Robert Schneider is a musician and record producer best known for his involvement in The Apples in Stereo. He is also a student of mathematics, occasional experimentalist, and a GetLoFi reader! The other day he shared this simple yet elegant mod for Mattel MindFlex.
This toy device is designed to read brain wave activity via a headset which allows the wearer to control a fan that levitates a small ball. The brain wave activity guides the fan and the ball around an obstacle course. The modification allows the wearer to use brain waves to control and change the pitch on a synthesizer via CV (control voltage). Schneider removed the DC power that goes to the internal fan and routed that to an added 1/4 inch output jack which he connected to a synthesizer.
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, or even use Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for MakeCode, CircuitPython, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell with Google Hangouts On-Air is every Wednesday at 7:30pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
