Smart Coffee Table

Project:

I would like to note that this project was the first time I was exposed to any kind of coding. Not only did I have to learn how to code, I also was exposed to microcontollers for the first time. The goal was to have a more exciting coffee table. I wanted it to be able to display the time along with built in games. I felt that it would be an exciting addition to my college dorm.

Special Thanks:

Soldering Help: Sawyer

Wood working tips: Cordell

My Role:

I did all the design work and programming.

What I learned:

This was the first time I had ever programmed something other than a simple HelloWorld.c. This is where I started to grow an interest and embedded systems. This project taught me that I was a capable programmer and embedded platforms was a good fit for me.

Code:

I used the FastLED library. I highly recommend that library because it is easy to use and has a lot of fun sample code to play with.

The code provided will not work correctly unless the buttons are configured correctly with the interrupt pins.

Link to arduino code: https://github.com/igneousstar/ledTable

System Level Diagram:

I used an old computer power supply to power everything. There are three groups of buttons and each group is set on a separate interrupt pin. The RTC is a real time clock that keeps track of the time and date. I used an arduino mega and 396 LED's.

Buttons:

I used the built in interrupt feature in the arduino library. However, an arduino mega has a limited number of interrupt pins available. So, each group of buttons is connected to an interrupt pin. The arduino has to detect which group of buttons is being pressed before it can move on to looking for individual buttons.

Mode and Action Buttons

Movement Buttons

Carving Out the Table:

I beveled out the section that I needed and that had a custom cut piece of glass fit into the table.