CyberCrystal Vest: Final Report Part 1 – The What

Project Overview

The CyberCrystal Vest is a wearable, motion-reactive fashion-tech piece that blends cyberpunk aesthetics, interactive LED lighting, and personal expression through movement. Inspired by rave culture and sci-fi design, the vest uses individually addressable Neopixel LEDs embedded within custom-designed 3D-printed crystal structures, all mounted onto an upcycled black fishing vest. The result is a garment that responds visually to body motion—shimmering when idle, rippling with orange and yellow when lightly moved, and flashing aggressively red when activated by sustained motion.

Inspirations & Design References

Cyberpunk & Futurism

This project draws heavily from the Cyberpunk Futurism aesthetic, a fusion of dystopian grit and high-tech visual language. Key inspirations included:

• Blade Runner (1982): The blend of neon-lit chaos and utilitarian fashion inspired the black base vest and overall visual tone.
• Cyberpunk 2077: From sharp fashion silhouettes to glowing body augmentations, this game’s visual language reinforced the contrast between hardware and humanity.
• Rave & Festival Culture: Festivals like EDC and Lost Lands showed how interactive lightwear could become part of a performer’s identity. I wanted my vest to participate in this visual language, not just aesthetically but kinetically.
• Wearable Tech Projects from Adafruit, especially those using Neopixels with accelerometers or vibration sensors provided a technical foundation.

Artistic Vision

My goal was to create a piece that wasn’t just visually loud, but also responsive and alive. The vest needed to:

• Reflect a futuristic, high-energy aesthetic aligned with my personal style
• Function as a form of self-expression through movement
• React to the beat and energy of a dance floor—subtle when still, wild when in motion
• Feel like it belongs in a world where tech and body are integrated—not worn, but fused

This led to the core concept: a cyberpunk vest with LED-lit crystal growths, pulsing with movement like a living exosuit. Along with cyberpunk aesthetic, I also took inspiration from the aesthetic used in my previous upcycle project, Artificial Nature—a synthetic creature growing LED bioluminescent crystal limbs

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Project Specifications

Functional Goals

• Interactive Lighting: Light modes that change based on vibration intensity.
• Microcontroller Integration: All LEDs controlled by code running on a small Arduino-compatible board.
• Modular Components: Crystals attach separately, enabling easy maintenance and adjustment.
• Wearability: The vest must be comfortable, secure, and able to handle the movement of dancing.

Lighting Behavior

• Idle Mode: Soft shimmering with a crystalline fade pattern
• Intermittent Movement: Orange-yellow light ripples cascade top to bottom
• Sustained Movement: Pulsing, aggressive red strobe effect

Design Development

Initial Sketches & Concepts

My early designs featured a spike-laden silhouette, taking cues from both the vibrant and eery look of  cyberpunk clothing in the future and the natural geometry of crystal formations. These ideas evolved into a design focused on back-mounted, triangular crystal forms.

Crystal Design – CAD Development

I designed three sizes of crystals using Fusion 360, each shaped to house a single Neopixel LED and allow light to diffuse through semi-translucent PLA filament. Each model included:

• Internal LED cavity
• Side holes for mounting via safety pins or thread

The form was meant to resemble something grown and engineered—a fusion of mineral and machine.

Final Design Plan

Vest Layout

I arranged the crystals in a triangular spine down the back, with smaller spikes branching off diagonally. I chose a used black fishing vest for its durability, natural utility structure, and ample anchor points.

• 22 total crystals: 4 large, 8 medium, 10 small
• Wiring routed inside the vest lining, protected by velcro seams
• battery pack hidden in an inner chest pocket
• microcontroller and vibration sensor hidden under sewn on patch on the shoulder

Electronics & Code

The vest uses:

• 1x Arduino-compatible microcontroller (Adafruit Flora)
• 22x Neopixel LEDs
• jumper wires
• 1x vibration sensor (piezoelectric)
• 1x 5V portable USB power supply

I initially coded the vest using basic Adafruit Neopixel library functions, but refined the code to:

• Replace delay() with millis() for responsiveness
• Add state tracking to differentiate between low and high vibration events
• Improve animation fluidity and brightness ramping

Aesthetic Integration

The aesthetic of Cyberpunk Futurism was embodied in every design choice:

• Dark vest base: Utilitarian but stylized, like tactical wear
• Glowing crystals: Symbolizing evolution, tech mutation, and bioluminescence
• Response to movement: Evoking a creature reacting to touch, blending human and non-human behaviors
• Minimal visible wiring: Sleek integration—nothing looks “added on”

My goal was to make the vest feel more like a creature than clothing—as if it’s reacting to its surroundings independently, but worn as part of the body.

Reflections So Far

I’ve completed Part 1 of this project with all core features intact. The visual design is successful, the reactive lighting is functional, and the vest is wearable and secure. The next phase will focus on documenting fabrication, evaluating real-world performance, and gathering media for presentation.