Brain Machine - Adafruit Industries · PDF fileThe Brain Machine! Another great ... DIY...

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Brain Machine Created by lady ada Last updated on 2016-09-09 08:31:52 PM UTC

Transcript of Brain Machine - Adafruit Industries · PDF fileThe Brain Machine! Another great ... DIY...

Page 1: Brain Machine - Adafruit Industries · PDF fileThe Brain Machine! Another great ... DIY electronics stores. Soldering iron ... Place the PCB in a vise (if you have one), and turn on

Brain MachineCreated by lady ada

Last updated on 2016-09-09 08:31:52 PM UTC

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Guide Contents

Guide ContentsOverviewExplore altered states of consciousness

The Brain Machine!Another great project from Mitch Altman

Make it!How to:

PreparationPrepTools

Parts listCheck your kit!Parts list

Solder it!Glasses!

Use it!What does the Brain Machine do?How to use it!Battery Life

DownloadFiles!Overlays

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Overview

Explore altered states of consciousness

The Brain Machine!

Relax and rejuvenate as your brain synchronizes to a wonderful meditative state, and enjoyas you hallucinate beautiful colors and patterns from your subconscious mind!

The Brain Machine provides you with a fun, easy way to meditate, all the while being veryphotogenic! They work with lights and sounds that pulse at a 14-minute-long meditationsequence of brainwave frequencies. Your brain synchronizes to this meditation sequence,and you meditate. It's that easy! And the beautiful colors and patterns you vividly imaginealong the way make it fun and enjoyable.

Build your own Brain Machine to expand your brain's technical skills, then lean back andenjoy the light show. They are a blast at parties, a fun way to practice meditation and tripout. The Brain Machine works with blinking lights. Be aware that blinking lights are not good forsome people, especially those prone to seizures!

Another great project from Mitch Altman

TV-B-Gone (http://adafru.it/c1w) inventor Mitch Altman first created the Brain Machine

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when he thought to himself "What would happen if you could play a recording of brainwaves into someone's brain?"

Being a skilled inventor and engineer, he decided to make such a thing himself! Using amicrocontroller (a small programmable chip) he created a pair of glasses that blink LEDs atthe same frequencies as brain waves. The result is a "Sound and Light Machine" - wearingthe glasses often induces colorful hallucinations while in use, a sense of relaxationafterwards and, are a fun 14 minute brain trip.

He published this first design in Make Magazine (http://adafru.it/c1x) and it was an instanthit with hundreds of people building their own.

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Now, we've partnered with Mitch to make an updated Brain Machine kit - easier to build,and comes with all the parts you need. Pick one up at the Adafruit shop to build your own.

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Make it!

How to:

This kit is pretty simple, but you should follow these steps fully so that you'll have noproblems!

1. Tools and preparation (http://adafru.it/c1y)2. Check the parts list (http://adafru.it/c1z)3. Assemble the kit (http://adafru.it/c1A)

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Preparation

Prep

Learn how to solder with tons of tutorials! (http://adafru.it/aTk) Don't forget to learn how to use your multimeter too! (http://adafru.it/aZZ)

Tools

There are a few tools that are required for assembly. None of these tools are included. Ifyou don't have them, now would be a good time to borrow or purchase them. They are veryvery handy whenever assembling/fixing/modifying electronic devices! I provide links to buythem, but of course, you should get them wherever is most convenient/inexpensive. Manyof these parts are available in a place like Radio Shack or other (higher quality) DIYelectronics stores.

Soldering iron

Any entry level 'all-in-one'soldering iron that you might findat your local hardware storeshould work. As with most thingsin life, you get what you pay for.

Upgrading to a higher endsoldering iron setup, like theHakko FX-888 that we stock in

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our store (http://adafru.it/180), willmake soldering fun and easy.

Do not use a "ColdHeat"soldering iron! They are notsuitable for delicate electronicswork and can damage the kit(see here (http://adafru.it/aOo)).

Click here to buy our entry leveladjustable 30W 110V solderingiron (http://adafru.it/180).

