Final project proposal: smartCUP (updated)

Here is the updated proposal

Abstract 

How do we make art, and better yet, how do we express ourselves through art? Traditionally, people express thoughts and feelings through intentional choices of color, stokes, medium. I want to experiment with idea of skipping artists’ intentional choices and allowing their body (or physical properties of their body make these choices. I believe this will allow artists’ to have a closer (physical) connection with their artwork because their body would go through the same change in states as their artwork.

I want to upcycle paper cups (ones you would get at starbucks) as a tool for drawing. The cup can animate the user’s interaction (opening cup, drinking, warming up drinks, even socializing with cups), and then it will take these (unstaged) interactions into art.

Concept drawing

Cup design: to be added

Inspiration:

Hardware

  • temperature sensor
  • Neopixel LED
  • tilt sensor
  • potentiometer
  • photo-sensitive paint

Software (tentative)

  • blynk — connecting arduino data to PC
  • pygame (looking for better option for UI)

Order of construction and testing

  1. Potentiometer + tilt sensor -> color change of Neopixel LED
  2. temp sensor -> color change of Neopixel LED
  3. Fit things into cup
  4. proximity sensor -> 2 cups interact
  5. make an information poster for the final show
  6. write up my artist’s statement for the final show

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Abstract 

How do we make art, and better yet, how do we express ourselves through art? Traditionally, people express thoughts and feelings through intentional choices of color, stokes, medium. I want to experiment with idea of skipping artists’ intentional choices and allowing their body (or physical properties of their body make these choices. I believe this will allow artists’ to have a closer (physical) connection with their artwork because their body would go through the same change in states as their artwork.

I want to make a lantern as a tool for drawing. The lantern will be tied to the user’s hand. User’s body temperature controls how much the lantern expands, which then changes the intensity of color; User change color by changing the orientation of their hand and lantern. A virtual canvas will then capture the states and motions of the lantern to form a painting.

Concept drawing

Lantern design:

Lantern motion:

Sample output:
          

Hardware

  • accelorometer
  • temperature sensor
  • Neopixel LED

Software

  • blynk — connecting arduino data to PC
  • pygame (looking for better option for UI)

Order of construction and testing

  1. Accelerometer -> color change of Neopixel LED
  2. make lantern shade
  3. temp sensor -> lantern shade expand and contract
  4. work on data threading (location + orientation)
  5. work on UI
  6. QR code (for user to save artwork)
  7. make an information poster for the final show
  8. write up my artist’s statement for the final show

 

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