Project Idea
In one of my other classes, Hacking Audio Hardware, our midterm project is to create a device that produces noise using gates and oscillators. On this device, I plan to have four separate variable resistors. My plan for an application is to combine these projects and create a visual representation of the different values that the variable resistors are producing. If I can’t connect it to my gate chip, then I’d like to connect the Arduino with MaxMSP. Also, this coming weekend I am taking a one credit course called Textile Interfaces, and I hope to incorporate something from that with this project as well.
I’m not sure exactly what kind of image I want to manipulate using four different values, but some initial ideas I have were to use the variable resistors to draw squares, change the sizes, or maybe the color(s).
Prototyping
I started off with one potentiometer, and a simple draw sketch to see if I could manipulate one variable.
Next, I added three more potentiometers for a total of four variable resistors. I made each of them affect different elements – the number of squares/circles, and changing the values for RGB.
Below is the Arduino code. I would also like to add a pushbutton into the circuit to control another aspect of the visualization.
Over Halloween weekend I took a 1-credit course called Textile Interfaces where we learned to create buttons, digital switches, and circuits using conductive fabric, thread, and velostat. I’d like to incorporate these textile sensors into my project, and so below I have three textile sensors along with a potentiometer controlling different variables in my P5 sketch.
I played around with my P5 code to create something other than simple rectangles and ellipses. I used a class I created in ICM that makes arcs by setting parameters for its location, the max size, step size/density, and color.
Next I worked on creating an enclosure, as well as recreating the textile analog sensors. My initial idea was to have the three textile sensors on one pad/piece of felt, with a top layer of felt, with each sensor separated by a line of stitching. The process of housing it and solder the leads onto the PCB took priority over adding the top layer, so as it is now the sensors are visible.
Instead of creating a cardboard proto enclosure like I have been doing in the past, I purchased a plastic enclosure and drilled holes into it for the six leads from the sensors, a potentiometer, and a micro USB port. I added the USB port so that the Arduino connection can be made easily from outside of the container.
I also adjusted the P5 sketch and created three arcs. With the four sensor inputs, I used them across all three arcs to manipulate different elements of the object.
https://editor.p5js.org/biancaagan/sketches/_fPz12y2z