Vew
Member
That's what the math says, you're using one of those tiny batteries that go in like older car FOB remotes, right? That's a tiny battery with a LOT of LEDs.
Tron Legacy Costume
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That's what the math says, you're using one of those tiny batteries that go in like older car FOB remotes, right? That's a tiny battery with a LOT of LEDs.
thecountofzero
Active Member
I'm using one of these:
Ligher battery GP 23 - 2 pk : | RadioShack.com
Can you recommend another small battery I could put in there that would last longer?
Thanks.
thecountofzero
Active Member
colonelmasako/vew,
I need to check the measurements, but what do you think about one of these batteries for powering my disc?
HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store : Turnigy 500mAh 3S 20C Lipo Pack (USA Warehouse)
HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store : ZIPPY Flightmax 500mAh 3S1P 15C (USA Warehouse)
Thanks.
I need to check the measurements, but what do you think about one of these batteries for powering my disc?
HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store : Turnigy 500mAh 3S 20C Lipo Pack (USA Warehouse)
HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store : ZIPPY Flightmax 500mAh 3S1P 15C (USA Warehouse)
Thanks.
Canobi
Sr Member
Hi there.
Just a quick one to help out.
If you use two N type batteries and wire them in parallel (negative to negative/positive to positive) you keep the same volts but up the amps. I used this technique for my disc and it was still usable for weeks without replacing the batteries. I just have to point out that it wasn't on the whole time, but I had still managed to used it for more than a couple of hours on several occasions.
Here's a wiring disgram for the Blade lights I followed (sorry, its sideways):
The strip lights in the diagram show a quick connect. If you don't have one on yours just make sure the red and black wires are connected correctly to the strip. It's a pretty easy guide to follow and I'm not that good at the engineering side of electronics myself and still managed.
I hope that this is of some help
Have fun
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Vew
Member
It doesn't say how many mAh hours your batteries are. I can only assume 33mAh to 55mAh which is about a minute or two. Assuming you can get 500mAh batteries to fit in your disk, it'll yield you about 15 minutes. Your biggest enemy is your current draw. I estimated 2A with 100 LEDs (unless I made another mistake again :$). That's a lot for something that's only going to be battery powered.
Did you try seeing how long one of those batteries last? Can't be much more than a minute.
If I were you, this is what I would do. I prefer the cheap/non shipping route since we're only a few days away. See if you can fit 8 AAA batteries in any place they can possibly fit in your disk and close properly. Face them all in the same direction. You're going to make yourself a disposable battery pack. When you wire these 1.5V batteries in series (end to end), the voltages will add up and give you 12V with 8 batteries.
This is the part that I really don't recommend people doing unless they know what they're doing. You've learned to properly solder, now you're going to solder wires directly to the battery terminals themselves. Again, I really do not recommend people do this. I've done it before because I know what' I'm doing. The risks are.. well your battery exploding. Not fun. Start by cutting wires to length to bridge each battery. You're going to be making a circle. Remember, positive to negative. Heat it up only enough to melt the solder to the wire/battery. You want to avoid overheating as necessary to get the job done. With that being said, use the cheap solder (roslin). Silver requires too much heat to melt. Properly soldered, you should be able to give it a good tug and it won't break its connection.
When you're done, check your final voltage to make sure it's between 12-14VDC. If it's lower than 12, you may have destroyed a battery. Find the bad one and replace it. Now put hot glue or tape up the connections. We don't need any shorts in this Frankenstein of a battery you've just created. This will give you at least a half hour (with 1000mAh). Try to find ones that are higher, like 1200mAh if you can. You'll get a little more time out of them. If you're really nervous about this, PM me and I can call you. I'll walk you thru it.
Hell, if you can fit 8AA batteries in there, even better. You'd double your time to a bit over an hour.
Edit: or use Canobi's idea. Same concept, but with only having a minute of juice per battery, that's a lot N type batteries if you want more than a few minutes. On the bright side, you can change them on the fly.
Edit2: I guess I never asked how are you going to be using it? I'm leaving my disk on my back, so I need to have it last all night, or at least a couple hours before having to change the battery. If you're only going to turn it on the show it off, you might be fine with having to swap batteries more often. For example, the battery pack I made was designed to last 7 hours before I needed to go to my backup pack (robe battery pack).
