This Musical Instrument Glows with All the Colors of the Rainbow

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This Musical Instrument Glows with All the Colors of the Rainbow

Jonathan Bumstead built an interactive instrument that uses an Arduino Uno to control the LED lights, capacitive touch sensors, and a MIDI output.

The LED Eclipse uses capacitive touch sensors positioned around the perimeter of the device to control ten LEDs and a MIDI signal. For all the programs I wrote for the eclipse, the idea is pretty much the same: determine which sensors are touched and then update the LEDs and MIDI output. In the video posted [on Maker Share], you can check out some of the programs that I wrote.

The instrument is well constructed and, as displayed in the video, can be adapted to fulfill several different uses. I liked watching Bumstead using the LED Eclipse as a circular piano, but had to fight back long suppressed memories of sleepless nights when he began using it to play Simon. I thought four buttons was hard. I can’t imagine what that game is like with ten!

If you want to check out Bumstead’s project in greater detail, head on over to his Maker Share page. If you’re looking to build the LED Eclipse, you can find his build notes on Instructable.


Want to showcase your own projects? Join Maker Share today.

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Jordan has spent much of his life writing about his many geeky pastimes. He's particularly passionate about indie game design and Japanese art, but loves interacting with creators from all walks of life.

View more articles by Jordan Ramée

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