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Steve Hoefer makes things and solves problems. Steve is currently in: San Francisco More...
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Archives

Project: Rock Paper Scissors Glove

By Steve Hoefer on Sunday, May 16, 2010

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The Rock Paper Scissors playing glove is a fun exploration into natural gestural interfaces.  The goal was to play a game against a person in as natural a way as possible, which this glove was a runaway success. The wearer plays a perfectly natural game of Rock Paper Scissors against the glove.  To make it extra challenging the glove learns play patterns of the wearer to predict winning moves.

While the glove is all good fun, it also has potential for disability assistance and more serious and practical wearable interfaces

How To:

  • Grathio.com (full build log, video, parts list, schematic, and code.)

 

Sightings: TV & Radio

  • 来からの訪問者('Visitors from the Future') Nippon Television March 12, 2010
  • Good Day Sacramento, CBS-13 Sacramento, CA. March 20, 2010
  • WOCM-FM morning show, April 23 2010

 

Sightings: Internet

  • Make: Online
  • Huffington Post
  • Engadget
  • BoingBoing
  • CruchGear
  • Gizmodo

 

Related Posts:

  • Rock Paper Scissors Playing Glove (Original blog post.)

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Project: Touch Screen Glove Mod

By Steve Hoefer on Sunday, May 16, 2010

spacer This 5 minute hack solves a problem of modern electronics: capacitive touch screens (like in the iPhone, iPad, and others) don't work well with gloves. By simply sewing through the fingertip a few times with conductive thread you give the screen enough capacitance to detect your touch without having to take off your gloves.  (Or without having to use your nose, like I was doing when I got the inspiration for this mod.)  The conductive thread is great because it's not unpleasant to touch, it won't scratch the screen, and it's non destructive to most gloves.

This idea was so popular that several merchants contacted me to let me know it was responsible for a spike in conductive thread sales and at least one opened up a new product line of conductive thread samplers for projects just like this.

 

Instructions:

  • Instuctables. (Detailed step by step instructions)
  • MAKE Magazine, issue 23, page 157
  • Gratiho.com (Original blog post with description and links.)

 

Sightings: Radio & Print

  • The New York Times, December 3, 2010. (Both print and online)
  • CBC 'Spark' episode 94 December 6 2009.
  • Miami Herald, Miami, Florida. December 8, 2009.

 

Sightings: Internet

  • Lifehacker
  • Gizmodo
  • CrunchGear
  • Craft Magazine 

 

Related Posts:

  • Making A Glove Work With A Touch Screen

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Project: Secret Knock Detecting Lock

By Steve Hoefer on Saturday, May 15, 2010

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The Secret Knock Detecting Lock unlocks your door when it detects the correct knocking sequence. It's the perfect accessory to your secret lair, club house or tree house. It has gotten worldwide attention and the video has been seen well over half a million times. A ton of people have been inspired by this project and expanded and adapted it. Its simplicity and cleverness has also encouraged thousands of people to get started exploring the world of microcontrollers.*

Watch the video.

How To:

  • Instrucables (detailed step-by-step instructions)
  • Grathio.com (Video, build log, parts list, schematics, and code.)
  • Secret Knock Detecting Gumball Machine, built around the same base, but with more candy.


Sightings: Real Life:

  • The Commonwealth Club. June 14, 2010"Make It: How to DIY" with Mark Frauenfelder and Adam Savage
  • Bay Area Maker Faire, 2010. "Technological Whimsy"
Sightings: TV:

  • 特ダネ投稿DO画 ('Tokudane Toukou Doga') NHK, March 12, 2010
  • 来からの訪問者('Visitors from the Future') Nippon Television March 12, 2010 
  • Attack Of The Show, G4TV, November 9, 2009

Sightings: Internet:

  • Gizmodo
  • Make: Online
  • Engadget
  • Lifehacker
  • Discover Magazine

Related Posts:

  • Secret Knock Detecting Lock (Original blog post.)
* According to web masters of Arduino.cc this project directed over 3,000 people to their site in just 5 days.
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Project: Dizzy Robots

By Steve Hoefer on Saturday, May 15, 2010

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These tiny adorable little 'bots love to spin around in circles and fall over and whole purpose in life is to make you laugh.*  They are even better in groups!  They are the simplest vibrobots to make requiring no special tools or skills and they only have three cheap parts.

Instructions:

  • Make : Magazine, volume 24, page 78
  •  Instructables: Pocket Drunken Robot.

Sightings and Awards:

  • First prize in Instructables Pocket Size contest.
  • Featured on Make: Online.
  • Featured at Bay Area Maker Faire 2010.

Related Posts:

  • Robot Cocktail Party

*These were originally names "Drunken Robots" but have been renamed since drinking seems to be something few people are willing to let robots do for them.

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