I like sex toys. I like combining them in creative ways that make sexy things happen. I like making simple mechanical upgrades and improvements.
I think it’s time for me to get to work on a project of my own. To design a sex toy the way I’d like to see a sex toy designed. Along the way, I’ll get to learn all kinds of things about fabrication, microcontrollers, programming, and so on.
What I have in mind is this: a clitoral toy that incorporates suction, vibration, and electricity. I know, I know, I already made one of those — the Lightning Rod. And the Lightning Rod is INTENSE. But it’s also clumsy and difficult to control, and its trinity of sensations each take place in their own isolated world.
What’s my plan, exactly?
It will look like a small plastic cup. Place it on the clit, and pump the hand-pump once; this will create a delta, the standard minimum amount of suction.
Then turn it on. The suction will start to increase on its own, and then whooooshh! release it. Suck harder, then whooooshh! release again. A steady, rhythmic pattern of suction and release.
The vibrator will also have its own patterns programmed into it — pulsating or escalating in interesting, steady rhythms.
And there will be electricity across the clit as well. E-stim is subtler and more precise than suction and vibration, so the e-stim will cause the clit to tingle in complex, erotic swirls of sensation, while the suction pulsates and the vibration dances on the clit.
But here’s the kicker:
These three sensations are going to be orchestrated. The vibration, the suction, and the electricity are going to correspond to each other. I want each of the separate components to work together in a way that feels like they’re adding value to the whole experience, not distracting from each other.
To accomplish this, I’m going to need to learn some stuff. Fun!
The brain of this gadget, the thinking center, is going to be a feisty little microcontroller called an Arduino. I’m not sure yet if I’m going to go with the Duemilanove or the Mega. I’ll mount the microcontroller with a motor shield.
My plan, right now, is to start with an acrylic cup from an acupuncture cupping set, the kind with the magnet.
I want to put a couple of wires through the cup towards the top. I’ll take a pair of pliers and heat a nail over the stove. Then I’ll push the hot nail through the acrylic cup, melting a nice circular hole. Then I’ll pass my wires through the hole, and epoxy it shut.
One set of wires is to electrify the cup. To accomplish this, I’ll use silver print to paint a pair of stripes down the insides of the cup and along the rim. I’ll use conductive epoxy to attach the wires to the conductive stripes — et voila! a bipolar electrified clit-sucker.
The other set of wires is for the vibrator. I’ll make a simple vibrator out of a DC motor and mount it where the magnet is supposed to mount inside the cup. If it doesn’t fit the mount naturally, I’ll find a way — whether it means hiring a machinist or using a hot glue gun. I’ll control the DC motor with the microprocessor’s motor control unit, to make it pulsatronic.
I’m going to see if I can take a servo motor and rig it up to drive in a linear motion, forwards and back, about an inch. I want to hook it to a small syringe which is held in place; the plunger would push in and out at regular intervals, based on the speed of the servo. The syringe would then be connected to a narrow tube (I’m thinking a 1/8″ inside diameter) which leads to the suction cup.
This pump would work like an old-fashioned fucking machine, only it’d be pulsating the suction around the clit. It would increase the vacuum, then release it, increase, then release. With the microcontroller, I hope I’m able to control the rate of the pulsation. I’m hoping to find ways to coordinate the suction-pulsation with the vibrator and the electricity.
Today is Friday, June 5th, 2009. I’m giving myself six months to get to the prototype stage. I’m giving myself until December 5th, 2009.
