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We can do it!
08/20/2014 at 06:00 • 0 commentsI created the circuit design below specifically for a circuit building workshop I run in Chicago at Pumping Station: One. I made cuffs for the participants on my knitting machine before the workshop. During the workshop, we learned about electronics and circuit design. Then the participants soldered their choice of LEDs onto the bracelets.
Afterwards, I asked participants to send me photos of them with their finished cuffs. Angeleah Daidone sent me the Rosie the Riveter self portrait-- you rawk, Angeleah!
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Knitted Circuit Diagrams
08/16/2014 at 16:48 • 0 commentsI've been working on the best method to diagram knitted circuits. So far I've been able to use the PCB view in Fritzing to create this image. Thrilled to see that they added lilypad components to their library for pcb view. Fritzing support suggested I use a pin header symbol as a stand in for the knitted stitches, to use the schematic view, so I may play around more with that, too.
This is the circuit as a traditional schematic.
The circuit can be built on a knitted circuit board made with this pattern.
And if you've got a knitting machine, this file loaded on the machine will knit the pattern.
I'm working on an instructable that goes into the details of this design. Plus I'll be posting it on Hack A Day as part of my entry for the Hack A Day prize. -
Diagramming Circuits with Fritzing
08/14/2014 at 17:55 • 0 commentsI sent Fritzing an email about using it to diagram knitted circuits:
From: Jesse Seay (jeseay@colum.edu)
via fritzing.org contact form
I've created a method to knit circuit boards and I'd like to make a circuit diagram that connects to the knitted pattern. Details of my knitted circuit are here on Instructables.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Knit-a-Working-Circuit-Board/
I've been experimenting with Fritzing and something like the pads in the PCB view would work well. The problem is, the pads aren't visible in the diagram view, only the pcb view. Can this be changed?
If not, can you send me info/cost on getting this created? Also, do you have any discounts/funds for artists/educators? (I'm an artist and professor at Columbia College Chicago in USA).
thanks,
Jesse -
Diagramming the circuit
08/14/2014 at 17:44 • 0 commentsIn order to share circuit patterns, this really needs a method of superimposing a circuit diagram over a knitting chart. I'm thinking Fritzing would be a good way to go. I've never designed a part for Fritzing before, but I've got a pretty good sense of how the part would need to work:
- Users should be able to define the stitch height and width (like defining the size of your breadboard)
- There should be a default stitch pattern grid, that allows you to easily erase/create stitches as you create your board.
- You can place components on the chart, and they will "click" into place.
That's the basics. What would make it completely awesome:
- You could define the size of the stitches, to create an "actual size" diagram that will allow you to see how the components will fit into the space.
- You could export the knitted pattern only:
-- as a graph (for hand knitters)
-- as a b/w bitmap with 1 pixel = 1 stitch, to make it easy to upload to a hacked knitting machine