Designing Soft Circuits & E-Textiles With Linh My Truong

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Life is full of sensory information—of light, sound, and motion that can be captured with sensors and converted into digital data, fodder for tiny computers known as microcontrollers. In this exploratory seminar taught by interdisciplinary artist, educator, and tinkerer Linh My Truong, we’ll explore how to embed these circuits into wearable and soft objects in pursuit of crafting pieces ranging from elaborate LED cosplay outfits to midi controllers made of fabric. We’ll begin by learning how to create a basic sewn circuit with an LED before incorporating more electronic elements into our working knowledge and progressing to an Arduino-programmed soft circuit with a sensor. By the end of our time together, you’ll not only have a foundational understanding of the basic concepts of electronics, Arduino microcontrollers, and hand sewing, but also a wearable e-textile project of your own design, informed by guidance from your instructor!

This course is appropriate for students of all levels; no prior experience with circuits or sewing is necessary to participate.

SYLLABUS AT A GLANCE

This course includes four total sessions, each lasting two hours on four consecutive Wednesdays starting April 10.

Session 1 (Wednesday, 4/10, 7–9:00 PM ET)| Starting the Circuit: Introduction to e-textiles, how a circuit works, and creating our first sewn circuit with LED

Session 2 (Wednesday, 4/17, 7–9:00 PM ET)| Switches, Buttons, and Sensors: Introducing more electronic elements to our circuitry knowledge

Session 3 (Wednesday, 4/24, 7–9:00 PM ET)| Learn to Code: Learning Arduino software to program our microcontrollers and making use of our sensors

Session 4 (Wednesday, 5/1, 7–9:00 PM ET)| Advanced & Hand-Sewn Sensors: Exploring sensors and sharing project ideas

BETWEEN SESSIONS

Between sessions, students will continue working on sewing and/or circuit programming projects started in class, as well as independent projects. Linh will be available to answer questions and help troubleshoot issues via email between sessions.

YOUR INSTRUCTOR, LINH MY TRUONG

Linh My Truong is an interdisciplinary artist and educator working with textiles, video, and electronics. Through her exploration of the Japanese marbling art of suminagashi and her penchant for hard geometric forms, her work finds a place between chaos theory and an ordered universe. Her application of technology allows for the usage of light to create immersive art installations, bringing traditional art forms into the 21st century.

WHAT TO EXPECT

This is an interactive, small-group seminar that meets over Zoom. Students may be encouraged to participate in discussions, work on assignments outside of class, and workshop projects with their instructor or classmates. Due to the interactive nature of this course, we strongly recommend students attend as many live sessions as possible. Within 72 hours after each session meets, students will receive access to a recording of the live session, which they can watch for up to two weeks after the course concludes.

Instructors may use Google Classroom to communicate with students outside of class. While students aren’t required to use Google Classroom, instructors may use this platform to post resources, discussion questions, or assignments. This platform also offers a space for students to connect with one another about course material between sessions.

COURSE MATERIALS

Please find an abbreviated list of materials below. Following registration, students will receive a more detailed list of what they'll need for each session, including links to purchase items they may not already have. Students should expect to pay between $60 and $90 on all class materials.

• Coin cell battery holder & battery
• Conductive thread
• Conductive fabric
• Sewable LEDs
• Alligator clips
• Needles
• Metal Snaps
• Fabric or felt
• Scissors
• Computer or laptop capable of running Arduino software
• Arduino-compatible wearable microcontroller
• LiPo battery & charger (if applicable)
• Sensors and additional materials depending on your individual project

Materials can be ordered from the following websites:

• https://www.sparkfun.com/ (Lilypad boards + components)
• https://www.adafruit.com/ (Flora/Gemma/Circuit Playground boards + components)
• https://www.digikey.com/
• https://www.mouser.com/
• https://www.microcenter.com/

ACCESSING YOUR COURSE

Once registered, you’ll receive a confirmation email from Eventbrite that will provide access to the class meeting. Please save the confirmation email as you’ll use it to access all sessions of your course via Zoom.

PRICING OPTIONS

In addition to full-price tickets, a limited number of no-pay spots are available for this course. Please note that these tickets are reserved for those who would not otherwise be able to take this course and who expect to attend all sessions. No-pay spots are distributed via a randomized drawing two weeks before each course begins. For more information and to apply for a no-pay spot, please click here. To learn more about our pricing model and randomized selection process for no-pay spots, please visit our FAQ page.

COMMUNITY GUIDELINES FOR STUDENTS

Please take a moment to review our community guidelines for students, which aim to share our classroom ethos and help set the stage for the best possible learning experience.

ACCESSIBILITY

We provide closed captioning for all of our courses and can share transcripts upon request. Please reach out to us at experiences@atlasobscura.com if you have any questions, requests, or accessibility needs.

ATLAS OBSCURA ONLINE COURSES

Atlas Obscura Courses offer opportunities for participants to emerge with new skills, knowledge, connections, and perspectives through multi-session classes designed and taught by expert instructors. To learn more about our current course offerings, please visit www.atlasobscura.com/online-courses. For answers to commonly asked questions, check out our FAQ page here.

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