Author: Benjamin Hone

v1.0 concept below. This illustrates my process, but will not be the form factor that I move forward with because printers are difficult and unreliable. I will be building a machine with a digital display instead.

I will be utilizing a HuskyLens AI Camera to detect when a person is standing in front of my prophecy machine and “print” a prophecy on to a digital display on the device. The device will make a direct request to ChatGPT with a set prompt that will return the “prophecy” to be displayed on screen. My goal for this project is to immerse myself in AI tools so that I can begin to understand how they can be best integrated into devices. There are multiple workstreams that this project entails:

Options for Screen:

• Adafruit PiOLED – 128×32 Monochrome OLED Add-on for Raspberry Pi
• Monochrome 0.96″ 128×64 OLED Graphic Display – STEMMA QT
• 2.9″ Flexible 296×128 Monochrome eInk / ePaper Display – UC8151D Chipset

Instructables Account: https://www.instructables.com/member/bhone609/

Tutorial Outline Google Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FAJl8_x_QDFLBGWOpf7Gb5ZonD0dMQ0odc_miHOordY/edit?usp=sharing

Description of Product Video:

I plan on creating a standard step by step tutorial video with a twist. It will start out as a generic tutorial video outlining the steps of my construction until I get to a point where I’m testing the actual prophecies. At that point, the prophecy that I will read as a test will resonate with me and I will be visibly shaken by what it says, from there, the video will take on a dark and satirical tone as I try to cope with the prophecy I’ve just received.

Vibe Switcher

It feels like there are stressors everywhere these days. When anxiety and frustration get the better of you, it’s important to have a release valve. The Vibe Switcher is a firm, padded button that sits on your desk. When you slam your fist down on it, it emits a funny sound to immediately switch up the vibe.

Material considerations: thick foam, cornstarch, gel.

Sound considerations: “everything is awesome” from The LEGO Movie

Fire Pit Smoke Screen

My superpower is when I’m standing around a fire pit, I always pick the spot where the smoke billows directly into my face. The Fire Pit Smoke Screen is a wearable fan that constantly blows away from your body, creating a forcefield to redirect smoke from the fire.

Chore Board

A quick and simple way to keep track of groceries that need to be replaced or chores that need to be done. In the style of a train schedule, common goods are listed with a light next to each. When you’re out of something, press the button and it will light up until you turn it off.

Prophecy Machine

A machine that prints out a prophecy on receipt paper when you press a button. Use AI to generate a short, rhyming prophecy. Not sure if this is possible?

Bonsai Breathing Backpack

Air pollution is rampant. biodiversity loss is at a critical level. My halloween costume is a discursive project that sparks conversation around humanity’s future quality of life. I built a personal oxygen device that creates a symbiotic relationship between a human and a single tree. The human and the tree exchange Carbon Dioxide for Oxygen to keep both organisms alive. The tree is held in a clear terrarium to enable photosynthesis, with a tube running from the encasement on the top to a gas mask on the human’s face. LED lights are placed under the lid of the encasement to create an organic, dynamic display that symbolizes life.

Arduino Techniques

I experimented with an Adafruit 12 RGBW neopixel display. Adafruit 24 RGB neopixel display and I experimented with different sketches including a Breathe. I settled on a continuous rainbow loop that runs around the top of the tree, forming a continuous halo.

Materials

• Nebulizer mask/tube
• Container Store canister
• Adafruit 24 RGB neopixel display
• Miady battery pack
• Wires
• Fake Tree
• Model bushes
• Hot glue
• Blue foam
• Soil

Steps

1. create terrarium arrangement in canister
2. solder wires to neopixel display
3. select neopixel script to run
4. hot glue neopixel display to interior of canister lid
5. attach nebulizer tube to canister lid

Code

//Initialize
#include <Adafruit_NeoPixel.h>
#ifdef __AVR__
 #include <avr/power.h> // Required for 16 MHz Adafruit Trinket
#endif

// Which pin on the Arduino is connected to the NeoPixels?
// On a Trinket or Gemma, change to 1:
#define LED_PIN     1

// How many NeoPixels are attached to the Arduino?
#define TOTAL_LEDs  25

// NeoPixel brightness, 0 (min) to 255 (max)
#define BRIGHTNESS 50 // Set BRIGHTNESS to about 1/5 (max = 255)


// Declare our NeoPixel strip object:
Adafruit_NeoPixel strip(TOTAL_LEDs, LED_PIN, NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800);
// Argument 1 = Number of pixels in NeoPixel strip
// Argument 2 = Arduino pin number (most are valid)
// Argument 3 = Pixel type flags, add together as needed:
//   NEO_KHZ800  800 KHz bitstream (most NeoPixel products w/WS2812 LEDs)
//   NEO_KHZ400  400 KHz (classic 'v1' (not v2) FLORA pixels, WS2811 drivers)
//   NEO_GRB     Pixels are wired for GRB bitstream (most NeoPixel products)
//   NEO_RGB     Pixels are wired for RGB bitstream (v1 FLORA pixels, not v2)
//   NEO_RGBW    Pixels are wired for RGBW bitstream (NeoPixel RGBW products)

int MaximumBrightness = 255;
int SpeedFactor;
int StepDelay;

void setup() {
  // These lines are specifically to support the Adafruit Trinket 5V 16 MHz.
  // Any other board, you can remove this part (but no harm leaving it):
#if defined(__AVR_ATtiny85__) && (F_CPU == 16000000)
  clock_prescale_set(clock_div_1);
#endif
  // END of Trinket-specific code.

