12. SKIN ELECTRONICS#

Inspiration#

For this assignment I decided to work on my version of the “Skin masquerade party” project, inspired by scenes from the film “Eyes Wide Shut” by Stanley Kubrick where the masks play a major role in the costumes of the same. My idea was to take this concept to a contemporary-futuristic aesthetic, where the mask fulfilled the function of hiding the identity, adaptable to any face, but mainly that the addition of electronic devices was protagonist. After evaluating the different alternatives in terms of the electronic elements that could be applied and generating striking visual effects, I decided to work with Fiber Optics, since I found their characteristics interesting in terms of their morphological versatility and light conductivity. Also in previous investigations I could appreciate that it is highly used in the costumes of artistic and performance scenes.

Construction of the base mask#

The materials to be used are only 2: latex and yarn or wool; which allow to create a flexible piece, adaptable to any face and with a short drying time. Latex: A milky substance composed of resins, alkaloids, etc., obtained from cuts made in the trunk of some trees and certain raw materials, such as rubber and lacquer. Latex coagulates on contact with air.

Due to the characteristics of this material, it had to add some textile element to generate a frame or “support skeleton”. Select wool of natural color and intermediate thickness to accelerate the process.

Step by step:

Materials used#

To know more about them and their compositions

About Fiber Optics#

Fiber optic is currently the most advanced medium for the transmission of information through the reflection of light. One of its advantages is the transmission of light of any color without electricity and without heat, which makes it a possible tool to use in wearables. When combined with a light source RGB Led offers a traveling light pattern of scaled combinations between the colors Red, green and blue that fused with the metal surface of the mask generates an aesthetic permeated by technology. To take advantage of the LED luminescence, it is necessary to “encapsulate” the beam of light; for this I used a special piza (printed in 3D) that connects directly and perpendicularly the beam of light with the optical fiber.

Fiber optic works because the light that moves along the fiber stays inside, is reflected in the brightness of the surface of the fiber. This is “total internal reflection”, or at least for the standard acrylic fiber, it is a high percentage of internal reflection and that is good enough. Therefore, to get light from the fiber at any point other than the end, you will have to disturb that internal reflection. A very easy way to do this is to simply curl the fiber beyond a certain angle.

How to Get More Light Out of a Single Strand of Optical Fiber Attached to an LED

Useful liks and tutorials:

Wearable optical fiber

FIber Optic Dress from Natalie Walsh on Vimeo.

Electronic System / Circuit and programming#

In the first place, it is necessary to make a schematic drawing of the circuit, calculate resistances taking into account the voltage (in this case 3V) to understand its operation. Then with the help of the Fritzing program, we introduce the same scheme that we physically tested on the bred board and it helps us to create the 2D drawing at scale, with standard parameters of the components, for its subsequent milling and optimal operation.

With Arduino, the code for the operation of the RGB LED is programmed, changing the colors in a loop.

const int redPin = 2; 
const int grnPin = 1; 
const int bluPin = 0; 

//const int redPin = 7; 
//const int grnPin = 6; 
//const int bluPin = 5; 

void setup()
{
pinMode(redPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(grnPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(bluPin, OUTPUT); 
}
void loop()
{
redtoyellow();
yellowtogreen();
greentocyan();
cyantoblue();
bluetomajenta();
majenatored();

//delay (30);
}
void redtoyellow()
{
digitalWrite(redPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(bluPin, LOW);
// fade up green
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = i;
byte off = 100-on;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(grnPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(grnPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
}
}
void yellowtogreen()
{
digitalWrite(grnPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(bluPin, LOW);
// fade down red
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = 100-i;
byte off = i;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(redPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(redPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
} 
}
void greentocyan()
{
digitalWrite(grnPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(redPin, LOW);
// fade up blue
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = i;
byte off = 100-on;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(bluPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(bluPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
} 
}
void cyantoblue()
{
digitalWrite(bluPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(redPin, LOW);
// fade down green
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = 100-i;
byte off = i;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(grnPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(grnPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
} 
}
void bluetomajenta()
{
digitalWrite(bluPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(grnPin, LOW);
// fade up red
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = i;
byte off = 100-on;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(redPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(redPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
} 
}
void majenatored()
{
digitalWrite(redPin, HIGH);
digitalWrite(grnPin, LOW);
// fade down blue
for(byte i=1; i<100; i++) {
byte on = 100-i;
byte off = i;
for( byte a=0; a<100; a++ ) {
digitalWrite(bluPin, HIGH);
delayMicroseconds(on);
digitalWrite(bluPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(off);
}
} 
}

Assembly of the electronic system#

Step by Step:

Week 12. SKIN ELECTRONICS / RGB Led / Check ATtiny85 microcontroller from Betiana Pavon on Vimeo.

Week 12. SKIN ELECTRONICS / customized PCB board / Rolland milling machine from Betiana Pavon on Vimeo.

Finished Mask#

Week 12. SKIN ELECTRONICS / Fiber Optic Mask from Betiana Pavon on Vimeo.