My Connected Hat

Since last year, I have been using MARP and my physical web beacon watch to share content in the physical world. Those are awesome but could be better. One of the most asked questions is "How do you know people around you are actually reading your content?" - to which I reply - I look at the logs of devices receving the notifications, and users converting to the shared content from the notifications over time.

This is all well and good but the idea of sharing content physically has to be in the moment/in real time....and more importantly, it should be a eye-catching. Hence, I need a prop like The Doctor and his sonic screwdriver. This is not original enough though. The Doctor did like fezzes. Fezzes are cool!

I need a hat! The concept of this new extension to my existing physical content sharing mechanism interoperates with my beacon watch. The idea is not only inspired by The Doctor but also by Beany Boy's helicopter hat. 

The flow is as follows:

1. Beacon Watch broadcasts URL
2. User's device reads meta information from URL and displays notification
3. User taps the notification to convert
4. Hat's propeller spins for 5 seconds

This alerts me, the wearer, that the a user has converted to the shared content. Since the connected hat is a visual attraction, it also serves as a catalyst for individuals in the surrounding to initiate a conversation - which is a much better way than using stickers/banners displaying physical web instructions.

I managed to get a top hat on Amazon for ￡1.50 and a motor from Maplin for ￡1.00. The motor was hard to find since the R-pi GPIOs are 3.3V. Specs of the tiny motor weighing only 1.5g at 6 mm x 6 mm x 16 mm inc. the shaft. Below is a picture of the insides of the connected hat.

How does this work?

The Connected Hat in action!

Shout-out Dan Chan to for trying out the Connected Hat.

Cool, but why even do this?

We already live in age of data and insight. However, the era of physical actuation is upon us. Translation of insights into action is usually left within the virtual software world (e.g. user opens a page, he/she gets re-targeted with an ad later on). This is boring. Why not actuate in the physical world? It's fun, visible, and tangible. Moreover, it fits into the very philosophy of the Internet of Things - everything should have an IP and interoperate with each other.

Did I have a Tesla (which has a bunch of APIs to control the car), I'd have revamped the above to include a sensor into a hoop. Every time I would score a shot, the car would beep and the car lights would flash - turning the phone into a "cheerleader". It is fun to make things. The above circuity is very basic - I am only increasing and decreasing voltage of GPIO pin upon trigger. Still, it is cooler than a software alert.

What's next?

This is a proof of concept (neither scripts nor hardware have been optimised) which will lead to the another iteration in the form of a fez with a spinning propeller (helix) on top and some RGP LED strips. The R-pi can be replaced with a Microbit (smaller footprint) connected to my phone over Bluetooth Web (running a service worker). This should reduce the weight of the hat (currently weighing at 153g). I also intend to 3D print a case for the inner parts of the Fez. 3D printing is now super affordable (see Monoprice Select 3D Printer v2). If you are interested in the hat, push me an e-mail - [email protected] - and keep connecting all the things!