Fursuit Lighting and automation

Got a fursuit to show off? Want advice on how to make one or where to get one? Feel the need to share pictures of your new wolf T-shirt? What about cute plushie or pair of fluffy ears? This is the place.

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Randall
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Fursuit Lighting and automation

#1

Post by Randall »

In my magazine, one of the articles I want to do has to do with the application of LEDs (light emitting diodes) to illuminate or otherwise add effects to fursuits.

I know of at least one here that could benefit from this, so please let's discuss this here.
It doesn't matter how over-the-top the idea might seem, or a case of practicality, I would pull the stereotypical line here of "trust me I'm an engineer" BUT
in this particular case I more than likely can provide any kind of technology that one would need.

Many think that minor robotics is a bit far-fetched, but, it can be done. Things like eyelids, twitching noses, twitching ears, it all depends on how much space you give me to work with and how much money you want to throw at it.

Think about this carefully, this opens up a new door to exposure of others to the fandom, but it also means that you don't need to be afraid of realizing your dream.
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Tocs
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#2

Post by Tocs »

I'd love to but I have no money to throw so...
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#3

Post by Rakuen Growlithe »

Fursuit stuff in the fursuit area...

Of course it can be done. There's this amazing clip from Burning Man where a fursuiter has linked the lights in his suit to coincide with his movements.
https://youtu.be/oF4HQ7T0i7s?t=52s
Direct link to be at the right time.

Edit: Also worth remembering Lion of the Sun (http://www.lionofthesun.com/index.php) used to make suits with sound activated ears and night vision capabilities. The last post on their page was 2014 though so not sure they still active.
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Randall
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#4

Post by Randall »

Tocs wrote:I'd love to but I have no money to throw so...
LEDs do not cost the earth, and remember, this is DIY so.

Apologies for not posting in the correct section Rakuen but I was in a bit of a hurry.
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#5

Post by Adagio »

Randall wrote:
Tocs wrote:I'd love to but I have no money to throw so...
LEDs do not cost the earth, and remember, this is DIY so.

Apologies for not posting in the correct section Rakuen but I was in a bit of a hurry.
Yeah... But servos are about 300-500 bucks a pop... 3-4 servos? Excluding a battery and microcontroller.

It'd certainly be a fun project! I already got files for 3D printable parts...

And the best for fursuit applications would be EL wire... Or striplights...

Just making it glow. Easy!
Making it anamatronic... Hmmm... Bit less so...
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#6

Post by YoteFox »

Personally I am totally on board with this idea, I have been looking into adding LED lights to certain parts of the head for a while now, maybe even to the paw gloves claws etc.

But however this changes the ball game completely, the whole design of the head has to change. As it is right now there is enough space for a head inside and that is about it. I've watched many videos and read many articles about this. As Adagio said, the cost of servos is quite hefty, put that on top of the cost of a head and you'll be looking at over 10k a head just about. But I'd love to do my own prototype at some stage.

It's just that the foam is pretty static and make it move around too much and it will rip, fur is also quite static and getting the fur and foam to move at the same time is quite a mission since you'll need quite a strong power source. However I don't think this is impossible and I'm sure making a prototype of something like this can iron out most of the issues.

The thing I want the most is a animatronic tail, but yet again I'm no engineer my abilities goes as far as making the material into shapes and sewing them together to form some item of paraphernalia. One can always learn as well, that's how I got into fursuit making.

I'd love to hear from the engineering geeks here about this, I'd be totally on board with this if we can maybe make a group project on this. But it will be expensive that I can assure you. However not impossible since nothing is impossible!
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#7

Post by Adagio »

YoteFox wrote:Personally I am totally on board with this idea, I have been looking into adding LED lights to certain parts of the head for a while now, maybe even to the paw gloves claws etc.

But however this changes the ball game completely, the whole design of the head has to change. As it is right now there is enough space for a head inside and that is about it. I've watched many videos and read many articles about this. As Adagio said, the cost of servos is quite hefty, put that on top of the cost of a head and you'll be looking at over 10k a head just about. But I'd love to do my own prototype at some stage.

It's just that the foam is pretty static and make it move around too much and it will rip, fur is also quite static and getting the fur and foam to move at the same time is quite a mission since you'll need quite a strong power source. However I don't think this is impossible and I'm sure making a prototype of something like this can iron out most of the issues.

The thing I want the most is a animatronic tail, but yet again I'm no engineer my abilities goes as far as making the material into shapes and sewing them together to form some item of paraphernalia. One can always learn as well, that's how I got into fursuit making.

