The Raspberry Pi is a small, credit card-sized computer that powers the whole thing, displaying the Magic Mirror interface and running Jasper, the voice-control system. I also recommend a monitor with built-in speakers, but this is optional. I recommend an LED monitor for minimal power consumption, maximum crispness, and to prevent mirror glow at night. Order the thicker mirror option (3/16") to prevent a "funhouse mirror" effect. I ordered my mirror through Tap Plastics ( this one). The two-way mirror is made of acrylic and sits flush over the monitor, allowing the graphics on the monitor to shine through while maintaining a mirror effect. The attached highly technical drawing illustrates how these components work together. Did you enjoy my blog post? If you did and you want to show your appreciation, maybe click the coffee mug below and sponsor me a cup of coffee.There are four major components to the voice-controlled smart mirror. 5V Power Adapter for the Raspberry Pi (5€).12V Power Adapter for the Raspberry Pi (~ 20€).Here’s the complete list of parts I used for this build: However, I will do a more detailed blog post on configuration and software shortly. I used the same magic mirror software I found on the original blog post that inspired me.Īlso, the image is still oriented in landscape instead of portrait mode here. Connect your power adapters (Raspberry Pi and display driver board) and start it up. I might go for a more permanent solution here, but on the other hand: if you can duct-tape people to the ceiling it should be good and sturdy enough to hold a circuit board in place, right? Finally I put the driver board and the Raspberry Pi into the frame and again duct-taped them in place.Next, I put the monitor panel into the frame, covered the edges using a cut out cardboard (passe-partout) and duct-taped them onto each other.Since I had the mirror glass specially made (again: for just 20€!), it fit perfectly. Now that I had all the parts and a working proof of concept, I started putting the parts together: I started the project out using a Raspberry Pi Zero but later I decided to utilize my new Raspberry Pi 3 with regard to future plans I have for my magic mirror (computer vision, face detection. So make sure to check your options! You can either spend or save a lot of money on the mirror! I contacted several (around 10) companies asking for offerings and the price range was crazy! The most expensive one was around 130€ and the cheapest around 20€! I went straight for the 20€ mirror and I have to say it was a real bargain! Great, solid quality! Then I started looking for an actual two-way mirror. It was cloudy and the reflection was not clear at all. My first approach was using mirror foil and stick it onto the frame’s glass pane, but I was not happy at all with the result.įirst, it's really hard to apply this foil to a glass pane without causing any bubbles and ripples on the surface, which makes the mirror look cheap and crappy.Īlso, the actual mirror effect of this foil cannot be compared to a real mirror. This was a tough one and I spent quite some time on it since this is probably the most important part of the project. For the mirror I used a 30x40cm Ribba frame which sets you back only 7€. I usually have a bunch of spare IKEA Ribba Frames at home because they are really cheap (10€ or below) and can be used for all kinds of projects and builds. Make sure to find a spare one at home or order a kit that comes with an adapter. Many of these driver boards come without a power adapter (usually 12V / 3-4 A). I found my driver board on eBay for around 32€ and it immediately worked like a charm. Make sure to carefully check the model number on your panel to get the correct driver board! Once you found the model number, just google “display driver board ”. You get them on the Internet for around 30 to 50€ depending on the model of your panel. In order to make use of your laptop panel, a display driver board is necessary (you cannot connect it to your PC directly!). Even though this laptop would not boot any more, I had a feeling that its display was still functional and it teared it apart. Then I remembered that broken laptop that had been sitting in a dark corner of my office for months. Even more so, because the instructions in this project required to tear the monitor apart. The only thing holding me back from building my own immediately was that I didn't want to buy yet another monitor. I am currently working on a project that I am really excited about and I thought it a worthy conclusion of this year’s makers month.Ī while ago I found this magic mirror project on the Internet and immediately fell in love with the idea. Yesterday was the last day of march and therefore the last chance to contribute to the #marchisformakers initiative.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |