Arduino project: Persistence of Vision

Many people may have seen something similar to this, in one form or another.  They used to be made with materials like a spinning wheel, where one can create a penciled animation come alive.

The concept is called persistence of vision, and it takes advantage of the fact that our eyes and brain have a way of combining things we see over a period of time, into something that might actually not exist at a single instant in time.

This weeks Arduino project bring to you a simple Persistence of Vision Wand by instructables user amandaghassaei.

While this is a very real project that can help you create a working persistence of vision device, there is the very real possibility that it won't work or won't work as well as the images suggest.

There are a number of reasons for this, not least of which is that something might not be quite right with your specific end product.  Aside from that, while we are all made pretty much the same, every individual is unique and their own biological or physiological makeup may not allow this specific product to work, for every one of us.  And of course, how you hold and move the wand could affect the quality of the persistence of vision image created by the wand.

That said, this is probably an intermediate project, as it requires some fairly precise measuring, cutting, placement, and electrical work, including soldering.  So lets get started on the Persistence of Vision Wand.

As the instructables user indicates, "This wand project is incredibly customizable, I've included all CAD files, firmware, build documentation, and schematics.  Feel free to choose your own color LEDs, write personalized messages, and maybe even add something new to the project!"

This 12 step project has the following parts list:

• (1x) Arduino Uno REV 3 Radioshack #276-128 
• (20x) Amber Super-bright LED Indicator Radioshack #55050630
• (1x) Arduino Proto Shield Radioshack #276-140
• (1x) 9V Alkaline Battery Radioshack #23-866
• (1x) Heavy-Duty 9V Snap Connectors Radioshack #270-324
• (20x) 1/4 watt resistors
   

To start off, the initial plastic wand needs to be cut and then punched for the resistors.  The resistors are then threaded through the punched holes and soldered together.

Next, the shield is assembled with the appropriate switch and battery connectors.  The leds are wired to the wand.  Then, the wires are connected to the shield.

With that completed, it is tme to connect the ground on the shield and start loading the software.

Finally, all the components are neatly packed together and you have a persistence of vision wand, ready for use.

This instructables was sponsored by Radio Shack, which is why the parts are listed as such. You could use any brand from any vendor, so long as the specifications for the parts are equivalent.

Enjoy your POV wand. And have fun with any customizations. You might try mounting it as a pendulum to get a more consistent presentation.