tentative budget info (old, needs to be updated)
here’s what milt has for the beginnings of a budget:
(most of this comes from the link http://arbi.trario.us/2008/11/02/diy-laser-multi-touch-table/ parts sourced from aixiz.com)
the known ($44 total)
for the IR lasers:
- 4 x “780nm 25mw laser modules” @ $8 per
- 4 x “89° line generator lenses that fit the laser modules” @ $3 per (this is getting pricey!
the unknown but probably cheap:
- Power supply - probably $10
- wiring/resistors - cheap or we have
- camera with IR filter - we have wiimotes, for more resolution we could slap a filter on one of the mini HD cameras.
That’s all you need for the core of the touch stuff, the rest is for a dedicated surface/enclosure:
- Acrylic touch surface @ ? any sufficiently large Acrylic slab that doesn’t bend, shouldn’t be expensive
- rear projection applique - CAN be expensive, but we can totally find a cheap way to do it. My coworker suggested sandblasting one side of a thick piece of acrylic with almond skins (?!?) instead of an applique, he has the gear to do it.
- frame/enclosure - varies depending on design, we can probably easily cheap out on this part
For installation/mobile use, things get a bit more complicated:
- mirror/prism mountings for the lasers so the light plane can be projected sufficiently close to the surface - might be pricey, might not.
- a large rear-projection screen or improvised solution with translucent plastic
To build a working demo I would be surprised if it is more than $100.
other things I think we might want to spec, so that the project can be a standalone unit:
- computer
- projector
- camera (and IR filter)