Inexpensive design for an Interactive Whiteboard

[rrichmond]

Couldn't find a better place to add this so here it is....

Hi everyone,

Well I thought perhaps I might share a nifty little device I have come across with the rest of you.

We have been purchasing Promethean Interactive Whiteboards, and they work very well for the purpose they were designed for.
I like browsing sites like Instructables - The World's Biggest DIY & How To Show & Tell as there are always ideas that get you thinking.

Anyway, I found this site: Low-Cost Multi-touch Whiteboard using the Wii Remote - Instructables - DIY, How To, tech


YouTube - Low-Cost Multi-touch Whiteboard using the Wiimote


The genleman, Jonny Lee, has found a way to use the Nintendo Wii remote with a IR Pen and an external USB Bluetooth device to use ANY surface as an interactive whiteboard (Desk, Whiteboard, Walls etc....).

In the video he shows a projector on a stand with a bracket he made for the Wii remote to hold it (Needs to be offset at around 45 degrees from the board so you don't get in the way of it). The image is projected onto a plain old wall, and later he projects the image onto his desk and uses it this way.

I visted Dick Smith Electronics (In Australia, sorry to you guys in the UK.. I am certain you will find the same thing over there) and purchased this device: DSE USB Bluetooth Dongle (XH1202) - Dick Smith Electronics - Australia. (On sale @ $39.95 at the time) (Cat # XH1202) and then purchased the software update for $15 - $20 AUD from BlueSolei (had some problems with the older version that comes supplied with the device - you can use the new version as a trial, but it is limited to a small data transfer).

You need the BlueSolei software to pick up the Wii Remote easily, altough there are some who have been able with their internal devices. I wanted it to be simple no matter what PC I was at.

I then made a Pen very similar to this: Instructable for IR pen Parts cost around $20 AUS (I bought some extras to muck around with).

The Wii remotes cost around $70 AUS for those ho don't own a Wii already.....

I then hooked it all up to a projector and plain old whiteboard. The result was very good. If you consider that the resolution of the Wii remote is not very high (1024 x 768 I heard??) the device works very well.

I have shown this to some of the staff, and they were all very excited about it, and the possibilities it offers. I thought perhaps some of you may be interested. I would be interested to hear any other stories you have seen or heard as well as any pen designs you may come up with.

We were going to try a thick pen case and use a AAA battery in one end with a button the same as this (The button I mean): http://undcon.com/mods/irpen/tn_img_9645.jpg (Currently we have an external battery on it which makes it a little hard to hold).

I hope this get some of you thinking about other ways they can be used, or even perhaps ways to get the remote mounted or ways to make an IR pen.

Thanks

[dhicks]

If you consider that the resolution of the Wii remote is not very high (1024 x 768 I heard??) the device works very well.

I was under the impression the vertical resolution was rather less, although I'm damned if I can find exactly how much on Google. 400-odd pixels?

--
David Hicks

[rrichmond]

I was under the impression the vertical resolution was rather less, although I'm damned if I can find exactly how much on Google. 400-odd pixels?

--
David Hicks

You might be correct.....

[rrichmond]

Here's a "how to" I made for building the IR Pen:

I also placed the article Here
A lot of the ideas came from the wiimoteproject site.

I have noticed some great ideas here, and some very good ideas on making your own IR Pen.
Most people I have seen here do not live in Australia, and hence you can never be sure where to go to get the components you need.

I thought it would be an idea to show you all what I built and the basics of how I did it.