Click here to upgrade to aGenuine Hakko FX-888adjustable temperature solderingiron. (http://adafru.it/303)

Solder

You will want rosin core, 60/40solder. Good solder is a goodthing. Bad solder leads tobridging and cold solder jointswhich can be tough to find.

Click here to buy a spool ofleaded solder (recommended forbeginners) (http://adafru.it/145).

Click here to buy a spool of lead-free solder (http://adafru.it/734).

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Multimeter

You will need a good qualitybasic multimeter that canmeasure voltage and continuity.

Click here to buy a basicmultimeter. (http://adafru.it/71)

Click here to buy a top of the linemultimeter. (http://adafru.it/308)

Click here to buy a pocketmultimeter. (http://adafru.it/850)

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Flush Diagonal Cutters

You will need flush diagonalcutters to trim the wires andleads off of components onceyou have soldered them in place.

Click here to buy our favoritecutters (http://adafru.it/152).

Solder Sucker

Strangely enough, that's the

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technical term for this desolderingvacuum tool. Useful in cleaningup mistakes, every electricalengineer has one of these ontheir desk.

Click here to buy aone (http://adafru.it/148).

Drill

Either a hand-drill, cordless,bench, or whatever you've got! A13/64" drill bit is perfect but a littlelarger is better than a littlesmaller.

Hot air

You can get hot air from a hairdryer, hot air gun, or even alighter (be careful if you're usinga lighter!)

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Hot Glue Gun. Or white glue, oreven tape.

You'll need this to attach thepaper to the glasses, fix theLEDs in place, etc.

Helping Third Hand WithMagnifier

Not absolutely necessary but willmake things go much muchfaster, and it will make solderingmuch easier.

Pick one uphere (http://adafru.it/291).

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Parts list

Check your kit!

Check to make sure your kit comes with the following parts.Sometimes we make mistakesso double check everything and email [email protected] if you need replacements!

Parts list

Image Name Description Partinformation

Qty

IC1Microcontroller(preprogrammed whenpurchased in a kit)

ATTINY25V-10-PU

(unprogrammedwhen notpurchased fromAdafruit)

1

IC1' 8-pin socket Generic 1

X1 Stereo headphone jack STX-3100-5N 1

R-LED,L-LED 5mm Diffused Red LED Generic 2

R3, R4 1/4W 5% 47 ohm resistor Generic 2

R1, R21/4W 5% 2.2K resistor

Red, Red, Red, GoldGeneric 2

C1, C2

1.0 uF electrolyticcapacitor

6V or greater voltageGeneric 2

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rating

ON/OFF 6mm tactile switch B3F-1000 1

ICSP

6-pin ICSP header

For advanced users whowant to reprogram themicrocontroller. Don'tsolder in until then!

Generic 1

BATT 2 x AAA battery holder 1

PCB Circuit boardAdafruitIndustries

1

Over-ear Headphones 1

Safety Glasses 1

Rainbow Ribbon Wire

The rainbow type makesit easier to keep track ofwires.

1 ft

4" Zip/wire ties

These are bonus parts, incase you need them forsecuring the electronicsto the glasses.

2

Heat shrink tubing 1/16"diameter

4"

Paper Overlay 1

AAA batteries 2

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Solder it!

First! Check the Bill of Materialsto verify you have all the partsnecessary to make thekit (http://adafru.it/c1z).

Place the PCB in a vise (if youhave one), and turn on thesoldering iron. Make sure youhave all the tools you'll need toassemble thekit. (http://adafru.it/c1y)

If you don't know how to solder,we suggest checking out thevideos in the link above. They'requite good! Keep them in awindow so you can watch andreview as you work through thekit.

The first part we will place is theresistor R4 - this is a small ovaltan thing with two wires (leads)

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and color stripes. The stripes areyellow violet black whichindicates a 47 ohm resistor. Thisresistor is used to set thebrightness of the lightbulbs (LED)for the right eye. A smallerresistor (less resistance) wouldmake the LED brighter. A largerresistor would make the LEDdimmer.

The resistor goes right in themiddle, over the silkscreen texton the PCB that says R4.

Resistors are non-polar whichmeans they don't have adirection: you don't have to worryabout putting it in 'backwards'because they work the sameeither way.

