Detachable Instrument

Wearables

2022.12 | Class Project | 4 Weeks | Arduino

A musical instrument costume in which the parts of the instrument are detachable and can play different notes and melodies depending on where it is placed.

Material list

  • Adafruit circuit playground express

  • Ultrasonic sensor

  • Jumper wires(female)

  • T-shirt

  • Battery pack

  • Felt paper

  • Snaps and VELCRO sticky back strips with adhesive

  • Conductive thread

Code Implementation

I first connected the ultrasonic sensor to the circuit playground express board based on the online tutorial. Then I used the map function to change the pitch according to the distance.

Then, using the tilted rotation reference, I added a check rotation pitch part to the code to determine whether the detached instrument is placed vertically or horizontally.

Different songs are played depending on the placement circumstances. The instrument in the vertical position imitates a violin to play various pitches, while the instrument in the horizontal position imitates a guitar to play sweeping chords.

I also altered the color of the led lights to distinguish between placement in the horizontal and vertical directions. When placed vertically, the number of led lights will vary depending on the distance; When placed horizontally, they will only turn on when the movement is detected.

Sewing and Fabrication

The sewing part is relatively easy but very tedious. After listening to Kit's advice, I chose felt paper as the material for my detachable instrument because it is soft and firm. Then I used female jumper wires to connect the ultrasonic sensor to the circuit playground board, stripped the wires to expose the copper and wrapped it around the board, and finally used a conductive thread for stitching.

For the t-shirt part, I stapled four snaps on the left shoulder and waist area for the instrument fixing. Finally, I cut a hole under the pocket on the front of the shirt for the battery holder's wire to pass through.

Then I used another piece of felt paper of the same size as the cover and cut holes for the sensor and LED light area. I used VELCRO sticky back strips between the two pieces of felt paper to make the connection because it's easy to take off. Finally, I stapled four snaps on the back of the instrument and made four strings with wires on the front for decoration.

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