  strip.begin();           // INITIALIZE NeoPixel strip object (REQUIRED)
  strip.show();            // Turn OFF all pixels ASAP
  strip.setBrightness(BRIGHTNESS);
}

void loop()
{
  //breathe(255, 0.008, 5);
  rainbow(10);

}

void breathe(float MaximumBrightness, float SpeedFactor, float StepDelay)
{
  // Make the lights breathe
  for (int i = 0; i < 6000; i++) {
    // Intensity will go from 10 - MaximumBrightness in a "breathing" manner
    float intensity = MaximumBrightness /2.0 * (1.0 + sin(SpeedFactor * i));
    strip.setBrightness(intensity);

    // Now set every LED to that color
    for (int ledNumber=0; ledNumber<TOTAL_LEDs; ledNumber++) {
      strip.setPixelColor(ledNumber, 93, 153, 255);
    }

    strip.show();
    //Wait a bit before continuing to breathe
    delay(StepDelay);
  }
}

// Rainbow cycle along whole strip. Pass delay time (in ms) between frames.
void rainbow(int wait) {
  // Hue of first pixel runs 5 complete loops through the color wheel.
  // Color wheel has a range of 65536 but it's OK if we roll over, so
  // just count from 0 to 5*65536. Adding 256 to firstPixelHue each time
  // means we'll make 5*65536/256 = 1280 passes through this loop:
  for(long firstPixelHue = 0; firstPixelHue < 5*65536; firstPixelHue += 256) {
    // strip.rainbow() can take a single argument (first pixel hue) or
    // optionally a few extras: number of rainbow repetitions (default 1),
    // saturation and value (brightness) (both 0-255, similar to the
    // ColorHSV() function, default 255), and a true/false flag for whether
    // to apply gamma correction to provide 'truer' colors (default true).
    
    strip.rainbow(firstPixelHue);
    // Above line is equivalent to:
    // strip.rainbow(firstPixelHue, 1, 255, 255, true);
      // Make the lights breathe
  for (int i = 0; i < MaximumBrightness; i++) {
    // Intensity will go from 10 - MaximumBrightness in a "breathing" manner
    int intensity = i;
    strip.setBrightness(intensity);
    
    // // Now set every LED to that color
    // for (int ledNumber=0; ledNumber<TOTAL_LEDs; ledNumber++) {
    //   strip.setPixelColor(ledNumber, 93, 153, 255);
    // }

    //strip.show();
    //Wait a bit before continuing to breathe
    //delay(StepDelay);
  }
    strip.show(); // Update strip with new contents
    delay(wait);  // Pause for a moment
  }
}

Circuit

Bonsai Breathing Backpack

In a dark timeline of the future, air pollution is rampant and biodiversity loss is at a critical level. I have a concept for a personal oxygen device that creates a symbiotic relationship between a human and a single tree. The Human and the Tree exchange Carbon Dioxide for Oxygen to keep both organisms alive. The tree is worn in a clear container to enable photosynthesis, with a tube running from the encasement on the back to a gas mask on the human’s face. LED lights will placed in the encasement to create a sci-fi effect. Additional LEDs can be located on the encasement that demonstrate the on-board computer is tracking oxygen and CO2 levels in real time.

Materials:

• Fake Bonsai Tree
• Gooseneck tubing
• Poly-styrene for clear dome
• Sand for base of tree
• Gas mask
• foam to mold backpack?
• Backpack straps
• LED lights
• Battery Pack
• Wire
• Light diffusion material?

Mushroom Hat

Big red mushroom cap hat that light up and emits funky, psychedelic vibes.

Materials:

• Red felt
• White felt
• Cotton Fill
• LED lights
• Battery Pack

Mushroom Shirt

Mushroom shirt with variety of types, all lit up and growing through a shirt

Materials

• shirt
• LED lights
• Battery Pack
• 3D printed mushrooms

Iron Man Arc Reactor

Simple, recognizable, fun. Not original

Materials

• LED Lights
• Battery Pack
• Copper Wire
• Acrylic
• 3D printed frame

Story

I am making a plush night light for my daughter. She’s almost three and loves light up toys. If my plush toy gets invited into her inner circle of stuffed animals that she sleeps with, I will have succeeded as a father.

My daughter also loves pickles and I think it would be funny to give her a plush pickle with light up eyes. We will probably call it something super creative like “Pickle Guy” or something <eyeroll>.

Think Pickle Rick:

Parts and Materials

• Green Minky Fabric
• If anyone has a small amount of white fabric for two round eyes, I would greatly appreciate the donation!!
• Cotton Fill
• Thread
• Solder
• LED light(s)
• Battery Pack
• Wire
• Resistor

Prototype

Early Brainstorm Sketches

Disregard the below, I decided to take it in a different direction.

I’m going to decide between a Moon, a Star, and a Mushroom. Please see early brainstorm sketches below along with circuit diagrams: