Make anything into a key!
How it works
When you touch something attached to the alligator clip, you complete the circuit for that button you become part of the electrical circuit! Because of this, you can make buttons out of anything that conducts electricity.
From aluminum foil to pencil markings, the world becomes your keyboard!
Try this at home
MaKey MaKey can work on any computer and simply needs alligator clips to get started! Order your own!
Definitions/glossary
- Electrical and Computing (ECE) Engineers: Use their knowledge of circuits to design and build electronics.
- Conductive: Any material that allows electricity to flow through it.
- Electrical Circuit: The closed path that electricity takes as it flows through wires to accomplish a task. Circuits include power sources, wires, switches, and loads!
What's going on at the University
The MaKey MaKey circuit that you made at the Ontario Celebration Zone is a prototype for wearable technology. John McPhee is developing wearable technologies to improve athletic performance and safety. The multi-discipinary team of systems design engineers, electrical & computer engineers, and bio-mechanical engineers work together to create new athletic equipment.
How to become an electrical & computer engineer
The first step to becoming an electrical & computer engineering student is to graduate from high school with the required math, chemistry, physics, and english courses. After high school, you will attend an accredited engineering program. Computer engineering students at Waterloo apply algorithmic and digital design principles to design, build, and test computer software or hardware components used for information processing, communication, and storage.
The co-operative study program will provide you with up to 24 months of practical experience complements and reinforces in-class learning. This will prepare you for a career as a computer engineer.