This is the end result:



The components you'll need are:

1. 1 x Pack of "Misty Markers" available from KMart For around $3.00 (6 Pack is what I purchased - They come from Hunter Leisure )



2. 1 x Infrared Light Emitting Diode from Dick Smiths $1 (Cat No. Z3235) ->> View Here

3. 1 Pack of wire - will last you ages..... $4 (Cat No. W4010) ->> View Here

4. 1 x Various Heat Shrink tubing from Disk Smiths - will last a fair while (Cat No. W4060 ) $8.99 --> View Here

5. AAA NiMH Rechargeable battery x 2 - $12.99 Important to use rechargeable as the voltage is 1.2V. View Here

6. "AA" Battery holder - S6155 (Used for battery terminals) View Here

7. SPDT Mini Micro Switch - P7802 View Here

8. Araldite singles - Available at Bunnings Hardware. 3 small packs x 1mL




You will also need a soldering iron and some solder. I also used some helping hands ( View Here ) and a Hobby Rotary Tool ( View Here )


To Make the pen:

1. Start by cutting the hole for the switch (When I build the next one I'll add some images). I used the rotary tool for this. Made the job very simple.



2. Using the rotary tool, make a hole in the the Coloured End of the pen, to fit the LED into (I mean the front of the pen. I burred a hole in the knob sticking out of the front of these pens. Don't take the knob off! Just use the arrow shaped burring tool to make the hole the right size).

3. Solder the Anode (+) wire (that's the longer one - Use the paperwork that comes with the LED if you need any more clarification) and make sure you remember to add a length of heatshrink tubing to fit over this wire and then over the anode after soldering.

4. Solder the Cathode (-) wire (that's the shorter one). (By the way, I had no need to cut either than anode or cathode. Just solder straight onto it). Then add heatshrink tubing over both the Anode and Cathode and using a flame, shrink the tubing.

5. Cut a very small length of tubing to cover the platic around the LED at the end.... you cant really see it clearly in the photo, but I have added this tubing over the end of the platic tube. Make sure you don't cover the LED. You need this part to be CLEARLY visible.



6. Push the LED into the casing and pull the wiring through so it is sticking out of the hole you cut for the Micro Switch.

7. Using a multimeter and the continuity switch on it, locate the two terminals that join when the switch is pressed. If you bought the switch from Dick Smiths, it will be the terminals marked C (Common) and NO (Normally Open). The NC (Normally Closed) terminal will NOT be used.



8. Solder a wire from the Anode (+) to the Common Terminal on the switch. Solder a wire onto the Normally Open wire.

9. Break open the "AA" Battery holder and remove the terminals from one end. Cut it in half. The Negative wire (Coming from the Cathode) will be soldered to the end with the spring on it. The Positive wire (Coming from the switch now) will be soldered to the other half.

10. Cut the ends of the terminals to fit into the clear part of the casing. You will want it to be a very tight fit, so it sits there by itself when pushed down.



11. Using the areldite, add some glue to the heatshrink tubing around the LED and then around the top of the switch so it does not fall in.

12. Once it has dried, Add some heatshrink tubing over the switch cutting a small section out so it does not effect the button on the switch. Using a flame, shrik this tubing.

Done!

It should be quite simple to replace the battery, and being that it's rechargeable, will make is life span greater. I'd like to modify the battery holder a bit, but as yet, I have been unable to locate a thin AAA batter holder. Do you know of any ??

I used the USB Bluetooth Dongle from Dick Smiths as well. It comes with Bluesolei Software and is pretty much ready to go. I did however purchase the upgrade on their internet site, as the new version worked much better under Windows Vista.

[laserblazer]

Neat. By having using an lcd monitor with a dual output to a projector, the teacher could work facing the class and not get in the way of the screen.

[rrichmond]

Neat. By having using an lcd monitor with a dual output to a projector, the teacher could work facing the class and not get in the way of the screen.

Yes..That's a great idea!

[stratisphere]

Hey,

I tried this out a few weeks back... very successful! I had several ICT classes invade my room (a small room!) to see it working.

My pens were a bit more... makeshift (i.e. hot glue was holding the whole thing together and the parts were from dud VCR remotes we had lieing around). But it works very well.

The only problem i found was that you have to re-pair the wii mote every time you switch it back on.

[stratisphere]

Oh, and the wiimote was mounted to the projector with velcro... seemed to work! :P