Space Invaders Mini CRT Arcade
This miniature arcade console uses an Arduino Nano to control a small black and white CRT.
Today we take LCD displays for granted, but at one time cathode-ray tube (CRT) devices were ubiquitous in everything from TVs to computer monitors to arcades. In order to give a proper vintage look to his Space Invaders arcade machine, creator Rob Cai salvaged a CRT display out of an Umet Domus Scout 1204/D001D video intercom system.
With this bit of retro tech in hand, he went to work designing a miniature cabinet around it, which he constructed out of hard cardboard. This setup situates the CRT facing upward in a vertical orientation, with a mirror positioned at 45º to show the image out the front. This orientation was reportedly used quite often in vintage machines in order to keep the cabinet from being too deep and works nicely here.
To power the screen, Cai repurposed a 19V DC supply from an old laptop. The CRT unit in turn has a stabilized 12V supply that is used to power an Arduino Nano. The Nano produces images on the screen using the TVout library, running a Space Invaders game that’s available for download on the project write-up.
The standard Invaders is played via onboard buttons, or it can accept other inputs through an RCA jack on the back. This is shown at around 1:20 in the video below, with an external Tetris console hooked up for a bit of black-and-white block action. It was mostly constructed out of found and repurposed parts, so while it's an impressive build, this mini-arcade will likely remain quite the unique piece, even if it inspires others.
