Help with Costume project.

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WarDarkFox
 
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Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

I'm working on creating a costume of Cyclops from X-men(see picture), and need some help/advice when it comes to sound and lights.

My plan at the moment is to have a very dim red led slowly pulsing inside the visor while it is in standby, then a very bright set of red LED's when i fire. The activators for "Fire" mode would be a push button on the visor and a touch sensor in 1 or both gloves when i make a fist. At the same time I would like a sound file playing of the beams initial fire sound and then a looped sounds while the "fire" button is being held. a mini speaker is going to be in place on either the belt or bandoleer.

What are the things that I would need in order to make this project a success? This is also my first venture into programming/electronics as well
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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

We have "Neopixel" leds in a variety of configuratons that are great for this type of project. https://www.adafruit.com/search?q=neopixel
For the sound, we have the VS1053 in both an Arduino shield and breaklut board form. https://www.adafruit.com/search?q=vs1053
The shield version is also available with an integral amplifier.

You would need an Arduino as a processor to drive both the VS1053 and the Neopixels. https://www.adafruit.com/products/50

An Arduino and shield can be a little chunky to integrate into some costumes, but you should be able to fit them into one of the cases on your character's utility belt without too much difficulty (also a good place for the battery pack!).

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WarDarkFox
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

I've run into a little bit of a tricky spot with the visor. I was planning on using a piece of red acrylic lens but the problem is that the LED light doesn't shine very brightly through, kind of dims it a heck of a lot. I'm trying to figure out if there is A.) a better led setup, B.) a different red lens, or C.) use clear acrylic and have a standby dim red and them a very bright red when a button is pressed. The problem with the later is mostly battery life and constant red light inside the visor. Any thoughts?

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

There are higher-powered LEDs, but they would drain your batteries in a hurry. You should be able to find a red plastic of some sort that does not block so much of the light. The stuff they use for tail-light repair kits should work.

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WarDarkFox
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

Ok I will try to find a better lens first before i go crazy with the lights. There isn't a lot of room in the visor so I have to go with simple. Thanks for the reply

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WarDarkFox
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

I think I'm going to get the VS1053 Codec Breakout with Stereo 3.7W Class D Audio Amplifier since the shield is not in stock at the moment. What would I need if I want to control the volume? I'm going to use only 1 4ohm speaker inside the chest centerpiece.

Also do you have any uber bright led's that are spaced about 1mm apart and can bend easily?

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The simplest way is with analog control & a pot: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-20w ... og-control
You can also do digital control: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-20w ... al-control
Also do you have any uber bright led's that are spaced about 1mm apart and can bend easily?
The closest spacing in a flexible strip we have is with our 144 pixel strips: https://www.adafruit.com/product/1506
To get closer than that you would have to fab something using raw pixels. https://www.adafruit.com/products/1379

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whthawk
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by whthawk »

For tight spacing of LEDs, you could consider doing something like what this person did for their sunglasses: https://www.adafruit.com/blog/2014/02/2 ... wednesday/

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WarDarkFox
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

Ok I found an LED system with the spacing of 1mm, but now I've run into another hurdle. when i place the led strip behind a piece of red acrylic, i can see the individual leds instead of it merging into on big beam. How would I go about fixing it?

here is the visor and the acrylic lens
Image
will have to get a picture of the led behind it

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

You would need some sort of diffuser. You can get some diffusion by roughing up the back surface of the plastic. But it won't be completely even. For an even beam you would need something like white plexiglass. We do have these backlight modules. You could maybe line up a few of those behind the lens:
https://www.adafruit.com/index.php?main ... ght+Module

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pburgess
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by pburgess »

Couldn't say without seeing it in person...but keep the costumer's "ten foot rule" in mind. You can resolve the dots at close quarters, but how will it look at typical photographic distances?

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WarDarkFox
 
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Re: Help with Costume project.

Post by WarDarkFox »

Been a while but just update that I was able to successfully complete the visor portion of the costume. In order to get the desired effect and avoid anyone seeing the dots from the leds, I use red UV reactive acrylic plastic and placed the led's in sections on the outside edge of the lens. I soldered a push button on the side so that the led's weren't on all the time and I could wear and see until I wanted to activate the beam effect. Turned out really well, so thank you all for your help getting me to that point

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