How to power wearable LED's? (lots of LED's)

D33G33

New Member
Hi everyone,

Firstly really sorry if this isn't being posted in the correct spot I tried to look for a technical or ask for help section but didnt have much luck.

I am thinking about starting a project that involves a large LED array of 800-1200 RGB LED's. From my calc's of the 5v versions @ 55mW draw I will need somewhere between 50 and 70Amps and 250w-350w depending on how many LED's I use.

Run time can be minimal, (10mins would suffice) but gee that's a lot of power! I don't mind if its configured as a 'back pack' so long as its slim enough to wear comfortably under a T-Shirt.

I know it has been done with 760 LED's but I have no idea how and the creator is not really wanting to share any information. If anyone has any suggestions or trickery (converting 12v down to 5v for eg) for me with powering a large LED array it would be EXCEPTIONALLY grateful :)

Thanks everyone.

DeeG
 
You're making a deadmau5 head, aren't you?

PWM (pulse width modulation) is going to be your friend here. I'm going to assume you're running code to control these LEDs and you're possibly using a multiplex matrix? Even if this isn't a grid array, a matrixed set up is probably the way to go to address all those lights.

With an array, you're never actually turning on all the LEDs at once. I have an 8x40 set up in a helmet I built (320 LEDs, single color) but because of the programming and how the array actually functions, only one row will ever be illuminated at a time - that means, at most, I have 40 LEDs operating at once.

The trick here is the on/off PWM modulation cycles the LEDs so quickly that the human eye can't make out the transition, and interprets the bulbs all being on simultaneously (I think this is called persistence of vision)

With this sort of programming, a few hefty LiPo batteries will be able to run the array for a while. I have a 1150mAh 11.1V battery for my set up, and with the LED array, 30 solid-on full draw LEDs, two 30mm cooling fans and a voltage converter/arduino, I can get as much as 5 hours run time.

It's all in the code.
 
You're making a deadmau5 head, aren't you?

PWM (pulse width modulation) is going to be your friend here. I'm going to assume you're running code to control these LEDs and you're possibly using a multiplex matrix? Even if this isn't a grid array, a matrixed set up is probably the way to go to address all those lights.

With an array, you're never actually turning on all the LEDs at once. I have an 8x40 set up in a helmet I built (320 LEDs, single color) but because of the programming and how the array actually functions, only one row will ever be illuminated at a time - that means, at most, I have 40 LEDs operating at once.

The trick here is the on/off PWM modulation cycles the LEDs so quickly that the human eye can't make out the transition, and interprets the bulbs all being on simultaneously (I think this is called persistence of vision)

With this sort of programming, a few hefty LiPo batteries will be able to run the array for a while. I have a 1150mAh 11.1V battery for my set up, and with the LED array, 30 solid-on full draw LEDs, two 30mm cooling fans and a voltage converter/arduino, I can get as much as 5 hours run time.

It's all in the code.

Thanks Volpin,

Basically yes though I was hoping to use a LED controller instead of a Arduino or similar but this leaves me with an all on configuration, meaning massive power draw. I've been wanting to do this project for around 2 years now and I keep coming back to it. I thought using a LED controller like a T-1000S and LED edit I had finally found easy street, it seems not.

How do I go about looking into programming a multiplex matrix when the array is not 8*40 for eg?

Thanks for not shooting this down its actually given me some very useful direction. I've seen some of your work and its awesome.

Cheers,
DeeG
 
Volpin knows his stuff. I followed his Daft Punk builds with great interest, and plan on utilizing his technique for some artwork I want to do.
 
Another idea is to use individually adressable led's. Sorry i'm responding to this post kinda late, and you might have already found the solution. I am also working on an led deadmau5 helmet, and assuming that you are as well, this has been the best solution that I have found. By using an addressable led, such as the WS2812B, you can cascade the led's one after another. You may note that each led takes 24 bits of data to address all spectrum of light. Because of this, running a large number may prove difficult for fast moving animations. I would recommend to address them by row, and have a controller at each row. I hope this helps!
 
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