Planning to make that carved a pumpkin last past Halloween night? Forget the tealight or LED candle—here’s an easy, no-solder project that will make it extra special. By default, this jack-o-lantern looks like it has a flickering flame, but get close enough to it and it goes crazy with color.
All you need is an LED matrix, a Rainbowduino to drive it, a PIR motion sensor to trigger the random colors, and a power source. [Alpha Charlie] kept the electronics from becoming pumpkin-flavored with some plastic bags. Since he used the PIR as the jack-o-lantern’s nose, there is a bit of plastic behind it to keep moisture from interfering.
[Alpha Charlie]’s build instructions are quite detailed, which makes this project even simpler if you’ve never used a PIR before. There are lots of ways you could build on this project to make it your own, like using trick-or-treater motion to trigger screams or spooky sounds, or add more sensors to make it more interactive. Watch it react after the break.
If you have nothing else at all to do between now and trick-or-treat time, you could bust out the soldering iron and recreate this 70-LED matrix jack-o-lantern. Blinkenlights too safe for your tastes? Fire-breather it is, then.
I should have it ready by next halloween
Why is it that HAD always posts these things the day of the holiday they represent…Christmas tree/lights on Christmas eve/day, jack o lanterns, pranks, etc. on Halloween, Valentine’s heart projects, etc. The list goes on and on of projects that are pretty much impossible to make in time for that holiday.
1) Because this isn’t Make magazine and
2) Because people probably only send in their projects after they’re done, in true hacker fashion, the night before the holiday
where is old halloween days? :( now is not scary