Chances are, you’ve seen the growing number of online DIY projects that use Advancer Technologies’ Muscle Sensors, which allow folks to create systems that use muscle movement for input. The latest generation of the increasingly-popular sensor, called MyoWare, is currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter, bringing a whole host of improvements that make it even more accessible to users.
Just like previous iterations of the sensor, it measures muscle activity by detecting its electric potential, then making the output reading accessible to your hardware and software systems. That means, you can use muscle movements to control a variety of objects, from motorized prosthetics to game controls to custom superhero weapons like the Wolverine Claws below.
MyoWare’s redesigned sensor has electrodes that snap directly into the board, removing the mess of dangling wires that usually come with similar setups, making it easier to integrate in your wearable gear. Other new features include simpler power source requirements, raw EMG output, polarity-protected power pins, two additional LED indicators, and an onboard power switch. The sensor also comes with four new modular boards that can piggyback onto the sensor to give it extra functionality, including a prototyping board, a cabling board, a power board (for hooking it up with two 20mm coin cell batteries), and a physical meter. Of course, this is just a sensor, so you’ll still need to pair it with processing hardware, servos, and other electronics, depending on the project you’re doing.
Like we said, a Kickstarter campaign is currently running for MyoWare. Pledges to reserve a unit starts at $35.