I set myself a challenge of creating something on 21 July - this date is important as it is the regular meet-up of Strength Collective in Reading so I would have done my project of the month.
Background, resources, inspiration and a DEADLINE
Mini-maker Fair in Elephant and Castle took place on July 6, 2013.
In preparation, I made this as I had no soldering skills and I had not considered electronics since the last millennium.
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| a simple LED, resistor, cell set-up attached to a delicate 'leaf' using floral tape to hide the wiring |
At the fair, I got to try various soldering skills, tried out making a circuit on a bread board and had a go at making a badge using conductive ink and pens. All this helped me immensely in moving on to e-textiles as I could not begin to imagine where to start.
The wearable technology and e-textiles area were covered at the Fair by Kitronic, MzTek, V&A workshop and also Camille from Hack the Body amongst others (who also did a talk for Makers Guild which I attended in the hope for further inspiration.)
So now to just make something involving this tech.
21 JULY
As it happens, my wrist is approximately the width of an A4 sheet. Handy. Took an A4 Sheet and folded it in half and then half again to see the 'seam'
I then folded the cloth in half and stitched around the length and on side so that I could open it and it would be less untidy - this was an excuse to use the sewing machine as it was not to be used for the conductive thread in this instance. (note: this is not the stitched piece of fabric - forgot to take the photo).
I then ironed the fabric in half so I could see clearly - and also folded the paper - note: fabric in photo not ironed - hate ironing unless totally necessary.
Next to draw the circuit - this is important so as not to get lost - in this example I used a black pen to connect the negative points and then red to connect the positive (in reality my first drawing was scrappy but helped me get things clear in my head)
Here is the 'top side'. That Grade 'D' I got in embroidery at school came in handy for this part - my stitches are not as neat as the circuit - and was terrified of short-circuiting so used the multimeter to check that all the circuits were working - checking for continuity in all the circuit.
Here is the under-side NOTE: two snap buttons. Why? It's because I want to be able to wear the bracelet without actually having it on (during the day). When I wish to switch it on, I simply move to the bigger snapper)
However, when circuit is off - two of the LEDs register a miniscule voltage. Everything else seems fine. Next step is to tighten the loops with conductive thread on these naughty LEDs.
Second attempt
The conductive thread frays easily - making it quite tricky to work with. I was warned and now I can see for myself. I can see how it would be difficult to use this on a sewing machine.
I picked the circuit out and restitched it in the hope that there was no risk of short circuits etc. This seems to work but was a pain to stitch. One lesson learnt - ensure your circuit has no possible chance of crossing. By having the lights at different heights I introduced that risk. The thread frayed and tore right at the end.
So, I have a wearable bracelet which is tricky to imagine wearing for a day without getting wet etc. But the experience has been really great.
From 6 July to 21 July - preparation and burbling of ideas.
This time was spent sourcing equipment and wading through lots of online resources (see resources list below) to get my head around the simple ideas which you could get wrong in complex ways (much like the joys of 3d printing).
Also, trying to keep things simple - the projects out there are brilliant, yet are time-consuming and costly for a total novice like me. So I stuck with LEDs and a cell battery for a wearable tech project and used the KISS Principle - even though the temptation to use lots of sensors and solar tech was high (maybe a future project when confidence is higher and after payday)
Suppliers list:
- Kitronic ( conductive thread was bought from here on this project)
- SK Pang (for comparison and exploring solar cells - hat tip to Sophie from MzTek)
- Maplins (for things like LEDs, cell batteries etc.)
- FabricLand for fabric and snap fasteners (hat tip to Ellen from Strength Collective for giving us this tip for the Arts Festival)
Resources and info
- Kokobant (hat tip to Sophie from MzTek)
- Kitronic tutorials
