Truck bling

content/blog/2022-09-06-truck-bling/index.md

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+---
+date: "2022-09-06T12:11:00-0600"
+title: Truck bling
+url: blog/2022-09-06-truck-bling/
+---
+
+Yesterday,
+one of $CHILD's friends from dance drove up so I could help her bling out her truck.
+We used WS2811 LED strings with adhesive backing.
+I flashed a Seeeduino Xiao with CircuitPython,
+set up an example program,
+and let the two of them go nuts writing light animations.
+
+Then we went out and stuck the stuff to the truck,
+reinforcing it with zip ties for when the adhesive inevitably loses its grip.
+The moms braided some wire into 3-connector cables,
+the friend soldered a bunch of stuff together,
+and we plugged it in.
+It friggin' worked!
+
+{{< video "truck-bling.m4v" "Pickup truck with color-changing ground effects">}}
+
+The really cool part, at least for me,
+is that now she can hang out with her laptop in the cabin,
+reprogramming her ground effects to do whatever she wants.
+Like, with a Chromebook, even.
+Or a mobile phone.
+CircuitPython is crazy inefficient,
+but it made this stuff so easy.
+
+Phase 2 is going to be getting a Bluetooth Adafruit chip,
+setting it up to pair to their phones,
+and then letting them control the color and pattern with a cell phone app.
+Then we'll be able to relocate the chip under the hood by the 12V battery,
+and route wires in a better way.