Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks

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Chapter 8, How to Hack a Building-Size Display

6. Mount the system on your house

After you have tested the LED array on the ground and installed the option-

al light diffuser, it is time to mount the system on your target building.

It is probably safest to drop hoisting ropes from the windows where the

array will be secured and slowly pull it up just under the window height.

Secure the ropes that hold everything in place and carefully connect the

wires.

Your hardware is now complete! Skip ahead to the Software Setup

Instructions.

Large-Scale Hardware Assembly Instructions

The CCC installed the Blinkenlights system on the top 8 floors of a 12-

story building. Behind each of the 18 front-facing windows on each floor,

there was a single lamp on a handmade tripod. Each lamp was connected

to a power source via a relay; if the relay switched on, the windowpane

became lit. The building in Berlin had all of the windows painted white to

act as a diffuser, which may not be practical for you. Instead, you can place

a white cloth or paper sheet in front of each window to keep the light from

looking like a point source. All of the lamps should be similar to ensure

uniform illumination of all of the “pixels.”

In the Berlin project, each relay was connected to the control floor via a

cable. All the cables came together in a huge bundle of cabl ...