Buckle Up for Adventure

Some people have a great sense of direction, whereas others would not know which way north was if it hit them in the face. For those with an innate knack for navigation, it is as if they possess an internal GPS, guiding them through unfamiliar terrain with an uncanny accuracy. They often have an intuitive sense of which direction they're facing, even in the absence of any external cues.

On the flip side, individuals who struggle with directions may find themselves frequently turned around, even in familiar surroundings. They might rely heavily on GPS devices and smartphone apps to get from point A to point B, fearing the prospect of getting lost without these digital lifelines.

In a world where technology has made navigation nearly foolproof for everyone, the art of wayfinding, once considered a fundamental survival skill, has become less vital. However, there is a certain charm in the thought of being able to get around without having to punch an address into your smartphone. But some people have got it and others do not, and that is just the way it is, right?

Maybe not. There has been a lot of interest in the hardware hacker community lately in building devices that train people to recognize which direction is magnetic north. The latest to throw their hat — err, belt — into the ring is an engineer that goes by the handle Blinry. Blinry has developed a belt that provides haptic feedback to the wearer that points out which direction is north. The hope is that the constant stream of passive information will help a person to develop a sixth sense awareness of direction over time.

Simply called the Haptic Compass Belt, the device is built into a standard belt. But for all of the actuator attachments and wiring, it is important to choose a belt with double eyelets. Spread around the belt at regular intervals are eight vibration motors that serve to provide haptic feedback. The motors are wired, through the eyelets to keep things neat, to a pair of transistor array chips, which are controlled by a Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller.

The control hardware is wired up on perfboard and strapped to the front of the belt like a Texas-sized buckle. No battery or compass is included in the belt itself, with those functions being offloaded to a nearby smartphone that is connected to the Raspberry Pi Pico via a USB cable. An app on the smartphone sends compass data to the belt through a serial connection over USB. The Pico uses that information to determine which vibration motor is most nearly facing north, then it activates it.

The Haptic Compass Belt definitely has a strong DIY vibe, which would make it unsuitable for daily use for most people. But it can be reproduced inexpensively — the components can be purchased for about $16 — which makes it tempting to build even if it is used lightly. There is certainly a path forward to make the belt more practical as well. Replacing the perfboard with a custom PCB, and the through-hole chips with smaller surface-mount components would go a long way. Adding a small battery and magnetometer, along with a custom case could almost make it pass as a standard belt, at least if the wiring can be tucked away better.

Next up, Blinry is looking at extending the belt to also provide directions to a destination, which could prove to be a very useful addition. There are also plans to make the device more compact and portable, so be sure to stay tuned for updates.