Fire Pong
Fire Pong
For EMF 2016, a small group of us are working on a series of fire effects to be incorporated into an interactive game of some sort (provisionally "pong").
Puffers (a.k.a. "Poofers")
Puffers consist of an "accumulator" tank (usually an empty gas bottle), which is filled from a "feed" tank (a full propane bottle). The supply is regulated to somewhere up to 60 PSI. The accumulator tank is connected to a long "barrel" through a large-bore value which can open and close quickly. This may be a manual ball value or an electronic solenoid value. The accumulator tank is also connected to a pilot flame at the end of the barrel, through a low-pressure regulator.
When the ball/solenoid value is opened, the medium pressure propane in the accumulator tank shoots up the barrel, and is ignited at the end by the pilot flame. This creates a brief "puff" of fire.
Puffers come in many sizes from hand-held to truck-mounted, and can create a puff from a few tens of centimeters tall to anything up to and exceeding 10 meters!
Component Prices
For the prototype, we need the following parts:
| Component description | Price | Link | Bought by | Qty | Cost inc shipping |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adjustable 60 PSI regulator | £14 | ebay | Ian | 1 | £14 |
| Adjustable 60 PSI regulator (alternative, cheaper) Inlet Male UK Pol 5/8 BSP LH Outlet 1/4" BSP female | £11 | ebay | |||
| Adjustable 60 PSI regulator (alternative, even cheaper) PROPANE BUTANE BURNER TORCH ADJUSTABLE GAS REGULATOR 0.5-4 Bar | £9.35 | ebay | |||
| Propane hose 2 m with connectors (3/8 inch female left-hand thread) | £9.45 | ebay | Ian | 1 | £9.45 |
| Four way splitters, OR... | £10 + £12 P&P | ebay / US import | 2 | ||
| ...Equal-T joints | £~ | Gas Products | Mouse | 3 | £11.48 |
| Propane Tee Brass RV Fitting 3/8 Male Flare x 3/8 Male Flare x 1/4 Male Pipe | £10 + £4 P&P | ebay | |||
| Medium pressure gauge | £ | ||||
| Manual ball / cutoff valve | £4.63 + £4.74 p&p | [1] | Mouse | 1 | £9.03 |
| Small / portable propane tank 3.9 kg | £20.49 (gas, exc. deposit) | Beeston Marina | Ian | 1 | £20.49 |
| PTFE Gas Thread Sealing Tape | £0.60 | Gas Products | Mouse | 2 | £3.45 |
| Compressed gas GHS labels (x24) | £6.95 | ebay | Mouse | 1 | £6.95 |
| Flammable GHS labels (x24) | £6.95 | ebay | Mouse | 1 | £6.95 |
| 22mm pipe cutter | £6.50 | fix it all | Mouse | 1 | £6.50 |
| 22mm copper pipe (per metre) | £4.65 | fix it all | Mouse | 2 | £9.30 |
| plumbers spanner (for 22/15 mm compression fitting nuts | £1.99 | fix it all | Mouse | 1 | £1.99 |
| 20mm pipe screen gauze (hopefully can solder it into the end of the barrel) | £2.15 | ebay | Mouse | 1 | £2.15 |
| 22mm compression end caps | £1.25 | fix it all | Mouse | 4 | £5.00 |
| Dry power fire extinguisher | £11.79 | ebay | 2 | ||
| 24" Pipe Wrench | £24.99 | amazon | Toby | 1 | £24.99 |
| 22 mm olives (pack of 20) | £3.87 | B&Q | Ian | 1 | £3.87 |
| 22 mm equal T | £4.37 | B&Q | Ian | 1 | £4.37 |
| 1/4" gas solenoid valve 12V | £8.99 | eBay | Ian | 2 | £17.98 |
| 1/4" to 15 mm solder ring adaptor (pack of 10) | £17.75 | eBay | Ian | 1 | £17.75 |
| Electric BBQ igniter (2 electrodes) | £18.99 | eBay | Mouse | 1 | £18.99 |
| Flash back arrestor | £12.00 | eBay | Ian | 1 | £12.00 |
| Pilot light funnel | £8.00 | eBay | Mouse | 1 | £9.79 |
| Black Iron 1/4" Equal T Female | £2.53 | BSS | Mouse | 1 | £2.53 |
| Black Iron 1/4" Elbow Female | £3.91 | BSS | Mouse | 2 | £7.82 |
| Black Iron 1/2" Nipple (2" long) | £2.12 | BSS | Mouse | 1 | £2.12 |
| Black Iron 1/2" Equal T female | £1.98 | BSS | Mouse | 1 | £1.98 |
| Black Iron 1/2" Stop Plug | £0.97 | BSS | Mouse | 1 | £0.97 |
| 25mm by 300mm Mild Steel Round Bar (for making tank adapters) | £9.99 | eBay | Mouse | 1 | £9.99 |
| 12V DC 1/4" Electric Solenoid Valve N/C for Water Air Gas Diesel 2-Way/Position | £7.89 | eBay | Ian | 3 | £23.67 |
| 1/2" NC Electric Solenoid Water Air Valve Diesel Gas 4 Train Horn Solid Coil 12V | £10.99 | eBay | Ian | 1 | £10.99 |
| MALE IRON ADAPTERS BRASS END FEED BSP X METRIC 22MM X 1/2" | £9.99 | eBay | Ian | 1 | £4.69 |
| ultra-high voltage pulse generator super arc pulse ignition coil module 1000 KV | £5.68 | eBay | Ian | 1 | £5.68 |
Contributers
Sub-projects
- Bat accelerometer controllers
- basically a Wii-mote
- Should have battery capable to lasting a 3 hour "show", and be recharagle / have batteries replaced overnight for next show. Longer battery life is better
- Communicate wirelessly with control box
- Be good if they could pre-process use and send simply a packet with speed, angle and such, rather than have the control box interpertting accelerometer readings directly
- Should be physically robust & splash / dew proof
- Control box
- Controls puffers via relays
- Controls electro-igniters via relays
- Keeps game state
- Updates display unit with game state
- Accepts input from bats (wireless)
- Can be placed in non-game mode(s), e.g. test mode, demo mode, use up all the gas mode etc.
- Should be splash / dew proof
- Display unit
- Possibly using Matt Little's green segment display, or station scrolling text displays
- Should be splash / dew proof
- Pilot Lights
- For big puffers
- Frame / stand for row of small puffers
- Elevate puffers from the ground a little
- Secure against gusts of wind
- Will having wiring routed over it
Links
- Chat about the project happens periodically on the EMF channel on Nottinghack slack
- Video of some nice puffers on El Pulpo Mechanico
- Compressed Gas Safety Manual - good background reading for handling compressed gas, and setting up equipment.
- facebook group devoted to fire effects DIY
- Burning Man Flame Effects Guidelines
- BSP thread info