented. Also, arduinios are just a chip on a board with pins. If you ahve one arduinio; you can buy new chips program them on the 'duinio, and then solder them to a new board or pop them into a new socket.

See >> The RRRRRRRRRRBBA, a $3 Arduino

 

[Plasma Code]

I have a question regarding resistance. Do you need a resistor to wire everything? I'm aware of ohms law and I know for lights, it's better to wire parallel than series, but could someone explain why they're necessary?

Also in regards to electronics, I want to wire in parallel, and I was wonderig if I had to wire a resistor to each parallel series (I'll make a circuit diagram later). And if you have an uncommon resistance value, can't you just add two resistors to many up that value?

 

[BlueSol]

Hey guys, so this is kind of random but my girlfriend was going to try making the diamond thing for the sims games for a convention, here's an example:

I was thinking about making a diamond skeleton out of wire, wrapping it in a green tissue paper. I'm just wondering about the lighting, what would be the most efficient, brightest way to light this thing up? Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks.

 

[ventrue]

I'm just wondering about the lighting, what would be the most efficient, brightest way to light this thing up? Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks.

How about two bright, green LEDs, one at the top pointing down to light up the lower half of the diamond and one at the bottom pointing up to light the other half?

 

[Plasma Code]

Wow, so no one want's to answer my question. Screw it anyway, I figured it out myself after three days of no reply.