Project concept — Fishing

Electronic Fishing Rod — a playful tool that turns the classic keychain fishing toys into a full interaction: choose a spot → cast → wait → feel the bite → reel → receive a printed “catch”.

Inspiration: small electronic fishing toys from the 2000s and the ritual of real fishing. I want a simple, tactile sequence that kids (and adults) can understand instantly, but with a rewarding artifact you can collect and trade.

How it works (v1): The square base unit lets you select a fishing spot with buttons. Its screen shows a calm wave pattern. When the rod is cast (detected by the rod or a button for MVP), the base switches to fishing state and the waves animate. After a random wait, the base signals a bite; the rod vibrates; you reel by turning the rod knob. When enough steady turns are detected, the base shows a success icon and the embedded 58 mm thermal printer outputs a receipt with the fish silhouette, species, size, time, and spot.

In the larger installation, the user is “fishing” in a parallel, data-based sea and catching digital fish. The whole process — cast → wait → vibration (“bite”) → reel in → witness — becomes a way to talk about the relationship between matter and data, physical behavior and digital feedback, reality and simulation.

Notebook sketch of the electronic fishing rod and dock
1. First notebook sketch of the electronic fishing rod and dock layout.
Reference handheld fishing device
2. Handheld fishing device reference, used to understand grip and scale.
Toy fishing mechanism reference
3. Toy fishing mechanism that inspires the playful, game-like interaction.
Compact fishing rod reference
4. Compact fishing rod reference for the overall proportion of the handle and rod.

Rod form and vintage reel references

For the rod, I looked at older fishing rods with simple circular reels. These designs feel very mechanical and legible: you immediately know where to hold, where to reel, and how the line is stored. My CAD sketch borrows this clear wheel geometry, which will later hide the rotary encoder and vibration motor inside.

Collection of vintage fishing rods and reels
5. Collection of vintage rods and reels that guide the form language of the new rod.
Close view of a circular fishing reel
6. Close-up of a circular reel whose clear mechanics I want to echo in my design.

The dock as a holographic stage

The dock is both a charging base for the rod and a small stage where the “fish-ghost” appears. I read through several DIY hologram projects and finally decided to use a Pepper’s Ghost-style setup: an angled transparent plate reflects a bright image from a hidden display, so the fish seems to float above the base.

Image 7 shows my first dock sketch: a rectangular base with a glass pyramid hovering above a white platform. Image 8 documents the Pepper’s Ghost principle that I will adapt to my own geometry and materials.

Render of the dock as a holographic pyramid display
7. Dock sketch with a glass-like pyramid where the holographic fish will appear.
Diagram explaining Pepper's Ghost effect
8. Reference diagram explaining the Pepper’s Ghost setup I plan to use.

Rough 3D model in Rhino

After collecting the references, I built a very rough 3D model of both the dock and the rod in Rhino. At this stage everything is kept as clean primitives: a box for the thermal printer base, a cylindrical shell for the glass cover, and a simplified rod with an oversized reel for testing hand positions.

This CAD file lives in model.3dm so I can keep refining the geometry as I learn more about electronics, machining, and molding in the following weeks.

White CAD model of the dock with cylindrical cover
9. Rough Rhino model of the dock, showing the printer base and transparent cover.
White CAD model of the electronic fishing rod
10. Early Rhino model of the fishing rod with an oversized reel to study ergonomics.