Smart Cornhole Boards React with Lights and Sounds

[@j.k.9883]

Phenomenal work, you really capture the fun part of building these types of projects.

[@HardwareUnknown]

This means so much to me, and I'm touched you see that here. Builds like these are a blast even with the inevitable frustrations, and I hope to encourage others to take on more of their own. I'll do my best to continue conveying the joy these projects bring me. I hope you stick around.

[@adamvail9774]

This dude is absolutely brilliant. I’ve worked with bread boards in small applications. Motivation and documentation entertaining. The fact he chose a hinged board made it more challenger. As other people have commented. The automatic keep score app based on sensor input would be next level.

[@HardwareUnknown]

You're very kind. It was a lot of fun to work on and a big learning experience. The scoring feature is quite an interesting challenge and university capstone projects have even been done about it. I love the challenge of electronics overall. More to come, thank you for watching and your kind words.

[@pv1768]

beyond confused how this channel doesn't have more subs? please never run out of steam with these projects - please keep creating.

[@HardwareUnknown]

Maybe I need brighter lights and bigger speakers. In all seriousness though, I appreciate it. As much as I love making these projects, sometimes it can get tough wondering if the work put into the videos makes a difference for people. Then I get comments like yours and it really refreshes my mindset. Thanks for that. More to come. =)

[@wavegreen]

FYI, the algorithm is pushing this video! Never saw your channel but it got recommended, I think your channel is gonna grow pretty quick now if you keep at it!

[@HardwareUnknown]

I appreciate the support, and a huge thanks for letting me know about the channel being recommended! I'm so new to this I wouldn't know how to find that out if you hadn't said something. I've got a video releasing next Saturday and more on the way. Perhaps things will continue. I'm looking forward to sharing all kinds of projects!

[@mitchgoudy]

Flipping love this channel. Had no idea I liked this stuff. Great job!!!!

[@HardwareUnknown]

Thanks Mitch! I'm always hoping to inspire others like those before me did for my interest in all this. I've been working on some non-video stuff the last couple months and don't yet have a new project out, but once things finish up there I'll be refocusing on new builds. Can't wait to share!

[@Vlad.K]

Awesome video! Keep up the great work!

[@HardwareUnknown]

Thanks so much! I had a lot of fun making these, and while I will be posting all kinds of builds, I'm aiming for more electronics projects in the future.

[@nixm2094]

Wow 😳 I was blown away. I just thought how kool it would be to have CORNHOLE make sounds when it scores. I am an artist and love to make diff things and now a days I am focused on making diff type of art on corn holes. Can you tell me how much all the supplies cost not counting the cornhole of course. Also subscribed to ur channel and saved your video too 😁 keep building stuff. More weird better it is 👍

[@HardwareUnknown]

I don't believe I wrote down the exact cost of this build, but I'd estimate around $60-80 depending on where you get your parts. You may pay a bit more than that since you tend to buy the small electronic parts in packs, but the actual cost of the components used would be around there I think. Weird builds are the best! Anything just for the fun of it is a great build in my book. Can't wait to see yours!

[@Paw-Tater]

I've been looking for this and how to make them. I have no idea where to start but would love to make them myself or buy them from you.

[@mr.lakelyf]

How long do the batteries last on that set-up? Awesome job by the way.

[@HardwareUnknown]

Thank you! I actually haven't run it down to nothing yet to test. Although I believe during filming they were on for an hour or so. Granted not constantly lighting up, but still, enough for a game (with more battery life to spare too). There's a trick I read about where you remove a particular LED from the Arduino and you can get it down to microamps of consumption during sleep. Eventually I'll learn how to do that and test if that works better than have it constantly running full bore.

[@krismiller9976]

Where do I find one with the vibration and ir feature for sound on one corn hole board (don’t need one to communicate with the other)? I do volunteer work with kids at the Industry For the Blind (IFB Solutions) in NC. This would be awesome for their corn hole activities! I am a visually impaired electrical engineer but not up to the task of building and coding these cool devices. Thanks. Mitch

[@HardwareUnknown]

What a coincidence, I was discussing the build with a blind friend of mine and she mentioned how great it would be for her. Glad to hear the feedback. I'm currently in the process of making a custom set for another viewer of mine. I have that and a move upcoming. It might take a month or so before I can start the project, but once that's done I would happily make you a board. I could also make two that don't communicate so that you still have a set, whatever works best for you. My code isn't perfect as I'm a hardware guy just learning software, so it sometimes doesn't play sound properly if bags hit in rapid succession, but it'll work for a fun casual game that gives audible feedback to players.. Send me an email, [e-mail] and we can work out details.

[@diterex]

Are you considering making a scoreboard to go with it?

[@HardwareUnknown]

I am! I actually have several upgrades and changes I'd like to implement based on viewer responses. Gotta work out some bugs in the code, then I'll figure out scoring among other things. I'll post an update video when I get things working.

