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Introducing the BPT X5!
The BPT X5 is version 2.0 of the Classic Interactive LED Beer Pong Table. This new table has 1122 total LEDs on it, it is capable of controlling up to 608 individual channels (96 of which are capable of 16-bit PWM; Some channels are handled through a multiplexing technique), it only has one master PCB and the 20 RGB pod PCBs, it can read and write to an SD card, it has a 16×2 LCD display, an IR receiver built into the table so that it can be controlled with a remote, a breakout connector for VU meter capabilities, a bluetooth module and much more! The breakdown of the features are listed below.
LED Grid
In the center of the table we can create any animation that will fit into a 32×12 pixel grid. We are able to display scrolling text across it, watch a pong animation, display a sine wave, display the score of the game, etc. There is a huge amount of possibilities! Since we are able to detect when a cup is removed from the table, we can make specific animations that trigger exactly when that happens. The table actually supports a maximum display size of 32×16, however I have made it only 32×12 to span further across the table.
20x RGB Pods w/ Infrared Sensors
At each end of the table you will see 10 pods. The 16oz/18oz cups that are used for beer pong are placed over top of these pods. Each pod contains 6 RGB LEDs and 1 infrared sensor and we are able to light up the pods with any color that we would like. The infrared sensor will detect whether or not a cup is over top of the pod, so if a cup is removed we can change the color of the pod, begin an animation on the LED grid, run an animation on the RGB pods, etc.
Air Baths
There is an air bath on each side of the table. The purpose of the air bathes are to blow any debris off of the ping pong balls, thus cleaning them. When a player drops a ball to their left into the “IN” hole of the air bath, it detects the ball and starts a fan. This fan will move the ball down a pipe, removing debris and blowing it out the “OUT” hole to the right of the player. The player then grabs the ball and the air bath shuts off. Players can also dunk the ping pong balls in a cup of water before putting them into the air bath to get a better clean.
LED Rings
There are a total of 12 LED rings on the beer pong table. The outer edges of the table contain 4 LED rings each and the air baths make up the other 4. Much like the 32×12 LED grid, the LED rings are just used for animations. They can be set to go in accordance with music (VU Meter feature must be turned on), fade in and out, flash rapidly or any other cool animation that you can think of. Beer cups can be set inside of the LED rings on the railing which provides a cool effect on the upper lip of the cup. This table can support up to 16 LED rings on the specified PWM channels and the LED rings can be swapped out for many other LED circuits, such as small LED logos.
VU Meter
A user can add a VU meter module to the master PCB and set up the table to dance to different frequencies in the music around it. One can use the AUX input to feed the audio directly into the microcontroller or opt to use the built-in microphone to detect audio around it. The VU Meter can be set up to activate any LED lights to any of the 7 available frequencies that the microcontroller can detect. This is a really neat feature and the animation possibilities with it are endless.
Bluetooth Module
This beer pong table contains a bluetooth module which allows it to communicate wirelessly with PCs or mobile devices. This allows users to update the beer pong table with updated or customized software. All you need is a PC with a bluetooth connection (in the future, we hope to expand this to other platforms) to be able to update your beer pong table! This is a huge plus as it allows even greater hackability for users. In the future, we will build a mobile app so that users can customize their table on the fly, check the game score, set the brightness of the table and much more.
Micro-SD Card
“Why would a beer pong table ever need an SD card”, you ask? It’s simple. We want users to be able to design animations on their PC with custom built software, save it to a file, load that file onto an SD card then insert it into the table where they can display their own custom animations! More than anything, this is storage space for custom user animation files. We plan to make it so that the SD card doesn’t need to be pulled out of the table and that files can be copied to it over the bluetooth link from a PC. We still have to write the software for this function, but we have tested out the SD card and transmitting/receiving files from the PIC. In time, we will incorporate the refined code into an update which you will be able to load into your table over bluetooth.
RGB Underlighting
We have so many lights on top of the table, why not put some on the bottom too!? This table has three dedicated 16-bit PWM channels solely for the use of RGB underlighting. I mean, with all of the other lights in the room, we may as well change the color of the floor too, right?
16×2 LCD Display
A small 16×2 LCD display has been added to the new table so that we have a quick way of changing table settings, viewing score or accessing menu options.
IR Receiver w/ Remote
Sometimes it is just too much of a hassle to control the table over bluetooth with a PC or mobile device and we want a faster way to do it. Enter the 24 button infrared remote. Want to display a different animation? Dim the brightness of the RGB pods? No problem, grab the remote and do it instantly. You can also use the 16×2 LCD display to change menu settings in conjunction with the remote.
EEPROM Memory
The master PCB does contain an EEPROM chip which can be used to save any user settings between power cycles and may hold the button codes for future IR remotes.
Extra PWM Channels
Now if all of the LED features listed above aren’t enough and you yearn for more lights, you’re in luck. With a small breakout PCB, you can control up to twelve more 16-bit PWM channels. That means more fading animations, more LEDs and more excitement! In all reality, you may be hard-pressed to find enough room on the table for all of the LED features! 😉 Oh! We forgot to mention, even without a breakout PCB for those other PWM channels, there are still 8 unused PWM channels on the main PCB. So yep, you’ve got a total of 20 extra channels to control more lights!
Interested in buying a fully built table? Maybe you want to build your own customized beer pong table with the electronic platform of the X5? Check out the kits and available options to get started on your own Interactive LED Beer Pong Table in our store!