Originally Posted by
Ultra
I found the features list I posted a couple months back, I'll just edit it to reflect the current design. Please ignore the inevitable typo
Jumperless board
Every option on our board is controlled through the switch and the saber "talks" you through the options in a soothing female voice. It's very nifty and sets our board apart from anything else out there.
Sound board basics:
Ignition sound, retraction, idle hum, impact, motion sounds . You can hear the demo a few posts up.
Sound board details:
Motion and impact detection don't rely on simple vibration switches and ball-bearing switches. Instead, a single velocity sensor is used to detect both motion and impact based on speed. For motion sounds, the board modifies the idle hum dynamically based on the speed of the saber. Either the pitch, volume, or a combination is modified based on velocity.
//change in design from previous design doc//
the motion sounds are now augmented with additional algorithms to make the motion sound more apparant whereas before I thought the motion sounds were too subtle.
//---------/
Our sound mixing is very advanced as well, the board fades one sound into another and fades the sounds in and out so they don't sound recorded. If you change directions rapidly and then hit something, it's combined into a smooth sequence. The impact sound shuffle algorithm ensures that rapid successive hits will not repeat the same impact sound over and over.
On-board 1watt amplifier
It's loud. Like, really loud. If you're going to build a saber around this board, having a volume control might be a good idea. I know I'm going to install mute buttons in my personal sabers just so I don't wake up the whole house when I want to do some midnight spins.
4 different types of Luxeon LEDs supported
Luxeon III White, Blue, Green, Cyan, Royal Blue
Luxeon III Red, Amber, Red-Orange
Luxeon V and Luxeon V Portable (Lux V requires at least 7.2v input)
Luxeon K2 High Current White, Blue, Green, Cyan, Royal Blue
*note* Luxeon K2 Red, Amber, and Red-Orange are NOT supported until a high current version of those LED's are released
Selecting a Luxeon is done in the menu. During initial setup, the Luxeon is disabled until you select the correct type.
Pulse Mode
Gives the blade the "movie flicker" effect. This can be enabled and disabled in the voice menu.
Fade-on, Fade-off
When activated, the blade fades on, when deactivated, the blade fades off. This can be used in conjunction with a Corbin Film blade to give the illusion of an extension and retraction.
ADP - Accidental Deactivation Prevention
Another original UltraSaber design. The saber will turn on with one press of a momentary contact switch. It will stay on until the switch is held down for approx one second. Then it will turn off. This will help prevent accidental deactivation.
Requested Features that did not make it into this version:
Flash on Impact
This is actually more complicated to do than it sounds. The proper implimentation of this effect is to have the saber flash *brighter* upon impact, not dimmer. This requires the saber to under-drive the Luxeon and then spike the current when it detects a collision. This would also need to be user-selectable as alot of people would prefer their saber to be as bright as it can be all the time, not just during an impact. Every Luxeon color has a certain thresh-hold of luminosity where a spike would actually be noticed and that can also vary depending on bin code. There is simply no nominal code for that could be used universally to cover every luxeon type and color. For instance, you will notice a definate change in brightness if a blue Luxeon is spiked from 700ma to 1000ma, but you would not notice it at all with a green Luxeon. However, a Bin 6 blue would not show a 700ma to 1000ma spike nearly as well. So the menu would have to contain options for every Luxeon type, color, and bin code. Long story short, it would have required too much time and money to implement correctly. Not trying to make excuses, just
Selectable sounds
Very possible, however, not very feasible without a removable media option or USB interface option. Bottom line is, it's too expensive. This feature would have broken my price point, so it didn't make it into the board.
Ultra's recording of the ignition, hum, clash, and retract!
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