A helix mount/diffuser for WS2811 pixels. Can be used to create a helix of arbitrary size. Each segment holds 3 pixels, 17 segments is 1m high. I wrapped them around an old metal tiki torch pole.

Fair warning - my copy of this took a beating while packing it up quickly to escape floodwaters. It was already having trouble staying together. Pick a very strong glue or heat weld your pieces together. They Do Not like to stay together.

Video with a lovely soundtrack provided by the printer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGDVzsOpzdY

I mounted 3 passive infrared sensors on top and connected the whole thing to a large usb battery. If none of the sensors have tripped recently, it runs pretty patterns. Each time a sensor trips, it sends a color down the helix (sensors are red, green, and blue). Colors can mix.

I printed them in White PLA at 15% infill and was pretty happy with them. I used hotglue which came apart. I'll be reworking it with epoxy soon.

The code I wrote for the project is here:
https://github.com/bobiam/trip_motion

Check the comments for more info if you're interested, but this project is a bit messy.