Jigsaw Puzzle Switch- Team 14

We decided on an artistic approach for out switch. We decided to make a sort of jigsaw puzzle that, when completed, would power the LED. We decided to use aluminum foil to make jigsaw puzzle pieces that could be connected via alligator clips to a breadboard which was connected to a 9 volt battery as our power supply. This could be used for people who have issues with their eyesight to know when they have completed a puzzle if this switch were to be made on a larger scale.

Unconventional Switch Sports Mode

 

    

        

This unconventional switch lights up the LED when the Croc is put into sports mode, adding some extra power to your athletic activities! We used a 9-volt battery, a breadboard with a power module attachment, two jumper wires with alligator clips, two resistors, an LED, a Croc, and two pieces of aluminum foil. The pieces of aluminum foil are attached to the strap and heel of the Croc, and when the strap is lowered (as in sports mode), the aluminum touches, completes the circuit, and lights up the LED. For this design to be wearable, the components would have to be much smaller and welded onto the shoe, however, this works as a proof-of-concept and/or prototype.

- Thomas Dean and Sarah Walenciak

 Unconventional Switch: Bar Notification

For our unconventional switch, we decided on a design that was both unique and practical. We wanted to answer the question of how to request service at a noisy and crowded bar. The solution we came up with, fitting the project requirements: a simple circuit that lights up an LED when a drink is placed on it. In practice, this would let the bartender know that your drink is empty or that you would like attention. 

For the prototype we built in class, we used two strips of copper tape affixed to a wooden stand to form a break in the circuit, with a metal drink can used to complete it. In a final product, the method for achieving this would likely be different, as condensation from the cup would damage the circuit. For a revision, we would use a rubber pad with a conductive material on the underside to complete the circuit. That way, any drink container could be used regardless of material, and the circuit would be protected from water damage.

 Bar Notification

Thank you! 

By: Camilo Miranda and Jonathan Carrasquer

Unconventional Switch: Tesoro's Date

 

We have gone the artistic route for our switch, and we decided to use a little piggy named Tesoro along with a copper rose to construct our switch. Our idea was to activate the LED when the piggy gets the roses. The roses were the most conductive out of the two and we decided to add a copper top hat, a copper saddle, and a copper tail to the piggy to make him conductive since he is made out of ceramic materials. We wanted the LED to switch on when he got the roses as a final touch for the date he is about to go on. So once the piggy was ready he would get his roses, and then turn on the green LED when he was ready to leave for his date. We really enjoyed taking the artistic route, as this allowed us to get creative with our given materials and make a cute story while completing this assignment. From a design perspective, this switch doesn't have any practical use, however the idea of sending a cute little piggy on a date with his roses was too adorable to not do.

Thank you! 

By: Anna Grant and Karina Vazquez

Unconventional Switch: Book with Light

 We decided to do a combination of things to make up the switch. One being that there are connections on either end of the book and a photo-resistor working in tandem. The general idea is that when the book closes then the wires meet and that allows the circuit to be finished. Then all you need is some light to shine right at the photo-resistor to turn on the green LED. The general idea is that maybe you want your kid to be reading right now so when the light is on that means the book isn’t open and being read so the kid isn’t reading. Maybe the kid needs to use a lamp to read cause it’s night time and can’t read the book without the lamp’s light incorporating the light part. Honestly there are a lot of ways to think about its use but it’s a weird switch for sure. 

Unconventional Switch: Clock

 

    Hello, This unconventional switch was made by Cameron Daniel and Andrew Swanstrom. This switch uses a clock to turn on an LED to serve as a more obvious visual indicator to let the user know what time it is without having to use a loud alarm. More specifically, this switch uses a clock hand with copper tape to complete a circuit by touching another piece of copper tape stationed on the edge of the clock to correlate to a certain time. In our switch when the minute hand strikes twelve the circuit is complete and the LED comes on. I think this switch could be viable in a real world setting as it's relatively simple and can help people who either can't hear an alarm or don't like the loud noise.

 Video

Ring Theft Unconventional Switch

The unconventional switch that we made works functionally by running power into a metal ring. The rest of the circuit is linked to a small loop of conductive tape wrapped around a finger. When the ring is worn by the finger with conductive tape, it triggers the unconventional switch, which in turn activates the running current through the rest of the circuit, activating the LED.

Artistically, this can be used as an anti-theft device. The context would be a metal model hand, with an LED indicator displaying the state of the ring. If the ring isn’t stolen, the LED indicator would glow. If the ring is stolen, the LED indicator would turn off.

Unconventional Switch: Needn't Draw Your Blade

“A ship in a harbor is safe, but that is not what ships were built for.” 

When the katana rests within it's scabbard, it releases a signal light to show that the armory rests. However, war is no longer won purely through honor, as thievery and schemes conquer the battlefield. Should a light be out, The blade keeper can react to something amiss amongst the base camp. 

My teammate and I (Anthony Caruso and John Collera) created a sword which completes a current when resting in its scabbard. We used masking and electrical tape to cover the conductive parts of the scabbard, and stuck tin foil on opposite sides of the scabbard entrance. We used a 9V battery so the sword wouldn't have to be tethered. The LED used has a voltage of 2V and a current of 0.02 amps. We deduced that the desired resistance was 350 ohms, which was achieved with 4 100 ohm resistors. 