Bend the resistor into a stapleand slip it onto the top of thePrinted Circuit Board. Bend thelittle leads out so that you can flipover the PCB and the resistor willstay in place.

Now you'll solder! Place the flatof the soldering iron tip againstthe silver ring (pad) and one ofthe wires of the resistor (lead) atthe same time for 2 seconds.This will heat them both up to600-700 degrees. Then poke theend of the solder so that it flowsinto the hole and forms a solderjoint.

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Solder joints should be smoothand shiny and fill the entire pad,wicking up to the lead. youshouldnt be able to wiggle thewire and have it move in the hole.

Once you are happy with the firstsolder joint, solder the otherresistor wire.

You can zoom in by clicking onthe photos for a bigger look.

Now we will get rid of all thatexcess wire. Use your diagonalnippers to clip the wire just abovethe end of the solder joint. thereshould be almost no 'wire'sticking out.

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There are another 3 resistors andwe'll finish them all up. Placeresistor R3 (another 47 ohmyellow-violet-black) resistor rightnext to R4. This is the resistorthat sets the brightness for theother eye's LED.

Then place both R1 and R2 theyare both 2.2K resistors (red-red-red). These resistors set theloudness of the earphones foreither ear. Using a larger resistor(more resistance) would makethe volume quieter. Using asmaller resisor would make thevolume louder.

Remember it doesn't matterwhich way you place eachresistor since they are non-polarized. Place them flat againstthe PCB and bend out the legs.

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Solder all the pins of the resistorsto the circuit board.

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We'll clip the leads again, so thatthey don't short or interfere withanything else.

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Next is the tactile button that isused to tell the microchip in thekit to turn on and off. The buttonis also nonpolar (it's just amechanical switch) so you cantput it in 'backwards' It shouldsnap into place right next to theON/OFF silkscreen label on thePCB.

If it doesn't fit, turn it 90 degrees.

It should snap into place and sitflat against the circuit board.

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Solder in all four legs of thebutton. Use plenty of solderbecause the button needs to bestrongly attached to the PCB or itwon't work.

You don't need to clip the leadsof the button as they are alreadyshort.

Now we will place the chipsocket. A socket is a protector. Incase you want to replace the chipor it gets damaged, orsomething, it's important to haveit in a socket. That way you don'thave to permanently solder in thechip.

The socket has a little U in oneend. The U should match the Uin the silkscreen image printed on

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the PCB. In this photo the U is onthe right.

If you mess this up, don't try todesolder the socket, instead justkeep going and remember that itis upside down later when it'stime to install the chip - the U isjust to help you place the chipproperly.

The socket doesn't have longleads to bend, and it doesn't snapinto place nicely. You can tape itto the PCB or if you have sharpfingernails you can sort of bendtwo corners in and it'll keep inplace while you solder.

You might want to start bysoldering two corner pins. Thiskeeps the socket on straightwhile you do the rest.

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Solder all 8 of the pins of thesocket.

Now we will do the bigheadphone jack. This is themechanical connection from thechip in the brain machine kit to apair of standard 3.5mmheadphones.

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The jack will only fit one way. Itmay snap in or you may want touse a piece of tape to keep it inplace.

You can also hold one fingeragainst the jack while you soldera single pin.

Once one pin is soldered rightyou can continue.

The headphone pins are a bitlong, if you can, clip them down abit (but cover the pins as you clip,'cause you don't want them flyinginto your eye).

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Next are the two electrolyticcapacitors C1 and C2. Thesehelp smooth the output of themicrocontroller audio generationto make it less squeaky.

Electrolytic capacitors arepolarized and must be placedcorrectly or the circuit will not

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work. The longer lead is thepositive (+) one and must go intothe pad marked with a + asshown.

Once you've placed thecapacitors in the right way, checkthem against the photo on theleft, you really want to make surethat the capacitors are in right orthey won't work well!

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Solder in the capacitors and clipthe long wires.

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Now we can place themicrocontroller chip. This chipholds the brain machine programand is 'burned in' here at theAdafruit factory.