[@createinvent]

So the music is triggered on both boards at the same time via the NRF module?

[@HardwareUnknown]

Exactly. Once the Arduino on one board registers a sensor activation, it sends a command using the NRF module to the other board. "111" for an impact, "222" for a break beam, etc. The other board constantly checks for these commands and when it receives one, it plays the appropriate sound. I play sounds on both boards so all players can enjoy the celebration, and only activate the flash sequence on one board so observers can tell which board was just activated.

[@createinvent]

@@HardwareUnknown Neat, thanks!

[@HardwareUnknown]

Of course. Thanks for the question. Also, congratulations on the episode with DIY Perks. It's awesome you got a chance to talk with him! Really wholesome channel with some brilliant builds.

[@createinvent]

@@HardwareUnknown Well thanks! He was a great guest, and a very nice guy.

[@adamvail9774]

Also we would like Mario’s warp pipe sound when corn hole is said to be made.

[@HardwareUnknown]

Now that's a solid idea. Would fit well, and you could paint a custom board in the style of the original Super Mario game.

[@michaelmullally]

can you post your code?

[@HardwareUnknown]

Just made a public Github repo for code from my projects: github.com/hardwareunknown/public Keep in mind that the code needs updating. I got it working well enough for the video, however there are issues during actual play when you hit the boards in quick succession. The sounds for impacts beyond the first sometimes don't play. Also, there are times when the break beam does not register. This is both a hardware and software issue. I know the fixes for both, just need to make them and reupload in the future. This should get you started though!

[@jimmybobsap8729]

surprised you didn't add fireworks

[@HardwareUnknown]

Now that would be something, would love to learn pyrotechnics at some point.

[@jimmybobsap8729]

@@HardwareUnknown bad ass as is was just making a joke about adding more

[@AnthonyPerez]

So when are you going to build these for sale? Lmao if you made the scoreboard it will be bad a$$.

[@HardwareUnknown]

I'd love to make saleable products, this and others. Hadn't yet gauged the interest but it's good to know some is there! The interesting part of the scoreboard is how deceptively complex it is. There are actually college engineering teams that have worked on detecting missed bags, as well as which bag belongs to each team. It's a really cool engineering problem! One option for the time being would be buttons for manual entry for scoring, and adding lights for that (along with the automatic celebration lights and sounds, of course). Now that you bring it up, I've gotta ask: would that still be in the realm of a product you'd want?

[@AnthonyPerez]

@@HardwareUnknown I have thought about it and now trying to get it all to work. I’ll keep you posted. I was think of using esp82 or nrf. Not sure testing. For the bags missed it a non issue. The reason I would say that is that it’s a back and fourth of bags. When the other board gets hit then it starts a new round clearing the bags missed. The only issue I see really an issue is what bags are what. So hits board checks hole sensor and then tally’s weight then sent to score board arduino. The bag is the big issue. How to know if it’s player one or two or if a bag is knocked off.

[@HardwareUnknown]

I ran mine off an NRF, however I'd really like to try it with an ESP. I can't be certain without testing, but I get the feeling I'd get a better connection. Although that's likely more an issue that I don't know what I'm doing with the NRF sample rate. I like your idea for the reset upon impact on the opposite board. Unlikely all eight bags of a round would miss, so that's a start. Which bag is which is definitely complex. I've seen the engineering teams try RFID along with a few other solutions. Some had the boards sectioned off into 12-16 smaller squares with individual RFID detectors since getting an entire board sized RFID working was an issue. Keep me posted with what you come up with, I'm always curious to see the ideas others have used for their automated boards.

[@johnnagy1575]

That is some serious coding. Wow. Yes. I don't understand any of it.

[@HardwareUnknown]

Wanna know a secret? I didn't either until last year. I started learning to code using The Python Bible on Udemy. After that, switching to Arduino (a version of C) is like learning a different dialect of language. You understand what needs to be there, you just need to know how to phrase it. It's a challenge to learn to code, however it really opens up what things you can make. If you're interested in learning from scratch, I highly recommend The Python Bible or some basic Arduino projects as a solid place to start.

[@johnnagy1575]

@@HardwareUnknown I've been trying to learn the arduino C++ for over a year now. Just too much. With all these different statements. If. If else. Else. Its all crazy.

[@HardwareUnknown]

I'm hear you. Its not easy. It took me over seven months, ~250 hours to fully grasp Python basics where I felt reasonably comfortable. This project took a further ~110 hours to learn the electronic modules/code. Keep after it, but also take breaks. I had multiple weeks where I didn't look at the code side of the project. It helps to have a fresh head. I know it's tough. Clearly you have the drive to learn it though, and that counts for a lot. Honestly I recommend learning a bit of code by itself first. Programming tic tac toe via The Python Bible taught me a lot. Adding physical electronics to code with Arduino is fun, but complicates things in the beginning. Hope that helps.