DrumPants 2.0 is open source, still turns your pants into drums
That crazy DrumPants wearable tech we first saw in '07 -- the same one that raised 75 grand on KickStarter and was featured on Shark Tank in 2014 -- is back. Its creators have now turned to Indiegogo to fund the mass production of DrumPants version 2.0, which they claim is faster and stronger than its predecessor. Plus, it's now open source. The wearable, for those who've only just heard of it, isn't actually a pair of pants with drums (sorry to disappoint). It's a set of accessories comprised of two elongated drum pads and two foot pedals you can use to play different kinds of instruments, along with a knob that lets you choose between samples and musical scales. You can wear them over your clothes, or under, like the jamming dude in the GIF above.
The system connects wirelessly to its accompanying app for iPhone, iPad and Mac through MIDI over Bluetooth if you want to make music. But the sensors can also function as controllers and actually have loads of other potential applications. In the video above, you can see them being used to control other apps, a VR game and a light show. They're even shown as a way for someone with brain injury to communicate. The whole set is Arduino-compatible, so you can use it with your own projects if the campaign reaches its $35,000 goal. Its developers promise to release all of DrumPants' designs, schematics and firmware if and when that happens, though you'll of course have to shell out at least $159 to get a kit of your own.
