Child Singingbook

My daughter is a big fan of the singingbooks, alas they never have her favorites songs and never play the songs more than 15 seconds.

So for her birthday, i challenge myself with an arduino singingbook with her 10 favorites songs (some has two versions) (in fact 9 of hers and one of mine) ;)

1. photo album
2. 1 poster 30% bigger the the book
3. 1 metal plate the size of the book
4. plywood the length of the book perimeter , 22mm of thickness
5. 1 arduino nano
6. 1 16 channels analog multiplexer
7. 1 DC step up power supply
8. 1 8 ohm 3w speaker
9. 1 DF player mini
10. 10 Film pressure sensor DF9-40 0-500g
11. 10 10kohm resistor
12. a 3 AAA battery holder with a switch
13. a stepper
14. a strong paper or wood glue
15. some round head nail and a dremel with a drill bit the same size of the nail.

First choose the printing site, i choose Photoweb and this model. It's a book comic sized with hard cover and the biggest grain size page i found. With a young child, the book will last way longer.

The book you'll choose will fix the size of the picture you'll create on photoshop. So i choose twice the size of the book with 600ppi to avoid any blur.

After you'll have to spend long hours on photoshop to create your illustrations with the infinite supply of google pictures.

Don't forget to leave a blank dobble page between each song to put the pressure switch.

order also a poster 30% bigger than the book to make the back cover

Here some exemples i made:

1. solder the electronics
2. do not solder the switch as the wire must be pass through the book in the next step
3. only one switch is on the schematic for visibility, but they all are connected the same way between VCC and the pin of the multiplexer
4. i wrap everything on the 3D printed box attached but it fits my PCB. You can use it but it has to be fitted to your circuit
5. program the arduino with the attached code

I add a step up dc-dc converter to draw all the power from the batteries. You don't have to use it but if you do, it must be adjusted to 5v with a multimeter. You just have to turn the screw anticlockwise until you reach the good voltage (some need 20 rotations)

As my daughter sometimes like 2 versions of the same song, i add a secret song in the program. You have to longpush a switch to access it

I had to use the multiplexer because the Arduino nano has only 7 analog inputs

put each song in the root of the sd card in folder 1-2-3... Name them 001 for the shortpush and 002 for the longpushsong. If you don't have a longpushsong copy and paste the first and name it 002.

The first swich will play the song in the first folder, the second in the second,.....

1. cut a little hole between the page and do it on the upper side (its easier to pick the cable)
2. drill a big hole on the back cover on the upper side too, be sure to do it before the fold or the hole will be visible at the end. Drill in the cover and not through the last page
3. pass a cable through the 2 holes, i used another cable to help me
4. solder the pressure switch to the cable between the blank page, use a protection not to burn your book, check your connection, don't hesitate to pull on it
5. cut a hole in the page
6. put in position the switch with a tape
7. solder the other end to the arduino according to the schematics and test your switch before gluing!!!
8. glue the blank pages
9. if you have more than 5 switches, i advise you to drill holes on the lower side too

1. make a frame with the plywood that match the book from the side to the fold (or you won't be able to open it later)
2. cut a metal plate the same size as the frame
3. drill holes for the nails
4. cut hole for the speaker and the battery holder
5. as the speaker has holes for fixation i reveted it to the plate
6. nail the plate to the frame

Now you have to fix the poster to the plate/frame, the staple made it possible to be open again.

1. staple the poster on side of the fold
2. cut holes in the poster in front of the speaker and cut an opening for the battery holder (as the poster is staple on one side it's easier to do it at the right place)
3. place the frame on the cover of the book
4. check that all cable are inside and that the frame work is thick enough (otherwise you can add another frame to match the thickness of your circuit as i had to do)
5. test a last time your circuit
6. wrap the poster as a gift over the inside of the back cover and stable it
7. insert the battery holder