Theme Name: Titania
Inspiration: Titania the forest fairy queen from Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”
Technology Used: Adafruit Wearable Motion Sensors
Category: Avante Garde
Description: LED sequins are sewn into the flower petals of the bodice and a motion sensor is sewn inside the dress. When in motion, the LEDs light up creating a sparkling effect.
In 2014, I created this motion sensing light up dress as part of a project for my Bachelor of Science Degree course. Here’s what the final product looks like:
Hardware
Adafruit LED Sequins Adafruit Flora board
Components Used:
1) Adafruit Flora board
2) Adafruit Motion Sensor
3) Adafruit LED sequins
4) Conductive thread
How it Works
The FLORA motion sensor uses the heat coming from people’s bodies (about 93 degrees Fahrenheit) to “sense” them. Infrared energy has a wavelength, for humans it is 9-10 micrometers. This motion sensor is set to 8-12 micrometers to make room for error. When the person wearing the sensor moves, the motion sensor goes off and the lights come on. They create a twinkling effect for about 5 seconds after motion has been detected.
Tech Pack:
That’s how I bring Shakespeare’s characters to life and give them a modern twist. 🙂