Final Process

Concept: Still working with ideas of memory, I wanted to create a piece that would be interactive. I was really excited with the possibilities of my last mini project but it wasn't worked out enough for me. I wanted this piece to allow viewers to experience the repetition, disconnect, and confusion caused by damaged memory through abstracted forms. The piece is also exploring family relationships, by each object  representing a person, one is my father's voice, one is my brother's voice, and one mine. They are close but isolated, frozen in a moment in time. They have the appearance of communication but are only repeating the same phrases, never connecting or syncing.

Tech: My first step was converting old home videos of my family to a digital format that I could work with. Then I looked through the videos for clips to use. I converted these clips using audacity to 16 bit wav file and copied them to SD cards. Each SD represents a subject/speaker; myself, my younger brother, and our father. Using 3 wave shields, unos, maxbotix ultrasonic EZ3 range finders, and speakers I have audio memories playing disjointed and random based on a person's interaction/proximity to the objects. It's similar to the pumpkin project.

Objects: I had a hard time with the form. I'm still not sure I've reconciled it. I used this opportunity to experiment with some ideas and forms I had been thinking about. Still trying to figure out where to go with my work in terms of material but also how I can incorporate tech and interactivity into my sculpture/drawing/objects. To make them I created a spherical wire frame and then laid paper over top that had been dipped in polycrylic.

polycryilic drying

figuring out placement

studio testing

beginning dictating the sound clips

Add caption

critique

Final process

For the final project I've changed my method or material. I've decided to bounce off the last mini project where I used a wave shield. I feel like it is something I can work worth more and lines up with this idea of connection/disconnection I was trying to work with. I wanted to create a conection or conversation between three sculptures via LCD screens with text, but ti just wasn't working for me aesthetically and I felt like I was holding on to some of my older body of work. So, I'm working with the same idea, just sound instead of text which I feel is way more interactive and a little disruptive. Also, trying to rework the form from the mini project, struggling with that and how it can relate to memory/connection/disconnection

I've got working circuits just working on reconciling the computer's idea of random and my idea of random (haha)

Mini Project 2

For the second mini project I went back to a sketch I made earlier this semester that was an idea for the final project. For this piece, I wanted to play a sound clip from home videos I have. The sound would emit from inside the form. After learning about wave shields, I finally had a way to do it.

 I used chicken wire to get the basic form and found a heavier gage aluminum foil that is used for embossing to wrap it in (really cool stuff).

 There is a pocket in the upper right hand corner that contains the Arduino, wave shield, speaker, and IR sensor. It has two sound bites of my dad, "Faster, Erica, Faster!" and "Run, Erica, Run!" that will go off randomly when the piece is alone, but will also be triggered again as someone approaches.

I was thinking about bottle trees while making this piece. Bottle trees are something in southern culture I find really interesting, where a person will hang glass bottles  from trees. these bottles trap evil, ghosts, and sins-- depending on color and who you talk to. What I've been told is that the ghosts/or sins are attracted to the shiny reflection and become trapped inside. These sort of beliefs exist in other cultures, but I find the southern one that exists in the bible belt fascinating. So I took this idea and started to think about how one could trap a memory, if they acted the same way.

I don't think this piece is finished, It definitely has some glitches and needs more work. I view it as more of a maquette,  I think it has some potential and I am considering working with it more. 

Please let me know what you think!

:) Erica

Exploring Arduino CH 10 and LiquidCrystal Library

10-1 LCD Text with incrementing Number

10-2 LCD Updating Progress Bar Code

10-3 Personal Thermostat Program

having a lot of trouble getting this one to work. The code loads fine (or so it says) so it must be my wiring or a component. going to try again.

LiquidCrystal Library

Auto Scroll

Blink

Cursor

Custom Character

Display

HelloWorld

Scroll

Serial Display

Set Cursor

Text Direction

phew!

Exploring Arduino CH 8

8-1 I2C Temperature Sensor Printing Code

8-2 Temperature Sensors Code with Shift Register LEDs and Serial Communication

Skycraft Scavenger hunt

Skycraft Scavenger Hunt 20 points 

Please take a picture of each item on the scavenger hunt using your phone. You may work in pairs. You need also to take some notes getting serial numbers and label text so that you can learn more about the item and its specs when you get home. Post small sized pictures and text describing objects on blog. I need enough information to know what it is. Have fun!

Please locate 4 different kinds of LEDs. Look up the voltage and amp specs for each. 2 points

 Find two giant capacitors.1 point

Find two devices that contain solar panels and tell me what they are. 1 point

Find a breadboard. .5 point

Find 5 devices that contain sensors and tell me what they do. 2.5 for devices what they do 3 for total of 3 points

Find 6 different kinds of cables and give me specs of each size in gauge. Also look up what each kind

Find a remote control. .5 points

                                                   

Locate an electronics kit. What does it do?  .5 points

                                                       

Find a solderable perf board. You might want to purchase some of these. .5 points

Find 5 different motors and describe each. Locate their serial numbers and look up what they might be used for. Please tell me if they are DC motors, servo motors, AC/DC motors or stepper motors. 3 including descriptions

Find 3 types of camera or optical devices. 1.5 points

Find three devices that deliberately (sound production is part of their function) produce sound and tell me what they are. . 2 points including what they do

Find a strobe light. .5 points

Find five different kinds of potentiometers or variable resistors. What is their range of voltages? What are they used for? 3 points including what they are used for

Find five different kinds of switches.  2.5 points

Find two kinds of speakers. 1 point

Find three different kinds of project boxes to house an electronics project. 1.5 points

Find three different types of magnets. 1.5 points

Find a device that counts.  .5 points

Find an LCD panel. .5 points

Find 6 things that are really interesting to you that you might want to use in a project. 3 points

Total Points