Heighten Your Senses With The Touch Glove [Instructables How-To]

Here on The Creators Project, we’re obsessed with finding new ways to use and channel our senses using technology, and this week’s Instructables How-To is the perfect example of an interactive piece you can build yourself. The Touch Glove promotes an exciting new way to engage with your environment, by reacting to different textures by blinking in different patterns… find out how below.

Some of the materials you’ll need to build the glove are a variety of Aniomagic components, including the Schemer, a lightboard set, battery holder, both conductive and non-conductive thread, a square of conductive fabric, a square of resistive fabric, one yard of cotton fabric, tape, a needle, scissors, and alligator clips.

To start, trace your hand about a half inch larger than it actually is onto the cotton fabric, making sure the index finger is separated from the rest of your fingers. Create three separate “hands” in all.

Next you will assemble all five LED lightboards, sewing them onto a 10" by 4" piece of cotton fabric. Make sure all the positive sides are sewed together with one thread output, and do the same for the negative sides. Trim all loose ends and glue down with fabric glue, so you don’t cross any circuits.

Now, test your light square utilizing the aligator clips, Aniomagic Schemer, and custom board. Instructions on how to do this can be found here.

Then it’s time to assemble the touch sensor that will be located in the index finger of the glove. Cut out three strips of resistive fabric (about the size of your finger tip), and two strips of the conductive fabric and arrange the strips according to the diagram above.

Now place the touch sensor inside the glove about where your fingertip will go. Use the non-conductive thread to sew the sensor into one of your hand cutouts and use the conductive thread to sew one of the conductive fabric strips to the second hand cutout. Do the same for the remaining strip of conductive fabric, making sure not to cross the lines of the other circuits.

Attach the third cutout to the back and sew all three cutouts together using non-conductive thread. Make sure to leave about 3-4 inches of material open around the wrist and glue down all the thread ends. Now, check your progress by turning the glove right side out, and use the alligator clips to connect the LED fabric panel to the glove, battery, and accompanying boards like you did earlier.

Now, sew the Schemer, custom board, and battery holder to the glove using conductive thread—making sure to not cross the positive and negative lines of the thread. Attach the two thread lines from the sensor to the board, and sew the battery holder on the reverse side. Attach the LED panel cuff to the top of the glove and connect the positive and negative thread lines to the correct ports. Finally, insert the battery, and you’re well on your way to exploring new sensory experiences!

Visit the Instructables How-To for further instruction, more detailed photographs, and tips on where to buy materials.