Ok, I was planning to try my hand at making one of ladyada's spoke POV (persistence of vision) programmed led electronic devices for my bike, since I had a grand time making the minty boost.
Ladyada's electronic device allows you to program words or images, which once you attach the device to your spokes, show up when your bike wheels are spinning. (If you check out her site, you can see the Pacman characters are moving.) If you want to know how and why it works, check out the FAQ on her site.
(These photos taken from the ladyada.net site.)
And, now, the consumer equivalent is here, the Lex.
For those who do not want to solder and make devices, you can use Windows (XP, 2000, or Vista) to program into the device a word or sentence in English or in characters (Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji). You plug the Lex into your laptop via USB, and you transfer your intended message to the device. You attach the device to your spokes, and when your wheels are spinning, the device creates a message via the programmed led lights. One AA battery is good for 96 hours of cycling word fun.
(If you know the price and where to get the Lex, post a comment for us.)
(These photos taken from the Digital Cowboy site)
- ladyada (for the whys, hows, and gallery of home-made spoke POV images)
- Digital Cowboy (Japanese) for the Lex,
to Everything USB
to Gizmodo
