Published on 12, July, 2020
So, this is the Spoonicator V2... it's a thing I use to show my current 'Spoon' (energy/mood) level without needing to actually tell people how I feel.
I made V1 out of individual LEDs set into a laser-cut frame but I found a few problem with it (inconsistent brightness of LEDs, not visible in bright light, needed to be angled as the LEDs were very 'directional'
V2 uses short strips of LED replace the individual LEDs, plus laser-cut coloured plastic strips set into a 3D-printed chassis with the face at a 45 degree angle...
It's a bit bodged-together, but I've found it handy as a way to be 'mindful' of my own state of mind as well as to give others a clue so they are aware that I may be uncommunicative or may need a bit of 'time out'
That's clever. What are the responses like when you show it people?
My team at work loved V1, to the extent that one guy 3D printed the shell from a very rough initial draft I'd done of the design and another guy practically bit my arm off at the chance to use up some offcuts of coloured plastic to make the 'windows' on his laser cutter!
Also, in terms of practical use they were all "That's a GREAT idea! I could use one of those myself...!"
They were sad to see V1 go - but it was a bit ropey, they'll be thrilled to see V2.
The guy that did the 3D printing has a nephew who has ASD and he thought it would be useful for him as a way to be more self-aware as well as being able to communicate how he was dong when he was non-verbal...