ECE 4760: Final Project

Digital "Etch A Sketch" Glove

A Wearable Reinvention of Your Favorite Children's Toy

Austin Lee (akl52@cornell.edu)

Andrew Bryan (amb493@cornell.edu)

Jonya Chen (jc957@cornell.edu)

Introduction    

For our ECE 4760 final project, we designed, constructed, and tested a glove-operated system that dynamically simulates the classic toy, Etch A Sketch, on a TFT LCD screen.

In deciding what to build, our team wanted to create a device that would utilize several of the technologies overviewed in the course, in a fun, creative way. Introduced in 1960, the Etch A Sketch is an easily recognizable toy that anyone can enjoy interacting with, while showcasing some artistic ability. Our design achieves a user-friendly, low-cost simulation of this product, programmed onto a PIC32 microcontroller unit. Since our output is displayed onto an LCD screen, we also implemented multiple color modes.

A photo of our completed project is shown below:


Glove Controller with PIC32 and LCD

Since its invention, the Etch A Sketch has made its place in homes all over the world, and it is identified by all age groups. The toy has made its mark on film industry, with several appearances in the Toy Story trilogy. Furthermore, Etch A Sketch was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame in 1998 and has been listed as one of the 100 most memorable and creative toys of the 20th century. We decided it would be interesting to recreate it.

That being said, Etch A Sketch is a trademarked product, and we are in no way related to Etch A Sketch or related entities.

Etch A Sketch in Toy Story 2