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Forums > Technical Discussion > Hyperlights update...
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Posted:I've been busy designing recently and I'm happy to report I've made some serious progress! I've very nearly got the final prototype board fleshed out and a design I reckon ought to work very well for the casing.
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
I'll send off for the first set of prototype boards some time next week (still needs some tweaking and double-checking). I need to investigate a few more companies to find someone to make my polycarbonate balls. Just need to get the software up to scratch now. As it stands you'd need to have some special hardware to add new light sequences etc. into them... once I've got my head around a few things, you'll just be able to plug your hyperlights into a USB socket, fire up your software and tell them what you want!
Watch this space
Non-Https Image Link
Non-Https Image Link
I'll send off for the first set of prototype boards some time next week (still needs some tweaking and double-checking). I need to investigate a few more companies to find someone to make my polycarbonate balls. Just need to get the software up to scratch now. As it stands you'd need to have some special hardware to add new light sequences etc. into them... once I've got my head around a few things, you'll just be able to plug your hyperlights into a USB socket, fire up your software and tell them what you want!
Watch this space
Cake or Death?
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Posted:Er...? I was thinking :
Wait 2(?) seconds
<tap> <tap> <tap> <tap> <tap>
then a couple of taps to shift it on to the next program (which you could keep doing to shift through more).
...it could then switch it back out of programming mode if it got no more taps for (lets say) 5 seconds.
Wait 2(?) seconds
<tap> <tap> <tap> <tap> <tap>
then a couple of taps to shift it on to the next program (which you could keep doing to shift through more).
...it could then switch it back out of programming mode if it got no more taps for (lets say) 5 seconds.
Cake or Death?
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Posted:This is all sounding wicked, but after a bad experience in the past i have to ask.........
Is Aerotechs tap idea patented or whatever you call it ?(please bear in mind i dont know much about it!)
Also, whats the ideas for turning them on/off?
geat work dude keep it up!
Is Aerotechs tap idea patented or whatever you call it ?(please bear in mind i dont know much about it!)
Also, whats the ideas for turning them on/off?
geat work dude keep it up!
"This dark place planet Earth, orbits one star,
Come from afar, far away state of mind,
open up your third eye, black helicopters in the sky"
Posted:Not to my knowledge, but then I've not really looked. If that's the case, I'll just use buttons instead 
To turn them off, either a fairly long seuqence of taps or holding down a button for a while. Strictly speaking, while the batteries are in, they won't be truly off... just sleeping using very little power. I know what you're going to say though; why not actually have a switch so the batteries last longer? The thing is that NiMh batteries discharge over time anyway. When asleep, the amount of charge the Poi will use is a tiny fraction of the batteries natural discharge rate and so it's not worth worrying about
To turn them off, either a fairly long seuqence of taps or holding down a button for a while. Strictly speaking, while the batteries are in, they won't be truly off... just sleeping using very little power. I know what you're going to say though; why not actually have a switch so the batteries last longer? The thing is that NiMh batteries discharge over time anyway. When asleep, the amount of charge the Poi will use is a tiny fraction of the batteries natural discharge rate and so it's not worth worrying about
Cake or Death?
DeletePosted:What about a switch that is rotary instead of push-buttony, that you turn with a coin or nail or something, to turn it on/off/rainbow fade/custom sequence/solid colour That wouldn't matter if it got a smack, although it might well be harder to implement. Also, by having rainbow fade and solid colour as seprate settings, if you just wanted to spin and not look for a sequence through all sorts of tappy methods then it would be simpler.
It might be simpler still if you say "you can assign a custom sequence to swtich point A, B and C, and all other sequences are accessible through D - like a sort of speed dial. For a performance you'd assign the custom sequence to A, and it would be easy to reset if something happened.
It might be simpler still if you say "you can assign a custom sequence to swtich point A, B and C, and all other sequences are accessible through D - like a sort of speed dial. For a performance you'd assign the custom sequence to A, and it would be easy to reset if something happened.
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Posted:10 out of 10 for simplicity on that idea, but they will be in 'socks' when they are poi and the idea of taking them out to turn them on/off/change them isn't great.
Jon, all this tapping stuff has started me thinking about the case. What will it be? I would want a soft ish ball (harder than a tennis ball, but not much) so it wouldn't crack, but making that transparent might be hard and it might mess up the tapping.
If it's hard then the whole unit will get the full force of any blow...
I guess you've thought about this one as well...
Jon, all this tapping stuff has started me thinking about the case. What will it be? I would want a soft ish ball (harder than a tennis ball, but not much) so it wouldn't crack, but making that transparent might be hard and it might mess up the tapping.
If it's hard then the whole unit will get the full force of any blow...
I guess you've thought about this one as well...
There's too many home fires burning and not enough trees
DeletePosted:I had not appriecated that they were going to be exclusively sock poi, so that does make things harder 
hmm...You could have some kind of reset button I suppose to "return to sequence A" if somewhere in your performance the you accidentally do a bit too much tapping. It would have to be through-the-sockable though, which would make it an instant target for breaking. And, of course, as you say it could weaken the overall structure and add cost.
Tricky one...what about if you could, after a sequence of taps (which occured mid-sequence) and within a time limit of, say, 10 seconds, a certain tap pattern could "undo" the last set of taps?
Say you have sequence X running, and then you have a tangle and it goes to some other sequence from the beginning. You'd quickly tap-tap the poi, and it would resume the pattern from where it had left off pre-accident. Might mean taking up some memory though...and I don't know much about programming so I can't suggest how it would be done.
hmm...You could have some kind of reset button I suppose to "return to sequence A" if somewhere in your performance the you accidentally do a bit too much tapping. It would have to be through-the-sockable though, which would make it an instant target for breaking. And, of course, as you say it could weaken the overall structure and add cost.
Tricky one...what about if you could, after a sequence of taps (which occured mid-sequence) and within a time limit of, say, 10 seconds, a certain tap pattern could "undo" the last set of taps?
Say you have sequence X running, and then you have a tangle and it goes to some other sequence from the beginning. You'd quickly tap-tap the poi, and it would resume the pattern from where it had left off pre-accident. Might mean taking up some memory though...and I don't know much about programming so I can't suggest how it would be done.
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the_mods_stole_my_name
SILVER Member since May 2006
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travelling without moving
Location: Maghull, Liverpool
Total posts: 1286
SILVER Member since May 2006
travelling without moving
Location: Maghull, Liverpool
Total posts: 1286
Posted:the HoP glow socks have a twisty thing to turn them on and off, it's simple enough to use. the twisty thing in said socks just pushes thje batteries further in to the glow ball to make a connection and turn them on and off.
Heilige Scheie, Batman kommt!
Reality is just a state of mind which occurs through a lack of lsd
XxX owned by devilsarmy XxX
O.B.E.S.E.
Posted: Written by: idancelikeatwatme
the HoP glow socks have a twisty thing to turn them on and off, it's simple enough to use. the twisty thing in said socks just pushes thje batteries further in to the glow ball to make a connection and turn them on and off.
The most frustrating thing ever, breaks really easily and has a tendancy to get stuck! I have three sets of broken balls at home, some i've only used twice.
I wouldn't want my hyperlights to become unusable from something like this..
Keep up the good work Jon, a lot of this goes over my head but it sounds impressive.
the HoP glow socks have a twisty thing to turn them on and off, it's simple enough to use. the twisty thing in said socks just pushes thje batteries further in to the glow ball to make a connection and turn them on and off.
The most frustrating thing ever, breaks really easily and has a tendancy to get stuck! I have three sets of broken balls at home, some i've only used twice.
I wouldn't want my hyperlights to become unusable from something like this..
Keep up the good work Jon, a lot of this goes over my head but it sounds impressive.
Gayle.....!
Deletethe_mods_stole_my_name
SILVER Member since May 2006
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travelling without moving
Location: Maghull, Liverpool
Total posts: 1286
SILVER Member since May 2006
travelling without moving
Location: Maghull, Liverpool
Total posts: 1286
Posted:
why didn't you tell me the HoP socks were crap before i bought them! How long did yours last before breaking? 
i know, sorry hyperlight!
why didn't you tell me the HoP socks were crap before i bought them! How long did yours last before breaking? i know, sorry hyperlight!Heilige Scheie, Batman kommt!
Reality is just a state of mind which occurs through a lack of lsd
XxX owned by devilsarmy XxX
O.B.E.S.E.
Posted:I agree with Sym; having a rotary switch is probably not going to be the best solution here for the reasons he mentioned.
It doesn't matter what the ball is made of for the tapping. It's the motion you make that gets detected (in simple terms) rather than a hard/soft impact. They will however be (very) hard balls so that no matter how much punishment you give them, they won't be destroyed. Having a deformable housing would lead to broken toys rather quickly I fear. I'm hoping to supply them with a padded sock which should make hitting yourself less deadly
As for performances; Don't forget that these things are re-programmable. I see no reason not to include a feature to entirely disable tapping so that's a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. If you're doing a performance, simply program them with a single sequence that cannot be interrupted once started
'Twisty' things are probably not a great solution here.. I've actually got some of those HoP poi and they're very nice indeed. Unfortunately, I'm down to 3 because I unscrewed one in a park and lost the top of it That's something I'm really keen to avoid for my toys so having push buttons or tapping is a better option in my opinion.
[Edit]Wah! You guys post too quickly.. nice to see you agree though Gayle I should be seeing Chutney on Saturday so I can finally get a look at your handywork![/Edit]
Cheers for all the ideas guys - it's stuff like this that is going to make them the best glow toys available
It doesn't matter what the ball is made of for the tapping. It's the motion you make that gets detected (in simple terms) rather than a hard/soft impact. They will however be (very) hard balls so that no matter how much punishment you give them, they won't be destroyed. Having a deformable housing would lead to broken toys rather quickly I fear. I'm hoping to supply them with a padded sock which should make hitting yourself less deadly
As for performances; Don't forget that these things are re-programmable. I see no reason not to include a feature to entirely disable tapping so that's a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. If you're doing a performance, simply program them with a single sequence that cannot be interrupted once started
'Twisty' things are probably not a great solution here.. I've actually got some of those HoP poi and they're very nice indeed. Unfortunately, I'm down to 3 because I unscrewed one in a park and lost the top of it
That's something I'm really keen to avoid for my toys so having push buttons or tapping is a better option in my opinion.[Edit]Wah! You guys post too quickly.. nice to see you agree though Gayle
I should be seeing Chutney on Saturday so I can finally get a look at your handywork![/Edit]Cheers for all the ideas guys - it's stuff like this that is going to make them the best glow toys available
Cake or Death?
DeletePosted: Written by: idancelikeatwatme
why didn't you tell me the HoP socks were crap before i bought them! How long did yours last before breaking? i know, sorry hyperlight!
They're not crap, it's just the balls inside are not very durable. The thread tends to get warped which means turning them on and off becomes a nightmare. I've had a few sets (not hop but the same hackysacks - glowpoi or something) which don't turn on properly and switch off if you accidently bash them against something. The hop ones lasted me the longest but have died now.
Jon, let me know what you think of Chutney's socks, as i'm not sure how they'll work as the fabric is quite thick. If it's too thick i'll look around for something else.
why didn't you tell me the HoP socks were crap before i bought them! How long did yours last before breaking? i know, sorry hyperlight! They're not crap, it's just the balls inside are not very durable. The thread tends to get warped which means turning them on and off becomes a nightmare. I've had a few sets (not hop but the same hackysacks - glowpoi or something) which don't turn on properly and switch off if you accidently bash them against something. The hop ones lasted me the longest but have died now.
Jon, let me know what you think of Chutney's socks, as i'm not sure how they'll work as the fabric is quite thick. If it's too thick i'll look around for something else.
Gayle.....!
DeletePosted:Jon, I was just worried about the case being brittle. cracks wouldn't be nice! I don't care about hitting myself, I'm used to bounce juggling balls in my poi
Next idea - a play/pause sequence tap - a simple one.
Use case: 2 performers need a synced up sequence. Make one with a 20 sec pause at the start, but start the 20 secs at the same time on all 4 poi. I know you were talking about RF or something, and I know that performers might not be your target but I think more and more people will be doing it.
Has this been talked about before?
Next idea - a play/pause sequence tap - a simple one.
Use case: 2 performers need a synced up sequence. Make one with a 20 sec pause at the start, but start the 20 secs at the same time on all 4 poi. I know you were talking about RF or something, and I know that performers might not be your target but I think more and more people will be doing it.
Has this been talked about before?
There's too many home fires burning and not enough trees
DeletePosted: Written by: Gayle......!
let me know what you think of Chutney's socks, as i'm not sure how they'll work as the fabric is quite thick. If it's too thick i'll look around for something else.
Will do!
Written by: Sym
I was just worried about the case being brittle. cracks wouldn't be nice!
Well 3mm thick polycarbonate should be very tough indeed. That's one of the biggest gambles with this whole thing actually; I can't afford to build a mould to test the idea in Polycarb so once I've decided on a design, that's it! A real bite the bullet!
Polycarb is however one of the toughest, impact resistant plastics out there, so if something is going to survive the punishment you guys will put these things through, Polycarb will be it
Written by: Sym
Next idea - a play/pause sequence tap - a simple one. Has this been talked about before?
It's not been talked about I don't think, but it's something I've thought about. There's nothing to stop you doing just that Sym. All you do is go on three:
One...
Two...
<tap> <tap> <tap> (both performers)
let me know what you think of Chutney's socks, as i'm not sure how they'll work as the fabric is quite thick. If it's too thick i'll look around for something else.
Will do!
Written by: Sym
I was just worried about the case being brittle. cracks wouldn't be nice!
