Wargames WOPR computer (smaller scale)

[HCP]

Well, i have been a long reader of this site and i thought its time to show this one off.

Please note that this is work in progress, its not done yet and im still working on it

So, Wargames from 1983 is probably not news for anyone. I love that movie and have been wanting a WOPR for a long time.
Then i was thinking, how about making it smaller to fit my desk?
And the idea was born! Size is about 45x35x40 centimeters. About 1:50 in scale.

I´m actually putting a real computer inside this one, so its not only a replica, its a computer also for my daily use.

You guys who are professionals in building stuff, please forgive me for mistakes and things i do wrong, i do test stuff what will work or not and as you see later in the pics, i need to redo them
From the start, it may look a bit messy until i get all the parts and stuff together

And of course it will have all LED´s and LED-patterns almost 100% replicated, i spent hours and hours writing down flash-patterns to come up with a driver for it. (11 channels with independent delays in flashing, and one channel handles ~50-120 LED´s, 1400 totally)

If someone dont know what the WOPR is.
War Operation Plan Response

And here goes a picture-bomb, i´ll put in some describing text later

 

[Snow Builder]

Outstanding! Subscribed.

 

[DocNewborn]

Very original idea! I loved WarGames and I love the fact it will have a real computer inside it.

Will your password be Joshua? Or perhaps that pesky launch code?

Can't wait to see it all finished, be sure to shoot some video of those LED's blinking.

Alex

 

[dereference]

Awesome looking forward to seeing the progress.

 

[HCP]

Very original idea! I loved WarGames and I love the fact it will have a real computer inside it.

Will your password be Joshua? Or perhaps that pesky launch code?

Can't wait to see it all finished, be sure to shoot some video of those LED's blinking.

Alex

Yeah, i made a little HTML script to run on LAN events and such when showing it, like the game menu from the movie.
It also have the low humming noise the WOPR have in the movie, run from a small MP3 player with a speaker i will hide somewhere to get the feeling

The launch code was a cool idea, i´ll look into it, some kind of count-down when its finding the launch code at the end of the movie.

I also making the Defcon panel, like below, but i havent decided yet if i go with the order of the movie, or the real order of Defence conditions, its backwards in the movie.

 

[Megamicrofish]

I may have to steal this idea.
Brilliant so far:thumbsup

 

[HCP]

I may have to steal this idea.
Brilliant so far:thumbsup

Yeah, steal it. Would love to see more WOPR´s out there
I was suprised it wasnt much to find, only found som small resin replicas and not so accurate 3D models.

 

[HCP]

If someone is interested in how i found the LED patterns, and how i put it all out there.
Its 1300 LED´s just in the panels around it.
I didnt want a christmas light with random flashing, i wanted it to flash 99% of what it does in the movie.

All LEDs are put in "clusters" with 30-130 LED in each cluster, i then spread one cluster in different locations on the LED panels, to get the correct LED lit right when they suppose to be lit

Here´s how it works.

RED - cluster 1
BLUE - cluster 2
GREEN - cluster 3
YELLOW - cluster 4
And so on.

The clusters contains both yellow and red LED´s and have their own specific location.

Each (except for two, one always lit, one always off) clusters get lights on for X milliseconds, X is different for each clusters of LED´s and all this together gives the nice blinking and lightshow on the WOPR

This work, to find what color goes where, wich led is lit togheter wich others, their speed and location and so on took me a month.
But, after i tried to just do some random blinking, it didnt look right, so i got stuck in perfection
I have about 35 of the pics below, each containing the ~1400 leds in different modes. + a layout for what color goes where.


This do not represent the colors on the LED panels, just a color-mark to wich cluster goes where!
(and this is only 1/8th of one panel, its three on the model )

 

[Megamicrofish]

Did you have the metal LED grills made or did you fabricate them yourself?

 

[HCP]

Did you have the metal LED grills made or did you fabricate them yourself?

