The Staircase Instrument Controller is designed to play sounds, music, or notes, inside of a Los Angeles art gallery, as guests walk up a staircase. It uses a Raspberry Pi miniature computer and a custom sensor board to detect steps on each tread of the staircase. The unit then plays a corresponding sound. It can be adapted to a wide variety of sensors, an currently uses a laser-tripwire system to detect a step. Sound sets are loaded onto the device from a USB thumb drive, in .MP3 or .WAV formats, and selected by a knob on the front.

The sensor controller board, pictured in white, was designed by David Di Donato and manufactured by Fritzing. It connects to a number of photocells, and communicates the resistance values back to the Raspberry Pi. These values are then used to determine what treads have been stepped on, and what sound should be played.

The unit is designed to be as open, and the circuitry is meant to be as visible as possible. The controller board is not only functional, but also meant to be a display piece in the gallery it is built for. Onboard LEDs illuminate the unit with a light blue glow, and indicate what the unit is currently doing.