Arduino-based, programmable LED stage props concealed in mason-jar lids.
Hey everyone -
I’ve been a lurker for a while now, but wanted to share some photos of a device I’m designing that makes use of the FastLED library.
This is a prototype of what will be 11 animated, LED-lit mason jars to be used in a new theater production. The patterns in the jars represent “a dream trapped in a jar”. The circuitry is small enough to conceal in a mason-jar lid, and when the hidden switch is activated by an actor as they screw on the lid, a lighting sequence begins to play in tandem with the normal-scale lighting cues during “dream sequences” as they’re played-out on-stage.
Since the lighting designer for this show is very particular about her color-temperatures and cues, I’m designing the Arduino-side of the system to read EEPROM-based “cue definitions”, which can be uploaded via serial-port from a chrome-app I’m building: the “Cue Designer”.
It’s a bit more complicated than I’d hoped for, and of course the deadlines have been moved up until I reached the point of “must move at breakneck speed”, but I’m feeling pretty good about the project so far, thanks in part to the FastLED library!
So, thanks to everyone involved in the FastLED project - it’s an extremely useful library!
-Matt
Here are a few shots of my prototype:
