Project

MIT-i Waves Goodbye with Sparkfun’s Spectacle!

March 13, 2018 by Ryan Jones

Make a Spectacle of yourself at the next Comic-Con with Sparkfun's Spectacle line-up! Anyone can use it, it's as easy as plugging in a pair of headphones!

BOM:

Why?

This project utilizes products that are easy to use with infinite possibilities and we wanted to create a project that anyone could replicate! ANYONE! Yep, no electronics or programming experience necessary. If you can plug in a pair of headphones, you can create an interactive project with Sparkfun's Spectacle products! So let's wave a "see-you-later" to the MIT-i series with this easy-to-follow tutorial!

How?

For every Spectacle project, you will need at least two boards: the Director board to upload the program to, and any one of the other associated boards, like our Button board and Motion board. Keep in mind, when creating your program, you should "add" the boards in the same order that they are plugged into one another, with the Director board always the first in line. For more detailed information on getting started, check out Sparkfun's Spectacle User Guide.

Head over to the Spectacle app and start a new "script." First add a Button board then a Motion board. Any useful comments can be added in the "Project Info" section. Let's start with our Button board, creating a new "action" on "button press." When button number 1 is pressed, trigger channel number 1. Then, for motion, add an action that will toggle position.

What your main page should look like

With your servo plugged into the channel labeled "0," listen to channel number 1 to control servo number 0. Wait 0 seconds to move to 180º, then wait 1 second to move to 0º. This will create our wave-like motion every time button 1 is pressed. Follow Sparkfun's guide for proper upload. Once you see the board's LED blink 10 times, you're ready to go! It's that easy, give it a shot!

Of course, much more can be accomplished with these products. They have a wide variety of additional boards like Light, Sound, and Inertia. Spectacle also provides iPhone and Android apps to keep your project updated on the go. So remember, if you're in need of a quick project, or need a flashy element without the headache of code and libraries, wave down a Spectacle product and put something together in minutes.

A Quick Thank You!

On behalf of the MIT-i series, Olive and I thank you all for tagging along for the ride. It has been a blast creating videos with All About Circuits and receiving all of your feedback! We could not have made it this far without you! We hope to see you again soon! Cheers!