Arkane Lab

31/05/2022

02/01/2021

Only one way to start a new year, and that's to hit the ground running.

I spent the first morning of the year working on an interesting addition, smart home integration.

Being able to take advantage of smart home automation, timing and routines opens up a lot more potential for events (with a little overhead) and also allows for easy custom development of home integration kit.

Let's see where 2021 progresses these ideas to!

15/09/2020

Small but significant update to the wireless modules.

All well and good having them magically connect to each other, but how do you know and trust they're working?

Well... I've added a screen so you can see that they are up and running.

This will only be viable on larger props, but information is always helpful when setting up equipment.

Shameless branding... because I can.

09/09/2020

I got a little carried away...

To really test the idea, the controller with an SD card now iterates through an array of other devices and fires them all at the same time wirelessly.

All four working beautifully!

I've already got an idea to build them into, time to break out the toolbox!

08/09/2020

It doesn't look like anything has changed, with the exception of the addition of a new MicroSD board (and a pretty logo).

However last night marked finally being able to load variables from a configuration file stored on the SD card.

Whilst reading the files is relatively simple, breaking them out into variables was proving harder and kept stumping me throughout last year.

The upshot of this is that loading configurations from a card allows for a lot more flexibility and reuse with designs.

With a bit of luck, the next post will be the start of a new prop...

05/09/2020

Here is a little project I started last year, that got lost in the midst of the chaos of moving and renovating.

These two circuits are connected wirelessly (despite the mess of wires!), and whilst right now all they are doing is triggering an LED, this is the first important step in making smart connected props.

This definitely won't be relevant to any upcoming plans or projects...

15/03/2020

Please tag responsibly.

If you would like a hi-resolution & non-watermarked copy or wish a photo to be removed, please message me with the file name from the bottom of the photo (DSC_000)

24/10/2019

So here we go! I've set up a page to group all this stuff together.

The props I've been making are all combining technology, and trying to make it as subtle as possible. With the huge range of micro electronics and connectivity, it's possible to make a wide range of interactive props giving an impression of real magic. That these sort of interactive props weren't more common upset me, so I set about changing that!

I won't share how each prop works (that would spoil the fun for those using them!), but for event organisers I have a lot of ideas that I'll happily share, or I can work with you to realise your magical dream.

I've also taken the opportunity to get back into an old hobby, photography. LARP events have provided the perfect backdrop for this, providing a lot of interesting moments, and a lot of striking costume, to try and capture. If that's something you would like to take advantage of, do give me a shout.

Everyone else, hopefully you'll enjoy my labour's in one field or another!

24/10/2019

For this event, I decided to branch out and my hand at an old hobby, photography.

For a few hours of the event, I spent some time taking pictures of the action going on during this event by Twisted Tales LRP.

For my first time out with a camera in a long time, I am very happy with the results, and will hopefully just keep getting better.