I based my design on the David Tennant Doctor and analyzed pictures of him with the TARDIS. After examining the pictures, the first step was to figure out a way to get the windows to look right. By laying out the white bricks with the studs on top wouldn't allow the blue frame between the windows, so a different technique needed to be used. After talking to my friend Lee, I started working on a SNOT (Studs Not On Top) technique that would let me put the white bricks and blue plates sideways. After several tries, I found a technique that worked utilizing pins to hold the stacks in place, but then the lower blue sections needed to be repositioned to center them within the holes below the windows. I worked on a way to use jumper plates to center them in the holes in a satisfactory way.
Once the panel was designed, eight of them were built in the proper blue color, unlike the prototype panel, and the framework was built to hold the panels in . This brought me to the phase where I wanted to add my usual technological flair. The three things I wanted to add to the TARDIS were flashing lights, a motor to open the door and a way to play the Doctor Who theme. The obvious solution to my concepts would be to use an Arduino Microcontroller to run everything.
Since the LED lighting was the easiest of the three, it was quickly added and tested to fade the lights in and out like they do when the TARDIS travels through time. The original concept was to run a bright white LED to the top and orange lighting inside. Unfortunately, the orange lighting couldn't be seen very well in a lit room, but the white light on top was much brighter and it was the more important of the lights to me anyway.
A number of props from Doctor Who will go on sale next week.
The items available to buy at the Bonhams Entertainment Auction include the Tardis used in 2005 by Christopher Eccleston. It is expected to sell for between £8,000 and £12,000.
The oldest surviving Dalek, which appeared in a 1964 episode, is also among the lots and has an estimate of £2,000 to £3,000.
Elsewhere, a 5ft model of the Tardis is expected to reach between £300 and £400, while a Cyberman helmet from 1967 has a price tag of between £3,000 to £4,000.
The items will go on sale in London on June 23rd.
