Broken CRT Monitor Becomes LED Helmet
Vivian Thomas gave new life to an old tube TV as a Circuit Playground-controlled, light-up wearable costume.
After coming across an old CRT monitor that was being recycled, Vivian Thomas, along with a few collaborators, decided to turn it into – what else? – a TV head costume! As seen below, the helmet is quite entertaining, showing a variety of animations on its array of LEDs.
Thomas first disassembled the CRT, being careful to discharge everything to avoid a shock. As it was likely not plugged in for some time before being torn apart, this may or may not have been unnecessary, but it's definitely better safe than sorry when hacking up an unknown device. The internals were cleaned out, including the expected tube, as well as dead ladybugs that had collected over the years. A head hole was cut in the bottom and a sheet of polycarbonate was added on the front. This was bent into shape and tinted with window film.
The new screen is made up of 300 WS2812B addressable LEDs, sourced from a five-meter 60-LEDs/meter strip that was cut into 20-pixel sections. These sections are stacked on top of each other to form a matrix, with space in between so the wearer can see out.
The headset is controlled by an Adafruit Circuit Playground Express board and powered by a USB power bank. User interface consists of a keyboard and adapter, allowing its user to input actual text to be displayed on-screen. It can also react to movement, thanks to the Circuit Playground’s built-in accelerometer.