The Ray Blaster
by Ryan Skelton
2022
The Ray Blaster is an interactive movie prop or display piece, it is a prop that is pleasing to look at, as well as providing a satisfying interaction.
The sound, vibration, and lighting feedback when the trigger is pulled gives the user a reactive experience with The Ray Blaster. This is achieved by using a DFPlayer Mini for sound files, a LilyPad Vibe Board providing haptic feedback, and a NeoPixel Strip for lighting up the barrel. Further enhancing the interaction, tilting The Ray Blaster reloads it once it is empty. The aesthetic style of The Ray Blaster is based on Retro Sci-Fi or Atompunk, the distinct shiny red colour, and rounded design is used commonly within this style. The Ray Blaster could be used in movies of similar aesthetic style or collectors of retro sci-fi items.
Credits
Thank you to:
Anne Niemetz – Lecturer
Phoebe Zeller – Temporary Lecturer
Zed Ng – Tutor, Assistance
Greg Skelton – Assistance
Sound sampled and modified from freesound.com under Creative Commons 0 License.
https://freesound.org/people/Astounded/sounds/479353/
The original plan was to use 3D printing to create the 'shell' of the blaster. However, due to a lack of experience in 3D printing and time constraints, the shell was created using PVC pipe, a hacksawed plastic egg, and a gutted toy gun. I was able to implement all the functional features I wanted, but if I did this project again I would take the time to clean up the shell.
Initial Concepts
