KITT’s scanner light gets explained
Posted Feb 15th 2008 6:30AM by Nilay Patel
Filed under: Transportation
We still have mixed feelings on the soon-to-be-revived Knight Rider franchise — sure, we’re gonna watch it, but we’ll probably do it with tears streaming down our face — but that doesn’t mean we’re going to turn down an inside look on how KITT’s iconic red scanner light works. According to Pierre Hoffman, whose Auto Indulgence shop built the new scanner, the units consists of 240 LEDs per side in three rows of 80. The goal was to make the scanner look like a heartbeat, so early prototypes were actually triggered from a music interface connected to samples of different heart rhythms. Sadly, the final design isn’t nearly as slick, using a complex timing-based circuit board instead — but that doesn’t mean we aren’t filled with a rush of conflicted emotions every time we see that red glow. Check the whole interview with Pierre at the read link.
Tags: Ogg Vorbis, home theater, mobile phone, video
