3D Projector and System

I finally got the new 3D projector and system up and running in my house. Out with the old 780 with 35Mh how I have an Optoma 3D projector with 1080i, a radio glass synchronizer, Philips 5.1 surround sound and 3D blu ray player. The quality is amazing!

So how does this work.

Screen

      I am still using  the 12' nylon pull down screen. it is not the best, but for the money it is great.

Projector

      The projector is an Optoma HD3300 Full HD 3D Projector. The stats are off the charts and it is an extremely at home being ceiling mount. The best feature is it will auto identify a 3D HDMI feed. This is what most people complain about. It takes a rocket scientist a crazy amount of time to connect the 3D. With this system it is really plug and play.

HDMI

     The HDMI cable may seem a simple item but if you are going to be running 3D HD signal through it you need a good cable. make sure it is 3D ready.

3D Blu Ray

     The 3D blu ray player is needed. the normal blu ray player will int play 3D movies. I have the 

Philips Hts3541/F7 5.1 Home Theater 3D Blu-Ray Player, and I could not be happier. I just connect it through HDMI and it all ran the first time I plugged it in. Great audio quality and easy to run. I switched out the center speaker as I had a better one already and instant heaven!

Glasses

     I have two diffident glasses for my system. The newer version (top) and the older version (bottom) both give a great quality image, great rechargeable battery life, and are very comfortable for their weight. The newer ones fit better over someones existing glasses, but the older version gives a better field of view.

RF transmitter.

     The projector doe not have an internal RF transmitter so you would need to purchase  an external transmitter. The one I have is made by Optoma and connects well. This tells the eyes of your glasses when to turn on and off to give you a clean flow of the image. you can use DLP glasses and not use this, but the quality suffers and you can easily lose the synchronization. The bit more money is worth every penny.

Mobile Light Lab

Mobile Light Lab

For some time now, I have been wanting to teach lighting position and colors at Maranatha. We do not have enough space or money for a full room setup that will let us teach lighting. A few years ago, I saw a nice rig at USITT that would only take up the corner of a room, but even with that we do not have the space. I needed to come up with a solution that could be packed up and moved quickly, and it would have to cost under $200.

Here is my solution.

Now we can teach angle and color. Hopefully we can soon teach focus and patterns too.

Bouncing Carriage

Bouncing Carriage

For Mystery of the Yellow Room we had to build a carriage that would bounce along as 4 people rode on it. The director wanted a little more than the benches, but it had to bounce with out the actors doing the bouncing. The solution, motorcycle springs.

With two platforms separating 6 springs we were able to make 800lb bounce just like the horse was pulling. A crew member would  hide behind the contraption making it bounce and also allowing it to roll on and off without a complicated automation system.

Welding Fun

Welding Fun

Ok I know this is not my normal weird stuff. But it is a skill I have come to enjoy and love. Here are a few examples of a project I did last semester.

Here is a planter that was made to blueprint design for a class. I got to use MIG and Stick for this as well as bending and shaping.

Here are ladders made for a show last year. It was interesting to get to weld with tube of different sizes and some solid stock.

Black LED

Black LED

One problem the stage has is you ca not see in the dark when you have been staring at stage lights. We often put glow tape on things so you can see spots of light and have an idea of where the edges of items are but they do not work back stage as you cannot see them after five minutes or so. Also, if you have a light of any other kind the audience can see it. The one exception though is black light. As along as the actor is not wearing white black light will not reflect. The actor can see it but the audience cannot. With a black light LED and a watch battery you can now place them anywhere.

They lasted us for a 2 week run and were just as bright as new. You can also build them into the set so that you can only see the LED. These increase safety and actor trust these adding a lot to a back stage.

Cozy MK IV

Cozy Mk IV

I thought it was time to introduce you to my long term project. This will take me the next 3-5 years. I am building an airplane that will seat 4 and can cruise at around 200 with a range of about 1000. It is made from fiberglass and foam. So far I am working on the bulkheads. Here is one that is completed and mine will look very similar.

Here you can follow the actual progress in video form.

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdmlpE4notq3nKadHLQMxOw

Here is the last video I put up.

I will keep you all up to date on how it goes. Let me know if you have any questions.

Combination Tire and Cable Drive Motor

Combination Tire and Cable Drive Motor

For Music Man, I had to make a drive motor capable of driving three fully loaded revolves for under $100. The 3/4 horse motor and VFD were pulled from an old AC unit the school no longer needed. The tire and belts came from the bus barn and all the unistrut and threaded rod came from past shows. I only had to buy a few cables and pulleys. I geared it down to about 30 RPM on the tire and was able later to drive a twenty foot, two ton revolve for Christmas Carol. The control pickle was able to start, stop, set clockwise or counter-clockwise, and had an Estop. Later, I wired it with limit switches that would flip to automatically stop it at the appropriate time.