How to make audio play when box is opened

[+ugomaddie]

I'm looking for some guidance/instruction on how to get a 20-30 sec recorded audio play when a box is opened.  The big push buttons that allow you to record a brief message and attach to the box would be nice & simple but their battery power won't hold up well.  Since I am not familiar with arduino-type electronics, etc., I was hoping to tap the creative genius of others to learn from or to point me to how to accomplish this task as simply as possible with the least amount of follow-up maintenance required... and gain sufficient knowledge to properly maintain it.

 

Thanks much!

ugomaddie

[+ecanderson]

Not clear what this 'big push button' device is, nor why it would have battery life issues.  Not familiar with it.

 

Have you already selected a device to record and play back the recording?  If so, I'm sure we can assist with some kind of trigger for it.  Let us know what it is you've been looking at.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

50 minutes ago, ugomaddie said:

I'm looking for some guidance/instruction on how to get a 20-30 sec recorded audio play when a box is opened.  The big push buttons that allow you to record a brief message and attach to the box would be nice & simple but their battery power won't hold up well.  Since I am not familiar with arduino-type electronics, etc., I was hoping to tap the creative genius of others to learn from or to point me to how to accomplish this task as simply as possible with the least amount of follow-up maintenance required... and gain sufficient knowledge to properly maintain it.

 

Thanks much!

ugomaddie

 

About something like this: https://invitebyvoice.com/products/multiplay-push-button-recordable-sound-chips?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google Shopping&gclid=CjwKCAjwps75BRAcEiwAEiACMcZE4KMWkuNBsBNHzSPHo3D6O9PHTmAZi3ISzo7eJpcAvcQus3zjzxoCsbYQAvD_BwE

 

It's an audio recorder/player device (with speaker and USB cable for connecting to a computer).  It runs off a 9 volt battery.  That would last a pretty long time.  Some gadget cache designers set up their cache so that the finder has to provide a battery.  

[+ugomaddie]

Thank you for responding.

I haven’t selected a device yet – that’s part of the dilemma.  My initial thought was to keep it simple and just put a type of “Easy” button inside the box.  It’s big & intuitive with no circuitry to hide/protect.  All it needs to do is play a 20-30 sec tune and wouldn’t require much sound quality since the recording will be recognizable.  Based on info gathered, it appears that units operating on AA/AAA/9 volt batteries such as this and those used in stuffed animals, etc., may not hold up well and batteries might need to be replaced often.   So my thoughts shifted to having the tune automatically play when the box is opened and not having any button to push.  But my knowledge about how to accomplish that is quite limited.

Having folks bring their own battery is a good alternative, NYPaddleCacher.  Not sure of the wear 'n tear on the mechanism with all the pushing/pulling at the battery connection point as batteries are connected/disconnected multiple times.  I may order the push-button sound chip you mentioned.  It looks like it uses a built-in rechargeable Lithium Polymer battery that is supposed to last for about 350 uses before recharging is needed.  Will have to investigate further how to make it a bigger button to push.

Thanks again!

[+ecanderson]

Opening the box - easily enough done with a very simple pair of magnet/reed switch used for alarm systems on windows and the like.  Move the magnet away from the switch, and the switch closes, providing power, allowing the circuit to do whatever it does (an endless audio loop, in this case) until the case is closed and the magnet causes the reed switch to open again.  The switches are weatherproof (the switch inside the plastic is a hermetically sealed glass tube), and the magnets are -- magnets.  All you really need to find is a device that begins playing as soon as you put juice to it.

 

[+ugomaddie]

This sounds exactly like what I’m looking for – thanks for educating me & for providing the terminology (i.e., magnet/reed switch/alarm systems) to help me further research what these systems are.  I’m unsure about where to find the ‘device that begins playing as soon as you put juice to it’.  For example, a Google search for “30 second recordable sound module to use with reed switch” brings up the same types of push button/battery operated devices previously noted.  Can you point me to examples of what would work?

[+ecanderson]

This one may be even easier.  When the box is opened, it responds to light and begins to play.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IUHQJ3G

 

And you don't need to recharge if you don't want to -- should take a pair of standard 2032 cells once in a while.

 

 

[+ugomaddie]

Would it work for cachers seeking it at night if it responds to light?

[+ecanderson]

If they're out caching without a flashlight in the dark, well ...

[+ugomaddie]

Duh...Thanks for all your help!

