A Cyberpunk-inspired Watch, boasting a Wraparound-style display, mirrors a real-life Matrix prop accessory
In a thrilling display of DIY ingenuity, creator Sahko has unveiled an extraordinary wearable tech creation – a flexible wraparound watch that embodies the spirit of the Matrix aesthetic.
The watch is a unique piece of kinetic art, featuring 15 small alphanumeric LED dot-matrix displays integrated along the strap. These displays, arranged in a band, draw about one amp at full brightness but are designed to save power, with the default state being off and buttons to activate and adjust brightness levels.
Sahko's watch boasts a flexible PCB design, meticulously prototyped by measuring the wrist with paper strips to ensure comfort and aesthetics. Despite the challenges, the designer managed to optimize the electronics, switching from a Raspberry Pi Pico to a compact, power-efficient STM32U083KCU6 microcontroller to save space and battery life.
The watch's design, with its amber LED matrices and retro-futuristic cues, seamlessly blends vintage display technology into a modern, flexible wearable format. One of the watch's animations even resembles the code rain from The Matrix, adding to its cyberpunk allure.
However, the watch's development was not without hurdles. A significant technical challenge was the power supply instability, which caused the displays to reset randomly when all pixels lit simultaneously. This issue was resolved by adding a power stabilization capacitor manually soldered after initial PCB manufacture.
Despite the watch's impressive features, it experienced a few setbacks. During the weekend at Open Sauce, the watch's flexible design led to multiple breaks and repairs. The power source for the watch was also repurposed from a battery from a disposable vape.
Sahko has made the designs and code for the watch available online, encouraging anyone who is interested to build their own version. However, due to its high cost and unreliability, the creator has decided not to sell the watch as a kit.
In summary, Sahko's project is a cyberpunk-inspired, flexible-display digital watch with animated capabilities and carefully optimized electronics. Its detailed build process and animations are documented in Sahko's first YouTube video for this project, showcasing the DIY ethos behind it.
The flexible wraparound watch by Sahko, a unique amalgamation of technology and art, showcases integrated alphanumeric LED dot-matrix displays, transforming it into a wearable gadget that deserves attention at events, embodying the cyberpunk aesthetic. The design challenge of power supply instability in the watch was resolved by adding a power stabilization capacitor and reinforcing the flexible design for durability.