We then wired a breadboard so that there would be contact with the aluminum foil on both sides of the scabbard, but the current would only be able to travel when conductive material bridges both pieces of aluminum foil (intended for katana).

Unconventional Switch: Novelty Letter Opener

 After going through a number of wildly different concepts and being squashed by material limitations, my partner and I came up with the idea of using this novelty letter opener to connect our circuit! Most of the circuit is cut and dry: 9-Volt battery charging 2 red LED's through 3 100 Ω resistors, connected by 2 ends of copper tape running through the helmet and completed by the sword itself.

The plan was initially to drill into the helmet and tape the LED’s in such a way that the light shines through the eye holes of the helmet, but the sword itself would’ve interfered with the potential path of it.

Thank you!

Unconventional Switch - Electric Gloves

The Electric Gloves!

Aiden Richmond, Joey Linas

 

 

 

 

 The concept of this switch is the idea of creating and carrying an electric charge with just the clap of your hands. We used two rubber gloves and taped tinfoil to each one. One positive charge from the Arduino is attached to once glove, and the other glove is attached to a positive charge from the breadboard circuit. The initial voltage (Vi) from the USB-C is 5v, while the forward voltage (Vf) is 2v. Following the equation, we determined we needed two 100 resistors on the breadboard in order for the switch to work properly. As shown in the picture, our Arduino is grounded by the breadboard itself. Once the 2 gloves touch, the red LED illuminates until contact is not made anymore.

 

Unconventional Switch: Fork & Banana

 

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Video:

Hey everyone, our names are Jordan Oliver and Chelsea Soto. We wanted to create a switch for people who are visually impaired. This switch could be used to alert a person, when they grasp their food with their eating utensil. The materials we used to assemble our switch includes a circuit playground express, a red LED, a 100 ohm resistor, a fork, a banana, four alligator clips and a breadboard. First, we connected one end of the red and black alligator clips to the circuit playground express and the other end to the breadboard to provide its power supply. Finally, when we took the fork with the green alligator clipped to it and touched the banana with the blue alligator clipped to it, the red LED turned on.

Schematic:

Unconventional Switch - Stapler

 Behold, the Stapler Switch!

Energized by a powerful 9 volt battery, This unconventional light switch lets you know when you're papers are stapled. Our original idea was to attach the alligator clips to both the hammer (positive) and the crimp area (ground). The stapler is conductive, but electrical tape was applied to the areas of contact to avoid clearance issues. 4 resistors were needed due to the power supply we used for the demonstration.

The switch is unique way of turning an LED on and off. Were this idea to be fully implemented, the wiring would be implemented within the stapler itself, to avoid any clearance issues that would could from external wiring.

Unconventional Switch - Dice Roll Light Indicator

For players of Monopoly, D&D, Scrabble, etc. This concept adds flair, excitement, and immersion to gameplay when rolling a die.

When rolling a die in a cup, and then setting the cup face up, the aluminum die will complete the circuit and trigger a light or chosen electronic to activate! The bottom of a Styrofoam cup is lined with copper tape, and a die is lined with aluminum foil. There are then two popsicle sticks on the inside of the cup at an angle to help the die hit the bottom. The switch then works by turning the green LED on as soon as the die touches the surface. 

Unconventional Switch: Fly-Down Indicator

The Fly-Down Indicator is a clever invention which determines whether or not a person's zipper is undone. When the zipper is undone the indicator light is off, but when the zipper is up the indicator light turns on.

The circuit draws power from the Adafruit Circuit Playground Express, which is plugged into any traditional USB port, and onto the breadboard. The current then passes through a 100-ohm resistor. From there, the current travels to an alligator clip fastened towards the top of the right leg of the pants. The zipper itself forms an unconventional switch. When the zipper is down, there is no conductive material to receive the current, but when the zipper is up the alligator clip will make contact with the conductive head of the zipper. The head of the zipper is attached to yet another alligator clip which jumps back to the breadboard. Next, the current jumps to the red LED indicator. Finally, the current returns to ground on the breadboard and returns to ground on the Circuit Playground Express.

Schrödinger‘s Coin

Schrödinger’s Coin

This switch was designed with the “Schrödinger’s Cat” inquiry in mind. Except a cat doesn’t carry enough electricity in it to complete an electrical circuit. This could be a paperweight for the science nerds, it could just be an inside joke. The positive end of the battery is connected to an aluminum foil pad with an alligator clip. The negative end of the battery is connected to an LED, followed by a series of resistors. The resistors are connected to a second aluminum pad. The circuit is incomplete until a coin is placed on the two aluminum pad, connecting the two side of the circuit. 

Unconventional Switch: Pencil Sharpener Light - by Thu Pham & Peter Ochoa

This switch design utilizes a pencil and pencil sharpener to create an unconventional, interactive way to control an LED. The 5V power source from the Circuit Playground flows through two 100-ohm resistors in series, creating a total resistance of 200 ohms, and powers a 2V yellow LED. The switch is formed by attaching one alligator clip to the pencil’s tip (graphite) and another to the metal sharpener. When the pencil is inserted into the sharpener, the graphite completes the circuit, causing the LED to light up. 

This design creatively explores the conductive properties of everyday materials like graphite and metal, turning a familiar object into a functional switch. Beyond a simple on-off mechanism, the concept embodies a playful interaction between user and object, transforming the act of sharpening a pencil into a moment of discovery and illumination. It also highlights the often-overlooked conductive potential of common materials, making the switch both functional and surprising.