[Darwin473]

3 hours ago, ugomaddie said:

...brings up the same types of push button/battery operated devices previously...

 

If you wanted to use a reed switch, you remove the push button from the device, the reed switch takes its place. So when the magnet moves away (the lid / door is opened) then that "pushes" the button, completes the circuit and the sound file plays. Same principle if it's a light sensitive switch, the light sensitive switch replaces the push button switch.

 

9 hours ago, ugomaddie said:

Not sure of the wear 'n tear on the mechanism with all the pushing/pulling at the battery connection point as batteries are connected/disconnected multiple times.

 

Most of the BYO battery caches that I've seen (such as this one) use simple bolts as "pins" for the battery, thus avoiding the wear and tear on batteries being inserted and removed by multiple players. For your application, you could put in some simple reverse-polarity protection (you can get some information here or Google "how to protect reverse polarity") though keep in mind that you lose a little bit of voltage doing that. So if the sound chip can get away with 1v, if the person brings a 1.5v AA battery then it may work without issue, but if they bring a rechargeable AA (which are normally 1.2v) then you may run short of voltage to run the circuit. Depending on how much power the circuit needs, that will tell you if you can get away with 2 x 15.v batteries or if you'll need to ask for a 9v battery. Which would then need a voltage reducer. You might be able to get a simple prebuilt unit or make one if you can find a simple diagram online to go from 9v input to whatever your sound chip needs.

 

I do admit that this can be a bit daunting, especially if you have no prior experience with electronics, but once you start dabbling it can be quite rewarding and you might surprise yourself with what you can achieve.

 

Alternatively, if you find it too hard, you can try teaming up with your someone from your local area (technical colleges are good places to find students who are into electronics, or you can try places like Freelancer or Facebook). Or as ecanderson said, you could opt for putting in some watch-type batteries which usually last a long time and periodically replace them during cache maintenance. If that's the case, then what you want is a chip that will play the sound file once, then shut down. If somebody doesn't close the lid properly, you don't want it sitting there playing the file over and over again and draining the batteries in a day or two. 

 

Worst case scenario, you can put this idea on the backburner and try out some other cache ideas then circle back to this one when you figure out how you want to proceed.

[+cerberus1]

11 hours ago, ecanderson said:

This one may be even easier.  When the box is opened, it responds to light and begins to play.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IUHQJ3G

And you don't need to recharge if you don't want to -- should take a pair of standard 2032 cells once in a while.

 

The only sound-making container we ever found had similar.  Open the ammo can, and ambient light switched it on.  

The tune is a nice touch, compared to the ear-piercing scream that this one produced when opened. No "stealth" there...   

[+SamLowrey]

For some reason I thought of a music box type of solution and this scene:

 

 

[+ras_oscar]

You can also purchase greeting cards with self recordable messages. Need to augment the battery and remount the trigger. Very small. Not sure about long term durability. Perhaps if you remove the mechanism from the card and potted it i some epoxy?

[+DyverDown]

5 hours ago, ras_oscar said:

You can also purchase greeting cards with self recordable messages. Need to augment the battery and remount the trigger. Very small. Not sure about long term durability. Perhaps if you remove the mechanism from the card and potted it i some epoxy?

These typically use a plastic piece that is pulled out from between two metal contacts when the card is opened acting as a rudimentary switch. It would be simple enough to cut the contacts a little so they no longer make a connection and solder a wire to each to be connected by whatever you choose.  The easiest being a normally closed reed switch 9so when it is in proximity to a magnet and the container is closed it is open)  The use of a device triggered by light is not difficult either, but it will use up current to monitor the resistance of the light detecting device.  If you chose to have it manually triggered, you could substitute a push button for the reed switch, but the user would have to hold down the momentary contact switch (normally open) for the duration of play.

Edited August 14, 2020 by DyverDown

[+ugomaddie]

On 8/13/2020 at 4:17 AM, Unit473L said:

then what you want is a chip that will play the sound file once, then shut down.

Yes, this is definitely what I want.  After reading the product description and the Q&As for the light-sensor device suggested by ecanderson, I hope it will do just that -I ordered one.  I am unsure about one bit of info in the product description, though...it states that the batteries are recharged via the micro USB.  However, if I don't want to remove the device to recharge the batteries, but rather just take replacement batteries out to the cache site, is it a correct assumption I can do that with this device? 

