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EL Escudo Dos (COM-10878)

SKU 1012
£21.28 inc VAT
£17.73 ex VAT
Out of Stock

More available in 3-5 days.
Available for backorder (more info)

The new version of the Escudo adds zero-crossing optoisolated TRIACs for noise-free operation and full isolation between the AC and DC sides and includes a 1.5A adjustable linear regulator to supply regulated DC to an external inverter (not included).

EL Escudo Dos is an Arduino shield for controlling up to eight strands of electroluminescent wire. EL wire is a flexible plastic cord that glows brightly when high-voltage AC is applied to it. It's available in numerous colours (see the related products below), runs cool, and requires very little current, but can be difficult to work with because of the high-voltage requirements. The El Escudo Dos contains circuitry to safely switch high-voltage AC on and off, allowing you to create animated displays or whatever else your imagination can come up with.

In addition to this shield, you will need Arduino headers (see the related products below), an inverter (a component that generates the high-voltage AC needed by EL wire), and the EL wire itself. We carry two inverters, a 3V-input version that can drive a few feet of EL wire, and a 12V-input version capable of driving dozens of feet of EL wire. Choose the one appropriate to your power source and driving requirements. The shield's built-in regulator comes preset to 3.3V, but can be set to any voltage by changing two resistors, or bypassed with a solder jumper to send the Arduino's RAW voltage directly to the inverter (perfect for 12V setups!). See the tutorial below.

People have used EL wire to make amazing interactive costumes; check out the Heartbeat Straitjacket and demo video.

  • Eight opto-isolated, zero-crossing control channels
  • No library needed - control is as easy as turning a LED on and off
  • Shield is compatible with 5V or 3.3V Arduinos
  • Integrated 1.5A linear regulator (LM317) to supply regulated DC power to external inverter
  • Linear regulator preset to 3.3V, but can be changed via PTH resistors, or bypassed entirely
  • External inverter required, not included
  • Comes without headers, soldering required