Help Needed - Custom Light Bar Project
Hello everyone! I am just getting started in the world of electronics, although I have been a techie for most of my life... I just recently bought the BASIC Stamp 2 Kit and have started doing some basic things with it... Where I am going with this is to eventually (hopefully sooner rather than later) build my own custom light bar for my storm spotting/chasing vehicle. Light bars are expensive.. and building my own will be fun and a learning experience as well as a lot cheaper... I hope. I'm looking for some input.. I have the basic program already written in my mind of how this will work.. but I'm not sure what all I need to be able to make this light bar a reality. This light bar will be inside the vehicle mounted to the windshield of my 1998 Chevy Blazer, possibly make a second light bar for the back glass as well. This Blazer currently has the factory console.. but seeing how much equipment I already have stuffed inside of it, I will probably be making a custom console for it so that my equipment can be arranged neatly. I already have a lot of flash patterns in mind, so far i have come up with ~15. I would like my flash patterns to be basically limitless in how many I can have. This light bar will be 50" long with 48 LEDs spaced 1" apart. Each LED needs to be able to light independently. Even though it will increase cost, I would like to use RGB LEDs so that if I ever wanted/need to I could re-purpose this as a first responder light bar.
Keep in mind I currently do not know much about this stuff, and I will be learning along the way..
So.. I need suggestions on the following:
What micro controller should I use? I have a lot of outputs that all need individual control... I really like the simplicity of the Basic Stamp 2, but know that this big of a project will likely be a lot more complicated.
Housing? For controller as well as the physical light bar. Controller will be mounted in/on console away from light bar. I'm thinking a light weight wood to make light bar housing?
What should I use to select flash pattern? Individual buttons, a key pad? I'm thinking key pad so that I could just type a number in for the flash pattern, that way the only limits are in the programming and hardware of the controller.
For the controller unit I would like to have a quick disconnect of the light bar(s) that way I can take the controller out and hook it to the computer rather than drag the computer to it.
Heat dissipation... I would assume a small fan or two would help the micro-controller out in staying cool and prolonging its life? Should the light bar also have a couple small fans? I don't expect LEDs to put out much heat, but like I said I am new to all this stuff.
I would like to have an LCD screen on the controller to tell which flash pattern it is flashing. I know Parallax has these, I haven't bought one and played with it yet though..
For first responder mode.. I will have a keyed switch that the program reads whether it is on or off when the light bar is initialized and uses the correct programming accordingly. The plan for my light bar is to use it as a possible demo unit and if first responders in my area are interested then maybe go in to making these in my spare time and selling them for a little extra money if this project comes out as nice and neat as well as cheap as I am hoping for.
All help is greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance,
Cory
Keep in mind I currently do not know much about this stuff, and I will be learning along the way..
So.. I need suggestions on the following:
What micro controller should I use? I have a lot of outputs that all need individual control... I really like the simplicity of the Basic Stamp 2, but know that this big of a project will likely be a lot more complicated.
Housing? For controller as well as the physical light bar. Controller will be mounted in/on console away from light bar. I'm thinking a light weight wood to make light bar housing?
What should I use to select flash pattern? Individual buttons, a key pad? I'm thinking key pad so that I could just type a number in for the flash pattern, that way the only limits are in the programming and hardware of the controller.
For the controller unit I would like to have a quick disconnect of the light bar(s) that way I can take the controller out and hook it to the computer rather than drag the computer to it.
Heat dissipation... I would assume a small fan or two would help the micro-controller out in staying cool and prolonging its life? Should the light bar also have a couple small fans? I don't expect LEDs to put out much heat, but like I said I am new to all this stuff.
I would like to have an LCD screen on the controller to tell which flash pattern it is flashing. I know Parallax has these, I haven't bought one and played with it yet though..
For first responder mode.. I will have a keyed switch that the program reads whether it is on or off when the light bar is initialized and uses the correct programming accordingly. The plan for my light bar is to use it as a possible demo unit and if first responders in my area are interested then maybe go in to making these in my spare time and selling them for a little extra money if this project comes out as nice and neat as well as cheap as I am hoping for.
All help is greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance,
Cory
Comments
There are lots of options available to drive LEDs. I personally prefer (since I know how to use them) 74HC595 shift registers.
I don't use the Basic Stamps much myself so I'm not sure if they could handle this project or not. I'm sure this wouldn't be any problem for a Propeller chip.
I've done a few LED projects with the Prop myself. Here's a link to a project with 120 LEDs I use to display text, patterns and video (at very low res).
I've also done a small RGB project with five RGB LED (this project isn't documented).
If the current demands of your LEDs aren't too high you can use the normal shift registers I linked to above. High current LEDs would require high current shift registers. The high current version can only sink current so you'd need to plan your wiring accordingly.
I'm not sure I've seen light bars like the ones you describe. Do the LEDs point in or out of the vehicle? How bright do they need to be?
I don't think you'll need to worry about the keeping the microcontroller cool; they don't produce much heat. The LEDs might get warm depending on how bright they are. If you're going to use just normal 5mm LEDs, I doubt heat will be much of an issue.
I'd suggest getting a QuickStart board, some RGB LEDs, some 595 shift registers and start playing. Gadget Gangster has a nice little proto board they give away with QuickStart boards they sell (see post #1 of my index for link (see my signature for link to index)).
LCDs can be either serial or parallel. The serial only require a single I/O pin and are easy to use but they cost more than parallel LCDs. Parallel LCDs cost a lot less than serial LCDs but require more pins (I'm not sure how many, five or six, I think). I don't think it would matter much in this case which type you use.
Besides buttons or keypads, there are also rotary encoders that can be used as an input device. Parallax sells one and SparkFun has several different versions, including one with a RGB LED to illuminate it (this might be a good match for your project). The SparkFun encoders have a built in push button which is very useful IMO.
The LEDs point outwards. I'm planning on using some high power LEDs because I want them to be really bright.. bright enough to clearly see them in the day light.
Good Luck
Ross