I created the files and sent them to a cnc-cutter. But now i have my own CNC so i can do it myself.
I tried to replicate the ammount of LED´s and their spacing as far as i could, think it worked pretty good
Nedded to make a smaller horizontal space between the rows, but ammount of LED´s and how they are spread out is 99% correct.

 

[HCP]

Current status, its bondo time.

Tonight i tried to get the shape of the "tower" 100% but whatever i did, it didnt look right.
Until i cut a inch from the length, then the tower fit and all proportions is 90% spot on.
I have some strange thing with the tower, it looks too wide, but really isnt too wide.
So now i have cut the length, made a new tower piece and bondo it all over.

Alot of sanding to do before i put on some primer to check all small spots to fix.
Right now it looks like crap, but you guys who seen the WOPR probably can visualize it

This is the back part with the opening for the motherboard of the computer. To the left im gonna have the harddrives and the water-cooling aswell as electronics for LED´s and sound.
While the bondo dries, its time to make the left panels ready. I want it standing by itself today!

 

[CB2001]

Awesomeness! Glad to see you working on Joshua.

 

[HCP]

Well, i got stuck in the workings with the WOPR, when i was looking at it, something was off, dimensions didnt add up.

Last weekend i decided to make big changes. When i first started the case project i used a noname Sketchup model that i refined to what i was thinking looked good by watching the movie.
I have cut the case on the width, and the length and got changes going for the "tower" atleast 5 times.
Now, i found that some proportions, angles were off from the real model.


So, last weekend, i decided to...
Start over...
Well, not really, i keep the lower part and just remaking the top part, in acrylic instead of styrene plastic. Better strenght and also better base to put paint on later.
All electronics and LED-panels will still be used.


After two weekend of working, this is where i am at now.
Rocks on pretty sweet, i have done this one time before and knows what troubles i had last time. So putting all together goes really quick. Cutting all pieces took most of the time.
Right now its just a matter of putting all pieces together, and plan for the insides (as it will be a fully working computer)


(Sorry for the mess, i cant clean the desk just for some pics )


The WOPR 2.0


I started off with a frame and some quarter pieces of wood.

Frame and side pieces holding the LED-panels are done.

The current status. Held together with some tape.

 

[Rallen]

Whoah very cool! Always wanted to see something like this done. WarGames is one of my favorite movies.

 

[sgtpepper1138]

Excellent work, any new updates, HCP? I was just talking to my son about wanting to make a miniature replica W.O.P.R, but a real computer, and then ran into this a while later. I would like to make it my NAS box, most NAS boxes are pretty boring, this would be pretty amazing.:cool BTW, do you have dimensions of yours, or the original prop?

 

[HCP]

Excellent work, any new updates, HCP? I was just talking to my son about wanting to make a miniature replica W.O.P.R, but a real computer, and then ran into this a while later. I would like to make it my NAS box, most NAS boxes are pretty boring, this would be pretty amazing.:cool BTW, do you have dimensions of yours, or the original prop?

Not much to show yet. Got some sponsors for harware and waiting for delivery on that.
Next weekend im on it again and putting all walls together.

I made a sketchup-model of the measurements i got from people who had info about it and scaled it down to desk-size.
There is a sketchup model in the Sketchup model library, but its full of faults and errors so do not use that one if you want to make a correct replica
I can share my measurements when i find the model again. Would love to see other WOPR´s too out there !

 

[samuraicode]

I've always wanted a WOPR. Any updates on this or links to your Sketchup model ?

 

[PHArchivist]

G'dammit I'd **** on the spark plug if I thought it'd do any good...!

 

[HCP]

I've always wanted a WOPR. Any updates on this or links to your Sketchup model ?

Mostly been fiddling around with the LED-stuff this spring and trying to solve the issue to get into the hardware for upgrades and whatnot.
I tend to move to another project when i get stuck, and then come back again after a project-vacation
But the WOPR has suffered enough now, will be completed this summer!

I will release my data on the size and details when i know its correct, right now i change stuff almost every week by watching the movie and notice something is off.

 

[PHArchivist]

This is just a prototype for your future 1:1 model, right?