I'd love to hear from the engineering geeks here about this, I'd be totally on board with this if we can maybe make a group project on this. But it will be expensive that I can assure you. However not impossible since nothing is impossible!
Currently, I am working on an anamatronic tail! :D
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#8

Post by YoteFox »

I have a concept, well I was given a concept however the necessary plastic things we needed is not available in SA market. BUUUUT with a 3D printer, the world's your oyster
I'd rather be fursuiting

Suit up and it will make you feel better
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People get built different. We don't need to figure it out, we just need to respect it. Maybe he likes his company more than I like mine - Princess Bubblegum
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#9

Post by Leeward »

Personally I'd be keen on some controllable eyelids (not sure how you'd activate them though... button to bite on?), but otherwise there isn't much to illuminate or animate on my character.
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#10

Post by Raven Song »

We have several fursuiters here in London with led lighting in their suits (be it eyes, ears, tails, pads etc...) It's quite fascinating. I actually want to ask them where they source it from...
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#11

Post by Adagio »

Leeward wrote:Personally I'd be keen on some controllable eyelids (not sure how you'd activate them though... button to bite on?), but otherwise there isn't much to illuminate or animate on my character.
Can trigger then with an proxitity sensor on your own?
I have the files for these too...
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#12

Post by Sev »

Rakuen Growlithe wrote:Fursuit stuff in the fursuit area...

Of course it can be done. There's this amazing clip from Burning Man where a fursuiter has linked the lights in his suit to coincide with his movements.
https://youtu.be/oF4HQ7T0i7s?t=52s
Direct link to be at the right time.

Edit: Also worth remembering Lion of the Sun (http://www.lionofthesun.com/index.php) used to make suits with sound activated ears and night vision capabilities. The last post on their page was 2014 though so not sure they still active.
Wow, that light show was pretty neat.
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#13

Post by Animew »

forget twitchy tails and quirky ears! DUDE, i'm thinking full body exoskeleton! mobility augmentation! lasers!
i was building a killer combat fursuit a while back, it had good speed and endurance. was lacking in armor a tad but i was building it from junk i found so you can’t really blame me. unfortunately i had to sell it as scrap metal but if i can get my paws on aluminum steel and some assorted electronic components i can build it a new! <_< i'd probably have to borrow a workshop to machine the parts, but i still have the schematics! ...initial concept sketch...
leg.jpg
...only for the legs apparently... <_< they kind of turned out different when i actually built them tho... the hip joints really strained the servos on the torso so i redesigned it as i built it. but it can be drawn up again!
friends, furs, and countrymen! let us build the fursuits of tomorrow, today!
Randal san, could you get components for cooling systems?
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Randall
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#14

Post by Randall »

I can get anything, the issue is, as always, revolved around money.

With regards to lighting, do any of you know what a light pipe is and how it works?
Are you also aware of plastic multimode fiber optic?
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#15

Post by Animew »

aluminum/copper tubing? about 10mmØ or so? folks tend to think you're gonna make hooch when you buy tubing, but whatcha think 2M of it could cost about? also i recon you can get any variety of extension springs? i mean when you say "I can get anything" i'm assuming not ANYTHING but just mechanical parts? if you could get fluorine gas and various chemicals it would be really cool since folks generally don’t sell the kind of stuff i wana buy. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ especially not to nutters like me.
would you charge me a consultancy fee if i gave you a big list O stuff and asked what the prices of these things would be?

I’ve never really put a lot of thought into lighting O_o but aren’t light pipes those metal ducts you put in your house to illuminate dark corridors? would that even work in a fursuit? i guess if there was a smaller ersion you could use it to light up your suit but won’t you need to be in sunlight for it to work.. and wont the sunlight kinda cancel out the lighting effect when you are outside?
but the fiber optic sounds pretty good, \(>ヮ<)/ FREAKING LAZERS BRA!
Duck face? i thought they were all just making fart noises when posing for pictures...
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Rakuen Growlithe
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#16

Post by Rakuen Growlithe »

To refresh this topic, there is an Australian fur at LSF who gave a whole talk about adding lights to fursuits and things you can do with them. For example he has a button in his nose that makes his glasses (which are all LEDs) light up and say "boop" when it's touched. His tail is also Wi-Fi enabled and allows anyone to control the brightness and colour of the LEDs. It's way out of my area of familiarity but it seemed quite simple to actually set everything up. If you're interested he would probably be a good person to contact. And, if you just want to fiddle around on you own, he left a list of recommended parts to starting out on the LSF forum: http://forum.lakesidefurs.at/viewtopic.php?p=734#p734
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Randall
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Re: Fursuit Lighting and automation

#17

Post by Randall »

Thanks, within the makerspace it is now easy to get everything one could ever need.
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