A big thanks to everyone for your replies...and I appreciate the links provided - I'll dig a little deeper into this topic.  Right now it IS a bit daunting and I'll likely take an easier route for this cache since I want to get it out sooner rather than later.

[+TmdAndGG]

4 hours ago, ugomaddie said:

However, if I don't want to remove the device to recharge the batteries, but rather just take replacement batteries out to the cache site, is it a correct assumption I can do that with this device? 

Sadly, that doesn't appear* to be possible on that device.

*I don't own one, so I can't say for sure.

[+ecanderson]

6 hours ago, ugomaddie said:

Yes, this is definitely what I want.  After reading the product description and the Q&As for the light-sensor device suggested by ecanderson, I hope it will do just that -I ordered one.  I am unsure about one bit of info in the product description, though...it states that the batteries are recharged via the micro USB.  However, if I don't want to remove the device to recharge the batteries, but rather just take replacement batteries out to the cache site, is it a correct assumption I can do that with this device? 

 

As I noted, those cells are the same size as a standard (no-charge) and very common 2032 cell.  It should be possible to replace the rechargable cells with regular 2032s.  Think I see a couple of tabs on the edge that can be bent up to accomplish that (see photo).  Having done this, though, NEVER try the USB charging method on the standard cells -- just replace them as needed.  No reason you ever would, since it will be in the field, but just a warning.  So get it all set up with the audio you want, and swap out the cells with regular 2032 the first time the charge gets down on the original pair.

 

You can get 15 of them for less than 50 cents a pop >> https://www.amazon.com/Sony-CR2032-Lithium-2032-Battery/dp/B00MX89NJG

That should last you a very long time.

[+SamLowrey]

Make the opening of the cache signal a noise nearby to scare people.  Better yet, have multiple ones to make it sound like footsteps heading towards the location.  :-)  Only kidding, of course.

[Darwin473]

6 hours ago, SamLowrey said:

Better yet, have multiple ones to make it sound like footsteps heading towards the location.

 

That's an evil suggestion that will terrify people.

 

Do I have enough bits in the shed to do it...  

[+Capt. Bob]

I noticed the device suggested by ecanderson uses a LDR (light-dependant resistor, also called photocell).  Any light detecting sensor (LDR, photodiode, phototransistor) requires an active electronic circuit to operate.  In other words, some power is being consumed (quiescent power) whether it detects light or not.  That is why the device includes an On-Off switch to disconnect the batteries when not in use.  
When you get tired of replacing batteries you might consider replacing the LDR with a jumper wire (LDR’s are high resistance when dark, low resistance when light).  Then remove the On-Off switch and replace it with either physical electrical contacts, or a tilt sensor (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10289), or a magnetic reed switch (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10601) that will kill all power to the device until it is needed.

[+kunarion]

3 hours ago, Capt. Bob said:

I noticed the device suggested by ecanderson uses a LDR (light-dependant resistor, also called photocell).  Any light detecting sensor (LDR, photodiode, phototransistor) requires an active electronic circuit to operate.  In other words, some power is being consumed (quiescent power) whether it detects light or not.  That is why the device includes an On-Off switch to disconnect the batteries when not in use.  

 

There are doll music boxes that are small, some with pre-recorded music, some recordable, that might work, depending on how loud the sound needs to be. 

 

I made a cache that moves when a switch is pushed.  A spring-loaded waterproof switch that returns to the "Off" position might do.  I also like the idea of a tilt-switch.  The music box will be best a sealed, water-tight container of its own, with some provision to allow the sounds to be heard. There are devices that stick to any surface and turn it into a speaker.

 

 

Edited August 17, 2020 by kunarion

[+DyverDown]

7 hours ago, Capt. Bob said:

I noticed the device suggested by ecanderson uses a LDR (light-dependant resistor, also called photocell).  Any light detecting sensor (LDR, photodiode, phototransistor) requires an active electronic circuit to operate.  In other words, some power is being consumed (quiescent power) whether it detects light or not.  That is why the device includes an On-Off switch to disconnect the batteries when not in use.  
When you get tired of replacing batteries you might consider replacing the LDR with a jumper wire (LDR’s are high resistance when dark, low resistance when light).  Then remove the On-Off switch and replace it with either physical electrical contacts, or a tilt sensor (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10289), or a magnetic reed switch (https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10601) that will kill all power to the device until it is needed.

 

Thats what I said....