IKEA Frame Modded to Magically Show Objects in Slow Motion

Perhaps you’re familiar with how a stroboscope works, where precisely timed flashes of light they can make something in motion appear to be stationary or even move extremely slowly. That’s the principle that the Slow Dance frame — seen here as a successful Kickstarter — uses for its magical display. The device takes something like a leaf or feather, then quickly shakes it, while your eyes are tricked, via carefully-timed lighting, into thinking it’s moving slowly.

On the other hand, there’s no reason you can’t accomplish something similar with readily-available parts. In his excellent write-up, prolific hardware hacker “jolifactory” did just this, naming his build the sLOMO frame.

He used an IKEA Ribba frame to house everything, along with an Arduino Nano for control, an electromagnet to cause motion, and a double-row LED strip for illumination. Results, as seen in the video below, are really spectacular. It apparently looks even better in person. Unfortunately, the timed lighting causes a gray bar to appear intermittently in the video that isn’t seen in real life.

Jolifacotry’s instructions are extremely well done, and he’s quick to note another Instructables build that outlines how to build a similar device. But if you’d like more help than simply an Instructables article, he’s considering offering it as a kit on his Tindie store if the demand is there. This seems like a great idea if the Slow Dance Kickstarter campaign is any indication.