The chip has a small black dot inone corner. This small dot shouldbe positioned towards the U inthe socket (if you placed thesocket correctly). Make sure thatwhen the PCB is oriented as inthe photo on the left, you can seethe little black dot on the chip atthe lower-left, and the text is'right side up.'

You may need to squeeze thepins together a little so that theyslide into the socket.

When the chip is placed right, itwill seat nice and snug into thesocket.

(Optional: if you think you wouldlike to re-program your Brain

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Machine's microcontroller, solderin the 2x3 pin socker into the 6pins marked "ISP" on the PCB.Be sure to place the short leadsinto the PCB.)

Now you can do a test! This testwill check that what you've doneso far worked out well.

Make sure you don't havebatteries in the battery holder.Take the battery holder red andblack wires and thread themthrough the holes near the chipthat say Battery next to them.make sure the red goes in thehole nearer to the chip with a +(plus/positive) on it and the blackwire goes through the holenearer the chip with a -(minus/negative) Now bend thewires around so that the silverends go through the solder padsright next to the holes. Don'tsolder these in! Just have thempress-fit there. Click on the phototo the left if you need to see abigger version of the photo.

Plug the headphones all the wayinto the jack. Put the headphoneson.

Put the two AAA batteries intothe holder in the right way. Nowpress the ON/OFF button - youshould hear tones in both ears.

Now that you've done the test,remove the headphones. Takeout the batteries and put the

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battery holder away.

Glasses!

Now we will prepare the glassesfor the project. We like thesedark-tinted safety glasses. Youcan use nearly any plasticglasses.

You'll want to mark where yourpupils are. If you have a friend,ask them to mark X's directlyover the middle of your eyeswhile you wear the glasses. If youdon't have a friend handy, tryyour best to get the X's right inthe middle of the lens.Alternatively, you can print outthis convenient glassestemplate (http://adafru.it/c1B) -- Xmarks the spot! (This templatewill also be helpful for cutting outthe decorative trippy graphicslater.)

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Now we'll drill out the holes forthe LEDs to fit in. We used13/64" drill (0.20 inches / 5.2mm)with great success. You can alsotry a 3/16" drill bit (5mm) but itmay be a little small.

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We'll need to wire up the LEDsand batteries to the PCB usingwires. While you can use anywires, we like the rainbow ribboncables. Each wire is a differentcolor and the wires are 24 AWGstranded. If you don't use theribbon cables try to get thin wiresfrom somewhere else.

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One nice thing about the ribboncable is that if you clip the wiresat the end, you can 'tear' offstrips.

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Use the clip and tear technique topull off three strips of two wireseach. One is red/brown, anotherorange/yellow and the last pairgreen/blue.

Next we will split and strip thewires, twist them and finally tinthem!

First, use the nippers to notchthe orange/yellow pair and tearthem apart about 1" (2cm).

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Strip the wires about 1/2" (1cm)away from the end, using anykind of wire strippers. If you messup and cut the middle wires, justcut the wires short, tear themapart and try again. You have alot of wire so there's plenty topractice with.

Once you have the wiresstripped, twist them with yourfingertips to keep the wirestrands together.

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Now we will tin the ends of thewire. Wire needs to be tinned tomake good contact. Tinningbasically means melting a littlesolder onto the wires before we

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attach it to something else. Itkeeps the strands from flyingaround and also makes for bettersolder connection.

We'll use a 3rd-hand tool to holdthe wires steady. Melt a littlesolder onto the iron tip. Use thesoldering iron side to sweep thewire strands while also meltingsome more solder on. You willsee the solder wick into thestrands and strengthen the wire.

Now we will wire up the LEDsthat blink in front of the eyes.LEDs are Light Emitting Diodes -the light emitting part is prettyeasy to understand. The Diodepart is a little more difficult, butbasically a diode is a componentthat only works 'one way'. Like

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the capacitors, we have to keeptrack of which pin is which or theLED won't turn on and light whenwe want it to.

The good news is that if youpower an LED backwards,nothing bad will happen todestroy it (it just won't light up).

For LEDs, the longer lead ispositive.

Cut tbe shorter wire of the LED(negative lead) so that only about1/4" (half a cm) is left.