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thecountofzero
Active Member
Hi there.
Just a quick one to help out.
If you use two N type batteries and wire them in parallel (negative to negative/positive to positive) you keep the same volts but up the amps. I used this technique for my disc and it was still usable for weeks without replacing the batteries. I just have to point out that it wasn't on the whole time, but I had still managed to used it for more than a couple of hours on several occasions.
Here's a wiring disgram for the Blade lights I followed (sorry, its sideways):
The strip lights in the diagram show a quick connect. If you don't have one on yours just make sure the red and black wires are connected correctly to the strip. It's a pretty easy guide to follow and I'm not that good at the engineering side of electronics myself and still managed.
I hope that this is of some help
Have fun
Are you saying that with 2 N-type batteries in parallel that you were able to leave the disc on for an hour or so continuously?
From the math, it seems this would only last for a few minutes.
thecountofzero
Active Member
I might try Canobi's idea, but not if it only gets me an extra minute or two per 23A battery.
Your Frankenstein battery idea is interesting, but I don't think it's in my skill set. Plus, given all the LEDs I've got in there, I don't have room for all of them batteries.
My other thought is that I might just wire the disc up to the battery that will be powering the suit. If I do this though I won't be able to take the disc off my back. Small trade off.
I've got a bunch of work to do on the suit (gonna put in a long night tonight to put a dent in that work), so I guess I'll think about it as I go.
Also, still might try one of those batteries I asked about above. If I only turn it on for a little bit at at time. 15 minutes "might" be ok.
thecountofzero
Active Member
I ordered one from Aradani the other day.
Disc Holder Mount
You'll probably have to do the rush shipping if you need it ASAP
Vew
Member
I'm assuming he has less LEDs in there than you do. I think he just meant in his case, it helped double his runtime. It'll be interesting if you can get that other battery pack to fit.
The best route is to use Li-ion batteries. They have a high voltage (3.7V) so you end up using only 3-4 and the about the same mAh as a AA battery. Again, more ordering and now you have to mess with charging.
thecountofzero
Active Member
I am pretty sure I can fit another 23A battery in there. Dunno about those batteries I listed.
Not sure what I am going to do. Was so excited about the results of the disc and now am bummed that the coolness will only last for a minute. Might just wire the disc to the suit's battery.
thecountofzero
Active Member
mworley007
New Member
FINALLY, my Quorra is finished!! I can't believe it (I started in January and have done it a little at a time over the whole year). I wanted to thank everyone here for all the extremely helpful information, support, and inspiration! In the upcoming month, I plan to post a construction guide how I built mine, although everyone's is a little different of course.
Just wanted to share a few pics of mine - "TRON-ized" of course!
NOTE: Due to budget and time-constraints, I had to make several changes that make my suit NOT-screen accurate (the front, the leg, etc. - and I want to be a flapper for Halloween in the future, so I didn't cut the asymmetrical bangs on this beautiful wig! It was HARD to find a good wig at a reasonable price.)
All that aside, here are some pics of my Quorra costume, finished just tonight:
Turned the flash off for these:
Just wanted to share a few pics of mine - "TRON-ized" of course!
NOTE: Due to budget and time-constraints, I had to make several changes that make my suit NOT-screen accurate (the front, the leg, etc. - and I want to be a flapper for Halloween in the future, so I didn't cut the asymmetrical bangs on this beautiful wig! It was HARD to find a good wig at a reasonable price.)
All that aside, here are some pics of my Quorra costume, finished just tonight:
Turned the flash off for these:
Canobi
Sr Member
I'm making some CNC'd disc holders as soon as I can, but they won't be ready for Halloween I'm afraid.
Canobi
Sr Member
I think if I counted the time it was on all together, it would be about 4-5 hrs with no battery changes. It was on for two hours at a fancy dress street festival. Then for an hour and a half at a bonfire gathering at my mums house. Then for at least half an hour with my mates taking photoes of me with it on. I still had not changed the batteries when I eventually passed it on to someone else, and as far as I know they are still working. Plus I added the eight extra LEDs for the raised light bumps ne'er the centre of the disc on both sides as well.
I had no problems using the N type batteries and found them to be perfect for the job. I will say this though, the LED strip I used had both batteries to itself. The EL wire I ran on two AAA batteries.
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