Well 3mm thick polycarbonate should be very tough indeed. That's one of the biggest gambles with this whole thing actually; I can't afford to build a mould to test the idea in Polycarb so once I've decided on a design, that's it! A real bite the bullet!
Polycarb is however one of the toughest, impact resistant plastics out there, so if something is going to survive the punishment you guys will put these things through, Polycarb will be it
Written by: Sym
Next idea - a play/pause sequence tap - a simple one. Has this been talked about before?
It's not been talked about I don't think, but it's something I've thought about. There's nothing to stop you doing just that Sym. All you do is go on three:
One...
Two...
<tap> <tap> <tap> (both performers)
Cake or Death?
DeletePosted:What about putting the hyperlights in a soft casing? might reduce impact, and I suppose people may want to customize their socks and transfer them to non-padded kind of a different material and colour...
'n Boer maak 'n plan.
DeletePosted:See my earlier post
Written by: *HyperLight
They will however be (very) hard balls so that no matter how much punishment you give them, they won't be destroyed. Having a deformable housing would lead to broken toys rather quickly I fear. I'm hoping to supply them with a padded sock which should make hitting yourself less deadly
If people want to injure themselves that's up to them. Actually, the padded socks will probably be just an extra option. I'd imagine a lot of people (particularly those with some experience with poi) will most likely want to put them in their own stuff anyway!
Written by: *HyperLight
They will however be (very) hard balls so that no matter how much punishment you give them, they won't be destroyed. Having a deformable housing would lead to broken toys rather quickly I fear. I'm hoping to supply them with a padded sock which should make hitting yourself less deadly
If people want to injure themselves that's up to them. Actually, the padded socks will probably be just an extra option. I'd imagine a lot of people (particularly those with some experience with poi) will most likely want to put them in their own stuff anyway!
Cake or Death?
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Posted:i know someone that uses the fact that the aerotechs change program by tap, by gettin the poi to jus tap when he stalls them so it goes into the next sequence mid routine
"the geeks have got you" - Gayle
Deletecoleman
SILVER Member since Aug 2002
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Posted:yep, i know hugo too
cole. x
cole. x
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i come to 'dis cafe quite a lot myself.
they do porridge."
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spinningstarlet
SILVER Member since Aug 2006
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Location: Bradford *rolls eyes*
Total posts: 271
SILVER Member since Aug 2006
enthusiast
Location: Bradford *rolls eyes*
Total posts: 271
Posted:i would definatly pay 100 good english pounds for these....
wow....
*eyes wide*
|x.,x.,x|
wow....
*eyes wide*
|x.,x.,x|
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Posted:i would definately pay 100 dodgy english pounds for these....
"This dark place planet Earth, orbits one star,
Come from afar, far away state of mind,
open up your third eye, black helicopters in the sky"
spinningstarlet
SILVER Member since Aug 2006
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enthusiast
Location: Bradford *rolls eyes*
Total posts: 271
SILVER Member since Aug 2006
enthusiast
Location: Bradford *rolls eyes*
Total posts: 271
Posted:*nods back*
"This dark place planet Earth, orbits one star,
Come from afar, far away state of mind,
open up your third eye, black helicopters in the sky"
Posted:Hyperlight version threes were up and running better than ever last night- if only Jon hadn't wondered off and run the batteries out I would have got some pictures 
Delete
Posted:i was thinking about the remote idea,
What about bluetooth i assume the chip, transmitter and receiver would fit in the hyperlights as they fit in phones? I dont have a clue really! Should be cheap soon if not already. The idea is you could send patterns wirelessly, or just change the pattern like remote. can be done on a laptop or if we could get some cleaver people to make a program for our phones so your phone would be the remote? in theory this should work but i know there would probly be lots of reasons why it wont work. but idea is good
What about bluetooth i assume the chip, transmitter and receiver would fit in the hyperlights as they fit in phones? I dont have a clue really! Should be cheap soon if not already. The idea is you could send patterns wirelessly, or just change the pattern like remote. can be done on a laptop or if we could get some cleaver people to make a program for our phones so your phone would be the remote? in theory this should work but i know there would probly be lots of reasons why it wont work. but idea is good
Didn't your mother tell you not to play with fire? You'll get burt. Did i listen, No! Burns heal!
DeletePosted:Those socks are really nice Gayle.. not too thick at all and really comfy to keep hold of. Sorry I wondered off - got a bit carried away 
Bluetooth is an option... in fact there are a lot of options. I'm sure given enough time we could get them to do just about anything, but I think for most people it's overkill...
Bluetooth is an option... in fact there are a lot of options. I'm sure given enough time we could get them to do just about anything, but I think for most people it's overkill...
Cake or Death?
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Posted:Heya, hows the new prototype going? are you still trying to hold the board rigidly in place?
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