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Laser Tag
A project to build a DIY Laser Tag system based on the r0ket badge. This is a follow on from the original Camp 2011 project.
Contact: User:robfitz
You can see a picture of the prototype m0dul for 28C3 at Laser Tag m0dul v0.8 prototype.
Contents |
Timeline
Pre 28C3
???
Day 0
I assembled the first 0.8 receiver board, it was very straight forward. The transmit code needed to be updated to use the correct timing for the header/space/digit pulses.
We did some basic distance tests between a r0ket and laser tag transmitter and a r0ket and receiver board. We successfully tested the range across A05/A06 (about 17 meters) and A02 (about 48 meters). The led/tube alignment seemed to be very good without much spread of the beam. At very close range (a couple of meters) the receiver would trigger from reflections off the ground,
The next step is to generate audio output when firing and being hit. I assembled a breakout board for the ISD1740 which should allow suitable recordings to be made.
Day 1
I spent all of today trying to get the ISD1740 working. The datasheet from Nuvoton for the ISD1700 parts doesn't included any SPI programming information. Luckily a leaked version of an old Design Guide 1.31 is available from sites like [1].
Unfortunately the ISD1700 is very hard to use and the Design Guide is ambiguous on some very important points. From my reading, internet searchers and tests, it uses LSB first message format and SPI Mode 4. So after many hours of experiments I've managed to record some sound and play it back.
While talking with someone in the HAA he suggested just using a SPI DAC to drive the speaker, like the MCP4822. Having reflected on this I think it's a better option. The size of the ISD1740 0.6 inch 28 pin DIP gives me a lot of room to make a replacement add on board containing a MCP4821 and related components to drive the speaker.
Tomorrow I'll make up another prototype so I have something else to shot.
Workshop
Day 4 - 2011-12-30 Friday - 12:00 to 14:00
This workshop is for those interested in developing a DIY Laser Tag system based around the r0ket badge. We will solder up a development PCB which can be used to play a basic game of Laser Tag. Materials provided include PCB, electronic components, battery holder, lens and tube; requires 4 AA batteries and a r0ket badge.
Traditional Laser Tag systems can only use the IR modulation for point-to-point communication or point and shot game play. But the mesh networking provided by the r0ket badge could allow for a much more enhanced game play similar to multi-player computer games. Hopefully participants would be interested in working on these software improvements.
Workshop cost: €40
Location: Huge Hardware Hacking Area A05/A06
Number of participants: 20
Not suitable for inexperienced solders.