SILENT
DISCO
Final Art
CAD
Spinning LED and Motor Assembly
Brushes are used to provide electrical connections to the spinning LEDs through a rotating shaft. The center shaft is wrapped with copper foil on both ends. Each of the 3 LEDs is soldered to a resistor then to the copper foil on both ends. Two brushes made out of LED leads of 2 extra LEDs wrap around the copper foil on both ends. +5V power is connected to the top brush and ground is connected to the bottom brush. Only the top motor is in use; the bottom motor is for weight balance.
A slip ring is used to provide electrical connection to the inner motor LED assembly through a rotating shaft.
The assembly is made out of laser cut acrylic sheets and machined acrylic blocks. A small inner motor (up to 2600 rpm) is used to directly spin the 3 spinning LEDs, and an outer motor (up to 500rpm) is used to spin the inner motor LED assembly. All wires for power and communication come from the two holes in the base plate of the assembly.
Start Button and Indicator Plaques
Acrylic sheet is laser cut and etched with indicator symbols for the start button. The acrylic symbol plaques are then glued to the main body. Green LEDs are attached inside the main body right below the acrylic plaques to light up the plaques for indication purpose. The start button is screwed into the main body.
The main body of the art is made out of laser cut duron sheets. The enclosure for the spinning LED assembly and the sign are made out of laser cut acrylic with reflective mirror film. 2 IR transmissive black acrylic plaques are used to cover the IR sensors. Studio headphones and a WAV trigger are used for music. For best visual effects, the art should operate in a dark room.
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The instrumentation panel - the plate containing the start button and IR sensors, is removable if necessary. The four screws in the corners attach to L-brackets, which are visible in the third image on this page, mounted to the box. This panel allows easy access to the wires located at the front of the box, including the red, yellow, and green LEDs on the front of the box and the sensors on the panel itself.
The base of the main body is designed to hold the electrical components, including the microcontroller. Using the opening in the back of the box, it is easy to access the breadboards and microcontroller. The L-brackets holding the instrumentation panel in place are also visible in this view.
All dimensions in inches. The final art assembly is 13.5" wide x 12" deep x 16" high.
The structure on the left side of the box is used to hold the headphones in place when they are not in use. Four acrylic rectangles - three on the instrument panel and one on the headphone holder - are used to indicate to the user that the sensor is active or the user should put the headphones on. The images are etched on the inside face of the acrylic, and a LED beneath the plate illuminates the etched surface, which gives it the illusion of glowing.