|
The idea for �Bertie the Beetle� began when I was in my �teens and I wanted to create an electronic sideshow for a local Church Fete. Back in the dark ages of my youth, digital IC�s were a little known phenomena, and in the end I had to revert to the very non-electronic way of adjusting the next winning number BEFORE the next customer came along for a try. As the years went by, one day I decided to have a go and make a �real� Bertie Beetle, just how it should have been all those years ago. So what was the idea then? Simple but effective. Make an appealing shape on the baseboard, with lots of colours and flashing lights. I chose the beetle, gave it SIX legs, a head with eyes, complete with bulbs-in-ping-pong-balls as antenna! The �customer� simply has the decision of what leg to press (thus operating a switch in the process), having a 1-in-6 chance of choosing the winning one. In the end I went for a pseudo-random style list of winning numbers (in the prom) which the processor could choose from. If the �wrong� leg was chosen, a musical scale descends through an octave with the display of the �correct� leg on a large LED 7 segment display. If however, the correct leg is chosen, a large WIN light flashes before a simple tune is played amidst flashes of the table tennis balls!(antenna). Amazingly popular with both small children and know-it-all teenagers (who have alledgedly worked out the routine) alike. The first time I used it, at a mere 5p per go, it raised over £32 (UK Pounds) |
|
