The makershed.com website sells the TV-B-Gon, which apparently is a microcontroller that emulates many remote controls by putting out the many IR codes for turning a TV off. I could take it into a restaurant and turn off the nearby TV so that we can eat without having to scream at each other. This is a great idea, if you can get away with it, and not have someone discover how you are doing it.
I thought about it and came up with a plausible way of hiding it. I would try to get the circuit board to be as slim as possible, less than 8 millimeters, but it can be long, 50 to 100 mm or more. The actual size of the board would be determined by the following item.
I would try to obtain a replica of Harry Potter’s wizard’s wand. If I could not, then I might try to make one out of a thick twig from a tree, or a piece of wood such as a dowel. Then I would hollow out the dowel on one end, deep enough to hold the circuit board and some button cells. I would also put a reed switch inside as the of/off switch. I would have to use a magnetic ring to turn it on.
I have thought about the use of button cells, and how well they would work and how long they would last. IR LEDs take a lot of current, so the button cells might not be able to supply enough current. I think a good solution is to connect 1 or more 1 Farad supercapacitors across the button cells. As the current exceeds the cells’ capabilities, the 1 F caps would discharge and supply the high peak current needed to keep the circuit running. Then when it’s off, the button cells would charge up the 1 F caps and it would be ready to go again.
I went online and checked the prices of replica Wizard wands. The ones I saw were in the price range or $30 to $50, and were deemed to be replicas of Harry Potter characters. I really don’t need to have a real replica, I just need it to look like a real wizard’s wand. I may try to find a picture of a wand, and go from there and make my own.
While I was searching I came across this wand. It’s a Kymera remote control wand, with thirteen gestures. It can learn 13 different controls by pointing it at a remote control. It sells for $75 on Amazon. I really didn’t want to spend that much, and besides I don’t think it could learn the sequence from the TV-B-Gon.
I found a wand that lights up and makes noise for $4.88, which is very inexpensive and it probably has a place for batteries and a LED and circuit board. At that low price, I think I’m going to buy two so I can tear one apart and find out how it’s made and see if I can change it to something like the TV-B-Gon. Then I found another one that looks the same, and it’s only $2.95. I may try one of each.
Did you buy the TV-Be gone ? I saw it also and thought it might be fun but never got around to it.
I planned on putting the circuit inside of a wand, so I searched online for wands and found a lot of Harry Potter wands from $35.00 on up. I didn’t need that expensive a wand, so I found two on Amazzon that were 4 to 6 dollars each, so I ordered one from one vendor and another from another vendor. The more expensive wand arrived and worked when I opened the package. But the other one, which looks identical, and nearly the same package, was non-functional out of the package. I checked the three button cells and found that they were okay. I tried to split the two halves open, but got part of the way and the plastic started cracking in half. So I can see the PC board, and if I don’t bend it too much, I think I may be able to repair it if it’s simple like a broken wire. But the chip is a COB – chip on board – with a black blob of epoxy over it, so it can’t be repaired.
I would not be able to get the TV-B-Gon circuit board inside of the wand, so I would have to make my own. Instead, I thought I might be able to get the commercial killer circuit to fit in there.