# Source: https://learn.adafruit.com/delorean-time-circuit/design-liberties.md

# DeLorean Time Circuit

## Design Liberties

When accepting this assignment, I might’ve failed to mention a small detail to the boss folks:&nbsp;I don’t own a car, let alone a DeLorean, for displaying the finished prop. Instead, mostly inspired by&nbsp;[Jeri Ellsworth’s NES purse](http://www.flickr.com/photos/candescence/3908396605/ "Link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/candescence/3908396605/"), I had this goofball idea of a slim, battery-powered device that could be installed and photographed&nbsp;in ironic settings: on a bicycle, on public transit, hung from a&nbsp;[Flavor Flav](http://www.flickr.com/photos/relaxing/6209049368/in/photostream/ "Link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/relaxing/6209049368/in/photostream/")&nbsp;necklace as “bling,” and so forth.

While the general idea could have been accomplished quickly and easily with an iPad running&nbsp;the&nbsp;_[Flux Capacitor™](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flux-capacitor/id391862376?mt=8)_&nbsp;app, I wanted to preserve somewhat the staggered design of the original, and&nbsp;it&nbsp;_had_&nbsp;to have real 7-segment LED displays…there’s no substitute for seeing the genuine thing. In much the way that&nbsp;[nixie tubes](http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2010/11/11/making-classic-frequency-counters-into-nixie-clocks/)&nbsp;have a certain vintage&nbsp;_coolness_&nbsp;about them, LED displays too are reaching a nostalgic threshold, iconic of 1980s technology.

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/001/307/medium800/lcds___displays_Compared.jpg?1396770859)

Using stock parts required some design compromises. The date and time formats would be changed to fit these 4-digit displays&nbsp;(the film prop used back-painted glass fakes for the month display,&nbsp;with some segment changes being physically impossible, making a 100% match unattainable anyway…iPad wins there).&nbsp;Also took liberties with some LED colors and various spacings, but overall the piece is still highly recognizable.

For the sake of a quick demo, I had to cut this short. Though all the displays are addressable, the destination and last-departed dates are simply fixed values from the first film; there’s no interaction. I may revisit this to add a keypad later, but for now it’s all just a fancy clock (it does show the current time accurately, using a&nbsp;[ChronoDot RTC](https://www.adafruit.com/products/255)). Also, the vector files are not available, because they’re&nbsp;_utter garbage!_&nbsp;Creating something of finished kit quality&nbsp;[requires many iterations and refinements](http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2012/06/07/22/ "Link: http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2012/06/07/22/")…but with a rushed, one-shot piece like this, course corrections would come in the form of a Dremel tool and epoxy putty. If you plan to build one, give it some time and prepare your blueprint carefully.

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- [Next Page](https://learn.adafruit.com/delorean-time-circuit/circuit-trickery.md)

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