Then tin it just like you did withthe wires, so there is some solderon the wire lead.

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Because there is already solderon the LED and wire, you shouldbe able to hold the yellow wire tothe short lead and heat it up withthe iron and they'll melt togetherand hold.

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Clip the remaining LED wire andsolder the orange wire to it.

When both leads of the LED aresoldered you can go back andmelt more solder over them ifthey're not solidly connected (butbe sure to hold the wire in placeas you solder, or it will fall off).

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Now we'll do the other eye's LED.Cut, strip and tin the green/bluewire pair just like theorange/yellow.

Solder the blue wire to thepositive (longer) LED pin and thegreen wire to the negative(shorter) LED pins.

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Finally, bend both LEDs (gentlyand only once) so they are atright angles to the wire. It doesn'tmatter which way they are bent.The easiest way to do this is tohold the LED in one hand anduse a finger to bend the wires.

Now we'll attach the LEDs to theglasses!

Place the orange/yellow LED inthe left eye and the green/blueLED in the right eye drill hole. Besure to push the LEDs into theglasses from the front (so theywill shine in to your eyes).

Use tape on the opposite side tokeep the LEDs in place.

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Use hot-glue, white glue, epoxy,silicone adhesive, rubber cement,or your adhesive of choice, toglue the LEDs into place from theinside.

We think hot-glue or epoxy willwork best. Superglue may notwork, be careful not to glueeverything!

If necessary glue on the back(outside) as well - especially if

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the hole is large enough that theshoulder of the LED goesthrough.

Now it's time to extend thebattery pack!

We're going to stick the batterieson the right-side arm of theglasses to balance out the PCBon the left. Problem is, the wiresaren't long enough to reach allthe way. So we're going to makewire extenders!

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First thing, cut two pieces ofheatshrink, at least 1/2" (1 cm)long and slip them onto thebattery pack wires - we'll usethem later.

Take the third wire-pair(red/brown) and strip/tin it onboth sides just like you didbefore.

Solder the red wire to the redwire of the battery pack.

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Next solder the black wire to thebrown wire. Make sure the heatshrink is on the battery packwires but out of the way so youdon't accidentally heat them upbefore it's time.

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Once the wires are soldered, slipthe heatshrink so that it coversthe soldered joints.

Then heat the heatshrink withsomething hot. You can use a

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heat-gun, hairdryer, solderingiron (rub gently), or even a lighteras long as you don't catch thewhole thing on fire (stay a fewinches away).

The heatshrink protects the wiresand keeps them from shorting toeach other. It also makes thesolder joint stronger.

Squeeze a big blob of hot glue

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on to the left arm of the glassesand stick the battery pack on,making sure that the wires fromthe battery pack are facing thefront of the glasses.

IMPORTANT: Fold the arms ofthe glasses before gluing in thefollowing steps.

Use tape to attach the red/brown,orange/yellow and blue/greenwires to the top edge of theglasses so they run together.

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As in the photo, make sure thatthe arms of the glasses arefolded, and use your adhesive ofchoice to glue the wires to thetop of the glasses. The tape willkeep the wires in place while theglue hardens.

Turn over the glasses, we'll begluing the PCB to the right arm --but not yet!

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First we will solder the wireharness to the PCB.

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Start with the two power wires(red/brown). Place the PCB onthe arm, maybe use tape to holdit in place, and cut the red/brownwire pair so that you have plentyof wire to solder it to the Batteryterminals (but not so much it's abig mess) -- about 2" extra lengthis sufficient. (I cut it a little shorterthan necessary, give yourselfplenty of space!)

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Cut, trim, split, strip and tin thewires. Then slide the Red wirethrough the hole marked +(positive, plus) and the Brownwire through the hole marked -(negative, minus).

Then bend the wires into thesilver pads.

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Solder the Red wire to + and theBrown wire to -.

You can do a quick test now byputting AAA's into the holder andthe headphone into theheadphone jack. You should beable to hear the tones when youpress the ON/OFF button.

