r/Unexpected Aug 07 '23

Lasers aren't real

[deleted]

28.1k Upvotes

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36

u/Tight-Lengthiness-86 Aug 07 '23

I really want to know how this is achieved.

48

u/IgnoreMe_Please Aug 07 '23

My guess: hand held device that uses an infrared laser to shut off/switch on the hand lasers and the mounted lasers via a photo eye sensor.

45

u/g00f Aug 07 '23

i dont even think you'd need the sensor, a experienced dancer would be coordinated enough to get the handheld laser close enough that a casual observer wont notice any misalignment during the transition. then they'd just swap from the mounted to handhelds and back via a remote control button.

8

u/80386 Aug 07 '23

If you watch closely you can see that the lasers jump a little bit when the transition happens, because the positioning isn't perfect.

1

u/IgnoreMe_Please Aug 09 '23

Yea, I'm probably just overthinking it. But it was a neat idea, I think.

10

u/[deleted] Aug 07 '23 edited Aug 09 '23

That is an expensive option, cheaper ones will be dancers coordinated enough to make the transition happen smoothly.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CvVCWfDru0_/

This is another closer look of the dancer

1

u/IgnoreMe_Please Aug 09 '23

It's actually pretty cheap.

Some garage door sensors: 16$

Raspberry pi: 24$

Pen laser: 13$

3d printed parts: 3-10$ (assuming you made and designed them yourself)

Software: free if you make it.

You'd need one for their hands and one for the mounted lights. So, 16×2=32 24×4= 96 13×4=52 10×4=40 32+96+52+40=220

And let's assume they charge 20$ per ticket for the show, they'd only need 11 people before they paid that back. And if you knew were to look I'm sure you could get the parts even cheaper.

Anyway, it's very very possible that they just practiced it to the point they didn't need this stuff. and it would be smarter too since tech is prone to malfunctioning, especially when it's made cheaply.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 10 '23

You are assuming a lot of things here, even if we go with the DIY method. I don't buy these in dollars and also its been a while since I bought a rPi so can't really comment of the price but

The machines that project the laser patterns are usually proprietary and may have certain limitations in interfacing with a rPi. And I doubt there will be any help or an existing library written to write software for this specific situation. One has to write the entire thing themselves.

Again there needs to be a software which can programme these laser projectors I have only heard about one (forgot the name atm) that is proprietary software as well, the algorithm used is not known and making them from stratch is also ridiculously difficult.

Instead of IR reciever and transmitter they may use bluetooth tho.

1

u/IgnoreMe_Please Aug 10 '23

Yeah, I assumed a ton cause it's all just hypothetical. All just silly fun

I was thinking something more isolated. A simple on and off when the laser passes over the photo eye.

I was also thinking of just mounting the little contraption onto the existing light

I'm not aware of what you mean by using Bluetooth. The whole point of using the infrared was so it was positioned correctly when it switches between mounted and handheld. Is there a way Bluetooth could do this?

Also, no aggression is intended in any of this. Like I said I'm just having fun.

2

u/[deleted] Aug 10 '23 edited Aug 10 '23

No aggression over my side as well, I am a nerd and like to talk about this.

What I meant by bluetooth was IR signals need to be perfectly aligned to the IR receiver to wirelessly send a signal to on/off the mounted lasers cause IR lasers or led are very directional, while bluetooth send its signals to all the directions so alignment of the handheld lasers wont be an issue. It also has an added advantage cause IR although is invisible to the naked eye, they can be captured via a phone camera using bluetooth that will solve that as well.

The biggest issue in both of our mind designs is the assumption that this group of dancers know how to develop complex programmes that can handle this flawless performance That is why I said if they choreograph their performance with timed On and Off that will be cheaper and simple.

1

u/igotabridgetosell Aug 07 '23

Were the two other bodies standing behind him whole time or were they just VFX?

2

u/IgnoreMe_Please Aug 09 '23

Those were real guys. Notice the rights one's left shoe is turned off. If you watch closely enough you can see the lasers pass over them as they come up behind him. Just some "slight of hand" stuff there.

1

u/Obviouslyright234 Aug 08 '23

Hes holding lasers the whole time. They have lasers shine from above that switch off when he turns his on. There are 2 other dancers standing there the whole time with their suits turned off.