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BBC micro:bit Powered Halo-ween Fancy Dress

2024-10-24 | By Kitronik Maker

License: See Original Project micro:bit

Courtesy of Kitronik

Guide by Kitronik Maker

Halloween offers the perfect opportunity for some fancy dress fun. In this tutorial, ‎we will show you how this can easily be done using the Kitronik ZIP Halo for the ‎BBC micro:bit.‎

fancydress_1

This will definitely make you the belle of the ball and if you also want venture out to ‎trick or treat, it will help to light your way. ‎

BBC micro:bit Powered Halo-ween Fancy Dress:‎

Parts:‎

Tools:‎

Coding:‎

halo-ween_2

In this tutorial, we are going to show you how to add LEDs to a witches hat, ‎as pictured above, the same techniques can be used to modify other fancy dress ‎items such as capes, as shown above, and at the foot of the tutorial. Let's get ‎making! ‎

Step 1:‎

Once the micro:bit has been connected to the ZIP Halo using the supplied bolts the ‎first task is to connect the extra ZIP LEDs that we will be adding to the hat, to the ‎extension connection point on the ZIP Halo. The extension point is indicated by the ‎text ‘ZIP_EXT’ as shown in the image below. These connections will need ‎connecting to the corresponding connections on the flexible ZIP LED strips.‎

step1_3

To connect the parts together you will need three strands of cable. We have ‎decided to use a male to female servo extension cable to that the hat can be ‎‎‘plugged’ into the ZIP Halo and removed again when not in use. The first task is to ‎cut the extension cable into two halves as shown below.

cut_4

Step 2:‎

Take one-half and strip the insulation from the end of each of the three wires so ‎that it can be soldered the ZIP Halo board.‎ ‎ ‎

step2_5

Step 3:‎

Solder the three wires to the ‘ZIP_EXT’ connection point as shown below. We have ‎chosen to have the wires coming out of the back of the ZIP Halo so that they don’t ‎get in the way of the front LEDs.‎

step3_6

The results will look like this.‎ ‎ ‎

results_7

Step 4:‎

The flexible ZIP strips will need cutting down to fit the size of hat that you are using. ‎This is easy to do as the strips have cut points after each LED as shown below. ‎We will be using one strip on either side of the hat so cut two of the same length.‎

zip_8

Now take the second half of the servo intension cable which we will be soldering to ‎the first section of flexible ZIP strip. It important to make sure the three lines are ‎connected in the correct way. The connections should be made (soldered) as ‎follows:‎

table_9

Also, the flexible strips are directional with data being fed in one end and out the ‎other. This is indicated by the arrows printed on the strip. Make sure you connect ‎to the data in end. The result should look as shown below.

strips_10

Step 5:‎

Now take the second flexible ZIP strip and connect (solder) it to the first piece ‎using three pieces of connecting wire as shown below. Again, take care to ensure ‎the arrows on the strips flow from the ZIP Halo, along the first strip and onto the ‎second strip.‎

step5_11 ‎ ‎

Step 6:‎

Now it is time to carefully position the two LED strip onto the hat. The flexible ZIP ‎strip has an adhesive backing. Peel this away and stick the two strips in the ‎desired positions. The extension connector should be located at the bottom of the ‎hat. When you are happy with the positioning you may wish to sew over the strips ‎‎(not through the PCBs!) in a number of places for extra security.

step6_12

Step 7:‎

Cut a small hole in the hat at the point where the extension cable joins the strips as ‎shown below.‎

step7_13

Then feed the cable through the hole.‎ ‎

feed_14

The resulting hat should look like this.

hat_15

Step 8:‎

Now the hat is complete it is now time to sew the ZIP Halo board in place. Key ‎points that you will want to consider when deciding where to put the ZIP Halo are:‎

  • Does it want to be visible, and do you also want to use the LEDs on the ZIP ‎Halo and micro:bit?‎

  • Where will the batteries be located? We have chosen to use 3xAAA batteries. ‎These are bulkier than a Lithium Polymer battery but much safer to use.‎

Note: The ZIP Halo can also become warm if the LEDs are used to display some ‎colours at maximum brightness. We will use them at a lower brightness to ensure ‎this is not an issue.

With these points in mind, we decided to locate the ZIP Halo at the front of the ‎dress so that the LEDs can shine through the material and be visible. I small pouch ‎was added to hold the batteries.‎

step8_16‎ ‎

Step 9:‎

The code is shown in the embedded MakeCode editor below, if you are having ‎difficulty seeing what's going on, the edit button in the top right will open the code ‎the full editor which should make it easier to see on a small screen. The code that ‎we have created to control the hat and dress is as follows. This uses two variables ‎to control the ZIP LEDs on the hat and dress. The dress is set up to display red all ‎the time (red is a colour that doesn’t generate too much heat) and the hat can swap ‎between display red and rainbow depending on which button on the micro:bit is ‎pressed.‎

step9_17

Microsoft MakeCode | Terms of Use | Privacy | Download

Step 10:‎

Try on and test. Connect the hat to the dress taking care to ensure the power and ‎data connections are connected the correct way around. Insert the batteries into ‎the battery pack and connect to the micro:bit and turn on the ZIP Halo. The dress ‎will now look like this, perfect for some Halloween fun! Below is a collection of ‎photos that we took of the costumes, and I think you'll agree, costume + LEDs = ‎that's more like it!‎

step10_18

Learn more about the author read more » With thanks to Kevin's Daughter Neve for ‎being a good sport and for being patient while the pictures were taken, even when ‎it started raining!‎

©Kitronik Ltd – You may print this page & link to it, but must not copy the page or part thereof ‎without Kitronik's prior written consent.‎

制造商零件编号 5625
ZIP HALO FOR THE BBC MICRO:BIT
Kitronik Ltd.
¥103.62
Details
制造商零件编号 2273
BATTERY HOLDER AAA 3 CELL LEADS
Kitronik Ltd.
¥13.51
Details
制造商零件编号 MICRO:BIT SINGLE
BBC MICRO-BIT V2 SBC BOARD ONLY
Micro:bit
¥170.05
Details
制造商零件编号 4747
AUTOMATIC SELF-ADJUSTING WIRE ST
Adafruit Industries LLC
¥104.10
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