I'm assuming many of us here are gamers, and I don't have a better clue where I'd put this. I plan to make a Samus cosplay, from Metroid. Not dedicated to one yet, but thinking Varia suit.
I have honestly been planning this for many years, but funding left me lacking. On that note, I'm thinking of a Patreon or something, but not sure what rewards would be. Off-topic from the site, but feel free to give ideas!
For the main topic, I'd previously planned to use a mini RasPi and maybe a PICAxe, but an restarting my design with a clearer head: but I fell behind on tech and don't know what's available. Here's the list I'd like to try to include if you have clever ideas to add, I'm all ears!
-An intake and exhaust fan in the helmet, like RasPi mini fans (5v), for temperature and breathing. I plan to fit these in the "ears" of the helmet that the hoses attach to.
-Some kind of screen in the helmet that can tell me information from the board. Looking at battery level, temperature, and possibly proximity sensor information.
I'm not sure how I can implement this though. I was previously thinking of an oLED display in the past, but they were expensive. I'm wondering if it's possible to create a reflection display off the helmet "glass" (acrylic) over the face? I've seen it work on car windshields, but what am I looking for?
-Some kind of "life form" detection I can use, eg infrared or other ideas? I would feed that input into my display.
Arm Blaster:
-Ice Beam using compressed air, unless there's a good electronic alternative?
-Ping pong or Airsoft pellets. Which would be cheaper to build? Doesn't need to be high pressure, of course.
-Fireballs by flash paper and cotton with a glow plug. Suggestions on safest way to control it? Not sure I want a 12v stepper in my arm cannon, not sure if a lower voltage would do the job?
Overall, what electronics do you think are the best ideas to try for something like this that's generally low power, but collectively can be demanding?
The suit is planned to be built with overlapping panels, eg outer thigh strapping over inner thigh armor. I will probably hot glue the wires on the outside of the lower layers and use connectors for LED wiring and any possible sensors I may use (eg motion sensor for behind me). Looking for what your experience is on best budget connectors for that.
