Here you can find the video to my project at YouTube: Light Resource Video

If you come home and switch on the light, you don't think of using resources. Just if you pay your bill to the electricity provider, then you think of it.

So my aim is, to show, that if you are using light, you are using resources.

The process of watering flowers is more connected to the use of a resource. So I combined this two things. Watering something and wasting something.

The watering can in that project is more a lighting can. If you take it up, it starts to light. If you turn it, lightflow out of the nozzle is shown. Now, you can use it on the flower board. There are fife roses placed, which can switched on. They get up and start to light your place. When the light resource is exhaused, they fall down and it is getting dark. If you want to light them again, you have to stand up and light them again.

So you start to think of the process of using a resource more than if you would use a switch.

I used for the lighting can an Arduino Diecimila, white and IR-LEDs. A button, which checks, if the can stands on the table or is in the air. And I used a simple tilting sensor.

The flower board is builded up with an other Arduino Diecimila Board and a self made PCB. The rising of the flowers is made by five servo motors. They pull on a wire, which is threaded throu some sleves. (This is the wood donkey technic of this toys, where you push a button on the bottom and the wood donkey breaks down.)

As sensors, I used infraredlight depending diods which are readed out by the Arduino analog inputs.

I used an external power supply with 700mA.

The Arduino code, the Eagle file of the PCB and the Fritzing file is placed on the left side in the Materialien category.

Makezine.com Graffiti Research Lab Haptic Radar Intimate Controllers instructables

And many, many more.

I want to thank Reto Wettach and Zach Eveland, too, for showing me the power of Arduino and a very funny physical computing course.

Thank you all!

Next time I will spend more time in make this things better by keeping the Maker's bill of Rights!