For the week of the 28th of October Design Team 1 our main goal was to understand all of our sensors and tools we had purchased as well as decide what kind of interactions we wanted to have with our surface.
We tested flex sensors that sense flexural movement by detecting a change in resistance. We tested RF transmitters and receivers...Chris actually made a 3D mouse by creating a graphic on the computer screen that was moving based on an accelerometer that was attached to a remote Arduino. Jason tested out a mindflex toy which he hacked to show "brain waves" on a computer screen. There was a little touchscreen that you can draw on and a few others, too.
We split up into three groups of two as we will do for the rest of the semester based on tasks necessary. I'm still not sure if this is the best way to go because things feel a little disjointed and the communication in the group has never been that great in the first place. Alex and I were supposed to work on an array, but this was really difficult since we didn't have a form or a function yet. I did think that this was interesting, but we would want to do something that reacts to the surroundings instead of programmed patterns.
We thought about different ways to make a surface and what we consider a smart surface and we want to build something that uses the RF transmitters and receivers to have an affect on the audience and we want to stick with the moving mechanism of the LFST and are inspired by tube worms as well. Such as putting two remote surfaces in the NCRC that will respond to each other or do something related to the other surface's space. We even discussed using our spring mechanisms to make a floor that would respond to people walking on it by making the ceiling move or light up.
At this point I'm apprehensive about not making too many decisions but the group has promised me that it will be better in the end if we just make what works and then tweak things at the end to make a function or make it look better...guess we'll just have to see.
