Play Pixels

Jonathan James Gallagher, Soyeon Chung

A DIY 16×16 RGB LED Matrix with camera acting as a video mirror with 256 large silicone buttons on top for drawing pixel art.

http://www.soyeonchung.net/2015/11/03/pcomp-final-project-proposal/

Description

We built a 16 x 16 LED matrix using Sparkfun button pads. It is a large version of an arduino based monome. Each LED is RGB, driven by TLC5940 IC's and is capable of outputting a 16 x 16 downsampled version of a live camera feed. Each LED is also a button, we have used this feature to enable users to draw pixel art by pressing buttons to change their colour. The purpose of this project is to provide a novel interface that allows the user to perceive themselves in the context of the form that our device displays. Only large differences in colour or light are tracked resulting in a recognisable outline devoid of the finer detail that we are used to seeing and perhaps obsessing over when using a mirror. We display the basic form of a person, hopefully making people realise that image is primarily an issue of perception which varies from observer to observer.

Classes

Introduction to Physical Computing