Introduction: Interactive Assignment - Wearable LED Glove

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For the Interactive Assignment, I made a wearable LED glove, using Adafruit's Circuit Playground Express and Neopixels as sources of light.

Supplies

Materials and Tools

  • 1 knit glove
  • Adafruit Circuit Playground Express (CPX)
  • 4 Adafruit Neopixels
  • 1 JST 2-pin cable
  • 1 AA Battery Pack (and 3 AA batteries)
  • 2 wire nets
  • Conductive stainless steel sewing thread
  • Sewing kit (specifically needle and scissors)


  • Adafruit MakeCode

Step 1: Coding the CPX

The first step of this project begins with coding the CPX, using Adafruit's MakeCode. On start, a strip consisting of 4 Neopixels will be created on the A1 pin which, depending on the CPX's motion, will light up along with the LEDs on the CPX itself. When tilted up, the CPX and Neopixels will light up blue. When tilted left, they will light up green. And when shaken, they will flash red and orange. Refer to the accompanying image for greater detail on the code.

Download the code and upload it onto the CPX.

Step 2: Sewing the CPX to the Glove

After coding the CPX, use the conductive steel thread and sew the device onto the backhand of the glove--below the knuckles. Make sure the mini-USB port is on the side closest to the fingers. Loop the thread in-and-out of the 'end' and 'center' pins: 'GND', '3.3V', and 'GND' on the left; '3.3V', 'GND', and 'VOUT' on the right. (Remember: this is when facing the CPX from behind, where the mini-USB port is closest to the fingers of the glove.)

Step 3: CPX to the First Neopixel - Wiring With Conductive Thread

After attaching the CPX to the glove, place one Neopixel at the knuckle to the index finger. Connect the CPX to the Neopixel with conductive steel thread. Link 'GND' on the CPX to the negative side (-) of the Neopixel. 'A1' to the arrow (making sure the arrow points away--forward--from you). And then 'VOUT' to the positive side (+).

By linking the two devices through thread, you have also sewed the first Neopixel to the glove.

Step 4: Sewing the Other Neopixels - More Conductive Thread Wiring

Moving onto the remaining three Neopixels, attach them to the other knuckles of the glove one-by-one. Connecting the Neopixels together is a similar process to Step 3. Using the conductive steel thread, link the negative side (-) of the Neopixel to the negative side (-) of the next Neopixel. The arrow to the arrow of the next (again, making sure the arrow points away--forward--from you). And then the positive side (+) to the positive side (+) of the next.

When you've attached the final Neopixel to the glove, link the positive side (+) of the last Neopixel to the positive side (+) of the first Neopixel.

At the end of this step, the CPX and Neopixels have been wired into a circuit and sewed onto the glove.

Step 5: Attaching the Battery Pack

The final step is to attach the power supply. Twist the ends of the JST 2-pin cable and the ends of the AA battery pack together (matching red with red and black with black), and screw the wire nets to hold each connection. Plug in the JST 2-pin cable into the appropriate slot of the CPX.

The power supply has been attached.

Step 6: The Finished Product - a Wearable LED Glove

Put on the glove, flip the switch on the battery pack, and grip the pack between your palm and fingers. You now wield a punch glove, lighting up different colors based on a defensive stance (blue), a neutral stance (green), and an offensive stance (red).

Step 7: Upgrades for the Final Project

My Interactive Project can be improved in two aspects: adjusting the power supply and adding more LEDs. The battery pack is in a less than ideal position--being held in the gloved hand. While this doesn't necessarily detract from the project's functionality as a toy-like punch glove, moving the bulky pack would be for the best as it would free up the fingers and add some much needed refinement. I plan to extend the connection between the JST 2-pin cable and the AA battery pack by soldering wires, allowing the battery pack to be placed in a pants pocket. By relocating the battery pack, I can add LED Sequins to the front of the glove, specifically at the finger tips. When making certain gestures such as the peace sign, I can use conductive fabric on the glove's thumb and ring finger to form a switch. This switch would complete a circuit of conductive steel thread that runs from the CPX to LED Sequins, lighting them up when performing that gesture.