LED Testing

An important part of the final prototype will be providing user feedback through enabling LEDs of different colours. The idea is to have the back wall divided into tiles of size 20cm by 20cm (the size of an average hand). Each tile will either be red or green. Green tiles must be hit by the users, and red tiles must be protected from projectiles

In order to create these coloured tiles, we decided to use individually addressable RGB LEDs. A number of these leds would be placed inside a tile, and a translucent material would be used to diffuse the light across the tile.

WS2813B LEDs were selected because they are commonly used in hobbyist projects online, and are within budget. Additionally, these LEDs have a feature that allows them to remain on, even if the led prior has been damaged.

To test the LED strips that we had ordered, I followed this tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNlaj1r7NKc&t=6s and used the NeoPixel python library. Below is a video of the strandtest script, showing that all the less were successfully turned on and the colours toggled.

The next step was to determine how many LEDs would be needed within a 20x20cm tile. To find this, a tile was constructed out of foam board, and 2 strips of led were placed within.

After running a few tests, using a blank sheet of paper on top for dispersion, we determined that by only turning on 4 LEDs at full brightness, we achieved sufficient colour within the tile as shown below:

The next step is to procure an appropriate dispersion material, since paper is too fragile to use. We plan to purchase a photography sheet, which is normally used for light dispersion in photography