Published April 4, 2018

Infinity Mirror Scuba Mask

Jacques Cousteau style scuba mask turned into an infinity mirror with programmable RGB LEDs controlled by an Arduino.

IntermediateFull instructions provided20 hours6,365

Things used in this project

Hardware components

Jacques Cousteau style scuba mask

NeoPixel strip

Any WS2812B (or similar) RGB programmable LED strip

Headlamp with 4xAA rear battery compartment

SparkFun Step-Up Voltage Regulator - 5V

Any 5V step up converter/regulator

Arduino Micro

Any microcontroller will do, though you will have to jump through some hoops if it's not 5v since we need 5v to drive the LED strip.

SparkFun IMU Breakout - MPU-9250

For making the LED light show responsive to body movement

Software apps and online services

Arduino IDE

Story

Check out my latest project Hacking Wearables for Medical Device Development. Hack a $35 Arduino compatible nRF52 ARM Cortex activity tracker to build low power devices. Currently, used to prototype wearable medical devices at MATTER Lab. Complete tutorials and code for accelerometer gesture recognition, neural network training, and 3D model control using Bluetooth.

Overview

Jacques Cousteau style scuba mask turned into an infinity mirror with programmable RGB LEDs controlled by an Arduino. Unlike other infinity mirror mask/glasses I've seen, this project allows you to see while wearing by adding a wide peephole. Firmware is FastLED library and modified FastLED demo sketch. I added a MPU-9250 accelerometer to make the light show responsive to body movement.

An "infinity mirror" is an illusion created when a light source is placed between a full mirror and a partial mirror. When viewed from the partial mirror side there is a perception of increased, even "infinite" depth with increasingly dim copies of the light source trailing into the distance.

Build instructions

Step 1: Cut LED Strip to Fit Mask

Scuba masks vary in size so it is best to avoid simply using the same length/LED count of LED strip that I use. Measure the circumference of the glass from the inside of the mask. Cut a length of LED strip that comfortably fits inside the mask.

Step 2: Back Mirror

Place the scuba mask face down on a piece of white paper and trace around the edge with a pencil or pen. Draw a line around the interior of this traced oval such that it is 3/8" away from the traced line ie smaller. Cut out this smaller oval - this is our back mirror template. Glue it to the plastic mirror sheet with water soluble glue (Elmer's etc). Cut out the section of mirror covered by the paper template.

Step 3: Attach Arduino, MPU-9250 Accelerometer and Voltage Regulator To Scuba Mask

Having wired the Arduino and peripherals to the LED strip and power supply, test the mask to make sure everything is working. Then hot glue Arduino and peripherals to the back of the mask (the back of the plastic mirror cutout).