Squeaky Sneaks(fart Shoes)

This instructables will show you how I made some shoes that make noise when one walks. I was inspired by some actual squeaky shoes and pondered the thought of changing the sounds that they made. Naturally this turned into a fart joke. After an internet search it was discovered that the genius Fozzie Bear had developed an analog pair. Some things that this instructable will not cover in depth(but will possibly have links for) are electronic theory, bread boarding/prototyping, soldering and sewing. This will only cover the basic art of fart-shoeing. So get ready to be amazed by this technological marvel of modern technology.

Walking is really a controlled fall. One leans forward and puts their foot out to catch themselves in repetition alternating legs. Most people connect with their heel first and push off with the ball of the foot, unless they are trying to be sneaky, but we will be sticking to generic walking for this instructable.

So we will use this information to define two parts of a step by one foot. Landing on one's heel and then pushing off with one's ball.

With these two parts of a step a sound/event can be triggered or ended with electronic switches in the heel and ball of the foot. Which part of the step that triggers the event is not important only that there are these two distinct events.

After an internet search I discovered a small sound module that is that can be run independently or in conjunction with an Arduino. I chose to not use an Arduino for space considerations. This Instructable was very helpful.

I chose membrane switches for their flat profile.

Since the sound module needs 3.3volts I decided a voltage regulator was needed and chose this one for its adjustability and versatility. It is also already built and just needs to be hooked up.

The sound output from the sound module is not very loud so using some sort of audio amplifier was necessary for this project. I used a circuit designed around the LM386 integrated circuit. This is a very popular device and there are many places to find out about how they are used. This is a good place to start. There are probably many other ways to accomplish this. It will be up to the maker to decide what route to to take in this area, based on availability of materials and personal design choices.

Designing, re-designing and re-re-designing on a breadboard is the fastest way to refine most projects before assembly. This will help the maker identify and eliminate many technical issues when it is still easy to make changes and modifications. This instructable is an excellent source for help with basic electronics and designing electronic circuits. The photo above is my breadboard and shows how I went about designing and testing the various components. Note: the Arduino is not being used as it is just attached to my board for other projects. On the right is my power supply, which is a 9 volt battery, but other sources can be used by attaching them to the terminal connectors on the lower left side. Also on the left side is the speaker I've chosen, which is also connected to some terminal connectors for easy changes. In the center is my breadboard which holds the sound module and the audio amplifier I designed for use in this project. And finally on the right is the voltage regulator used to convert the 9 Volt supply to 3.3 volts for the sound module. However, the audio amplifier still uses 9 volts unregulated from the battery. Depending on what materials you have will dictate you personal set up.

After prototyping your different materials and components. Assemble your items in a fashion as to how they will be installed on your footwear. I chose to forego the circuit board for the audio amplifier and just soldered the components together. There are more soldering tutorials on the internet than one can shake a stick at, so that skill is left to the maker to either learn or get help with. But in the photo one can also see the notes which are an important part of any project for reference. they need not be clear for everyone, just something so one does not have to remember everything. Lists are also good things to consider. Assembling materials should also be about gathering one's thoughts before continuing to assembly.

My choice of footwear was a a Birkenstock Boston sandal. I chose to stitch the components to the sandal with a heavy thread. I thick leather dictated that I poke holes with an Xacto knife to stitch the thread through. After attaching the components in strategically placed positions the interconnecting wires were soldered in place. The membrane switches which control the "PLAY" & "RESET" functions of the sound module were secured with gaff tape to the correct positions on the sole.

So have fun and make weird stuff to share with and inspire others. Your silly idea may flip a switch in someone's head that sparks their special idea.

Have fun and make something,

Ben.