- Continued construction using the perfboard/shrink tubing sensor package and finished two shoe prototypes
- User Test - Patricia (using foamboard prototype + Korg synth module)
- Felt that more sensitivity was needed. She found it difficult to trigger the samples without stomping really hard
- Didn't like bass drum on the heel; felt it would be more natural on the front
- Cannot tell where the sensor is -- perception is that it is close to the center of the shoe
- Feels the system is more responsive with the 10k resistor than with the 2k
- Could play either sitting or standing
- Would like to play along with some other music
« October 2006 | Main | December 2006 »
November 28, 2006
November 27, 2006
Assembling Portfolio
We have something like three or four weeks until the end of the semester. I've been working to assemble my project portfolio for Spatial Design. As I flipped through all of the pictures and notes I've taken, I started feeling unsure of how to organize all of it into a neat package. How do I sum up "me" or what "I" have to offer?
I started out searching for other ITP Spatial Design portfolios and ended up discovering e-Portfolios. I managed to restrain myself before diving headlong into the world of personal content management systems. There is something about information storing, sorting, searching, and organization that grabs my attention. As I was preparing to start classes at ITP I gave my then "old" (meaning several months) wikidpad system a shake for Evernote. I tried out GoBinder, Windows Journal, and most recently OneNote. This has almost been an obsession for me. How do I store the information I collect each day. How do I organize it so I can find it again. How do I display it so others can get a sense of what I've been doing?
November 26, 2006
Kaleidoscopes
Shinyoung and I are working on our final project and preparing it for submission for the ITP 2006 Winter Show.
We had some difficulties on Wednesday afternoon, which stemmed from a bug in Processing's offscreen drawing code. We are drawing our kaleidoscope images offscreen in order to avoid the overhead of computing the positions of all of the "particles" in our system. By drawing a small particle system offscreen and capturing the bitmap image of it each frame, we can manipulate the bitmap using Processing's image handling functions and avoid iterating through massive collections of particle objects.
Shawn Van Every came to our assistance and helped me dig through some of the Processing source code in order to locate a potential workaround. He found that by changing the offscreen rendering method from P2D to Java2D, we could safely use the "rect" function which had previously caused Processing to choke.
You are Beautiful
Idea:
An animated kaleidoscope which encourages observers to consider the beauty they present to the world around them.
Description:
"You are Beautiful" is an interactive video installation. Participants see part of their reflection rendered as a kaleidoscope and are encouraged to consider their unique beauty in a new way. A computer program written in Processing generates a kaleidoscopic image from a video camera. A series of geometric transformations rearrange the image the camera "sees" into a beautiful abstraction.
Team:
- Michael Chladil
- Shinyoung Park
My Role
- Graphics programming in Processing -- a rapid application development environment for Java.
- Concept development
Exhibitions
Interactive Telecommunications Program Hallway Gallery - Spring 2007
November 25, 2006
- Problem: Sensitivity Training. It is difficult to get the sensors to trigger samples consistently. We're concerned after studying the FSR datasheet and application notes that we might be saturating the sensors and going outside of their useful operating range. We try replacing the 10k resistors in the sensors' voltage dividers with 2k resistors. We are also trying to eliminate the opposite problem: standing still on the prototype triggers samples. Is the circuitry too sensitive?
- Problem: The MAX patch plays two notes simultaneously. We work to debug this issue by breaking the MAX patch into sections... first by printing the received note data, then watching this data as it propagates through successive objects in the patch.
November 21, 2006
- Breakthrough: Tried sandwiching sensors between layers of foamboard in the hopes of avoiding sensor wear and exposed wiring. Much of the discussion continues to focus around protecting the sensors.
November 19, 2006
Projection Experiments
Allistar and I did some experiments this afternoon for our final project in Spatial Design. It's going to be a "green" place of refuge.
November 16, 2006
- I ordered connector samples from Samtec: female headers so we could prototype the FSR strain relief packages and 6-position modular jack connectors in the event we want to build printed circuit boards for this project.
November 12, 2006
Moving to MAX/MSP
- Finished rewriting Arduino code to send sensor data to MAX/MSP as NoteOn/NoteOff messages. This patch takes the NoteOn message(s) sent from the shoes and can remap them to different note numbers so it is not necessary to modify the Arduino code every time we want to change the sounds.
- We've been destroying FSRs. The tiny staples which make contact with the conductive layer of the FSR fall off if too much heat or pressure is applied.
- Discussed strain relief for FSRs. Lisa is going to call Interlink to see if we can get replacements for free. (see 11/12 notes for picture of initial strain relief Prototype)
November 10, 2006
- Crimped modular connectors (RJ-11?) onto the ends of phone cable. We are planning to use these connectors and jacks to improve the reliability of our system. These will replace the stripped wires plugged directly into the breadboard.