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Cut the Orange/Yellow andGreen/Blue wires so that there isplenty of slack for them to reachthe LED solder holes on the rightedge of the PCB. Be sure tohave enough wire so that youcan fold the arms of the glasses.

Cut, trim, split, strip and tin thefour wires.

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Insert the wires as follows:

Yellow -> L-

Orange -> L+

Blue -> R+

Green -> R-

Use the same over-undertechnique to place the wires. Thistime, don't solder them in yet!We'll do a test to make sure wehave the right polarity. Insert AAAbatteries and press the buton,you should see both LEDs blinkred. If one does not blink, tryflipping the wires between the +and - pins in case it's inbackwards. If so, just solder inthe wires so that they work, don'ttry to desolder the LED.

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After you've tested the board,remove the AAA batteries andsolder in the four wires.

Cut the excess leads from thefour wires.

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Now we'll attach the PCB.Spread some hotglue, epoxy,silicone adhesive, etc, on to theright arm.

Then press the PCB on so thatthere's enough wire slack for theglasses to fold. (If you like, youmay use the included zipties tohelp secure the PCB to theglasses.)

OK you're done with building theBrain Machine kit...now you can

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decorate it!

We included a trippy colorgraphics overlay for you to use.We have other designs you maylike on the downloadpage (http://adafru.it/c1C), orexperiment with whatever youhave around the house!

If you print out this convenientglassestemplate (http://adafru.it/c1B) itwill make it easy to cut out theoverlays to glue on to the front ofyour glasses. And, if you usedthis template to drill the holes inthe glasses, the template willalso show where to cut holes (forthe LEDs) in the overlay.

You can glue the overlay on tothe glasses using hot glue, oryour adhesive of choice. (Beaware that the overlay will not lieflat on the glasses due to the

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curvature of the glasses.)

Now you are ready to rock out,read the user manual for tips onhow to best-enjoy yourkit! (http://adafru.it/c1C)

Don't Forget: The BrainMachine works with blinkinglights. Be aware that blinkinglights are not good for somepeople, especially those proneto seizures!

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Use it!

What does the Brain Machine do?

The Brain Machine provides you with a fun, easy way to meditate, all the while being veryphotogenic! They work with lights and sounds that pulse at a 14-minute-long meditationsequence of brainwave frequencies. Your brain synchronizes to this meditation sequence,and you meditate. It's that easy! And the beautiful colors and patterns you vividly imaginealong the way make it fun and enjoyable.

How to use it!

Using the Brain Machine kit is easy!

1. Put on the headphones and glasses2. Close your eyes gently3. Press the ON/OFF button on the right side PCB4. Meditate, Hallucinate, and Trip Out and enjoy, with your eyes gently closed the entire

time, for as long as you like.5. The Brain Machine will automatically turn itself off when the trip sequence is

complete.6. If you want to stop the sequence early, just press the ON/OFF button again (or just

remove the headphones and glasses).

The Brain Machine works with blinking lights. Be aware that blinking lights are not good forsome people, especially those prone to seizures!Some peoples' eyes are more sensitive to bright lights than others. Using the BrainMachine should be a great experience. They should also be comfortable. If the blinkinglights are uncomfortable for you, then there are two ways to reduce the brightness to makethem less intense:

If at any time you want to make the experience less intense, simply slide the glassesdown your nose until you feel comfortable.Use every-day masking tape to cover the red LEDs to make them less bright. Justkeep putting tape over the LEDs until they are not too bright.

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Battery Life

The Brain Machine Kit comes with 2 AAA standard alkaline batteries. These should last forhundreds of trip sequences. If you ever need to replace the batteries just use any AAA'sfrom the store. The brain machine works fine with low cost 'economy' batteries so you don'tneed to spend a lot for the expensive batteries.

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Download

Files!

You can get the latest schematics, board layouts and firmware from the githubrepository. (http://adafru.it/c1D)

Overlays

Snazzy up your brain machine with the original graphix overlay or many other 60's styledesigns you can print and use (http://adafru.it/c1E).

There are also some templates that may be handy for drilling the eye-LED holes:http://www.tvbgone.com/mfaire/slm/GlassesTemplate1.pdf (http://adafru.it/c1B)

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