Comments for Making Things Interactive, Fall 2019

Comment on Desk Alarm Clock by ctriplet@andrew.cmu.edu

ctriplet@andrew.cmu.edu — Fri, 22 Nov 2019 01:55:14 +0000

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ovi7YaAtIPA

Comment on EJTECH – Soft Sound by Jet Townsend

Jet Townsend — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 19:06:59 +0000

Good find! We’ll go over some of the EJTECH examples in the Sound section.

Comment on Critique 1: Visual Interaction by Jet Townsend

Jet Townsend — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 12:54:23 +0000

That’s actually more complicated to implement than it sounds. One simple solution is that each item would have to know it’s location (GPS?) then communicate with the other devices over wireless (probably WiFi). You could do all of that in a mobile phone app then have the app communicate with a worn device using Bluetooth LE. That’s also the level of a final crit project where you’ve spent the semester building each element in assignments and crits.

Comment on Critique 1: Visual Interaction by jaeyeonh@andrew.cmu.edu

jaeyeonh@andrew.cmu.edu — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 02:53:59 +0000

Hi Jet,

I sent you an email but I leave a comment here just in case.

I have a technical question about Arduino for Critique 1 Assignment.

The problem I am focusing on is when people go to a concert where there are a lot of crowds, it is difficult to find friends because it is so noisy and smartphones usually become out of service. So, I want to design a pair of necklaces (or bracelets) with LEDs, which become brighter (or change colors) when they are closer and become dim out when they are further, by detecting each other’s proximity.

I tried to find a component to make this feature in Arduino, but could not come up with any solution yet. Could you recommend me how could I make this?

Thanks,
Jay

Comment on Assignment 2: Find and Solve a problem by Jet Townsend

Jet Townsend — Fri, 30 Aug 2019 16:26:53 +0000

No, that’s just a placeholder for when we make a real thing. For this, a sketch or a cad model or a drawing is fine.

Comment on Assignment 2: Find and Solve a problem by jaeyeonh@andrew.cmu.edu

jaeyeonh@andrew.cmu.edu — Fri, 30 Aug 2019 15:09:38 +0000

Sorry, but could you explain more about the last one – photos/videos of the proof of concept?
Does it mean, we make a simple fake prototype, and explain how it will work and solve the problem?

Comment on Intro and Reading by Jet Townsend

Jet Townsend — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 00:52:04 +0000

Hi,

Please make this a new post in the Assignments 1 category.

thx

Comment on Intro and Reading by ctriplet@andrew.cmu.edu

ctriplet@andrew.cmu.edu — Wed, 28 Aug 2019 19:45:24 +0000

1. Tom Igoe – Igoe seems to have most of the trends covered, the only thing I could potentially see being added would just be adding any artifact to the “Internet of Things”. People have fallen in love with making things “smart” and it seems like they are willing to try it with anything and everything, which to me, seems like a bit of a fruitless venture that does not offer very high ROI in terms of helping people solve real problems. I’m sure there are still “smart” artifacts that have not been made “smart” yet and people have to push the envelope to get to those, but the concept has come up a lot in recent memory. I also think that there is some overlap in some of the concepts that Igoe mentions that have also been a major part of the interactive art installation trend that has emerged. Groups like teamlab (https://www.teamlab.art/) and Artechouse (https://www.dc.artechouse.com/) have been designing and showcasing interactive experiences using physical and digital sensors that play with and affect different visual displays (*couch* LED fetishism), soundscapes and visual components. I think there will continue to be a trend to use physical computing for art’s own sake compared to having a function.

2. I feel like Banks’ thoughts on the man and and his “smart” space-suit illustrate the achievements and dangers of great design. On the more obvious end of the good stuff, the suit is able to care for and assist the man who is slowly being burdened by sickness, malnutrition and injuries, carrying him farther than he could have ever carried himself. I have always learned that good design is good design because a user doesn’t even realize it is there. Deeper than when people talk about their phones being an extension of themselves, the space-suit becomes intrinsically tied to the man’s being. By the end of the story, the lines have blurred to the point where neither “being” knows where one starts and the other begins. In some ways, that is great design in that it allows the “artifact” to best be used/know how to help the user. On the other hand, that is one of the pitfalls of great design in that sometimes the “artifact” may not give the user the space to be a user, instead forcing him or her to rely on it so much to where they lose their own sentience at the artifact’s expense. The story itself seemed to be cautionary tale for designers, to balance the role of the user and the artifact and the relationship between the two.

3. Not sure if this was supposed to be part of the blog post, but just to cover my bases… In addition to the pre-reqs, I have done a semester of improv, I have worked with designers to make accessible museum exhibits and experiences, I took an Intro to EE class in undergrads about microcontrollers, my Senior Design Project was a thermal energy control system run by Arduinos, I know SolidWorks and CREO and Maya, and I’ve laser cut and 3D printed and milled and used most woodshop tools you can think of.