Ins and Outs Of Physical Computing

For my final project I would like to create a machine that has a motor on it which controls two arms. My idea would be to control these arms by sms messages or through an application, or have them move once it reaches a certain time. It would use two motors an enthernet connection or I saw it use via bluetooth.

As Ben had previously mentioned, I would like to make a multicolored LED light source that will be combined with his moving light to make a color changing moving light. I would  like to have multiple colors each controlled by their own potentiometers so that we could mix and make any color that we want.

The reason I want to do this project is because Im interested in lighting in the entertainment industry. With all these new LED lights coming out, I’ve always wanted to make something similar on a smaller scale so I could get a better understanding of what is actually involved in making one of these LED lights and what happens when we want to change the colors of them.

My idea for my final project is to build a moving light that is controllable by encoders like on a light board.  I will use stepper motors to control pan and tilt on the light.  My project is combined with Mike’s LED multicolored light to create a color-changing LED moving light.  This interests me because I am studying lighting and hope to become a lighting designer.  Moving lights are a big part of lighting.

This would use 2 stepper motors, one for pan and one for tilt.  Each would be controlled by its own potentiometer.

My idea for a final project is to build device that plays back my voice to my dog.

Imagine giving your dog commands without actually speaking, i want to see if this is could be possible. (Via recording device).

This interests me because i know dogs listen to the sound of a family member or their owners voice, so I’m curious if dogs will listen to a recording of someone (my) voice. This would involve three buttons and 3 different led lights. One led light for each button. ( 3 different colored leds) So when you press button 1, the red light goes on and it a recording of my voice says sit and hopefully pepperoni will sit. The second button with a yellow led would say sit and hopefully she will sit, and the third button and green led light, would have a recording of my voice saying lay down when you press it. The hard part though would be what kind of device i would use to help record my voice. Ex a walkmen, etc.

My dog. (Pepperoni)

                      My idea for a final project is to build an arcade style joystick controller. Hopefully all of you have had the chance to play games on a full arcade housing. Honestly the best part about an arcade game is the control surface. Ever seen a little kid just go up to a machine and hit the buttons with out putting money in and having fun? Ever seen someone smash the button and hit the joystick after loosing a game? It’s fun in itself to just use a joystick but it also inspires emotion!

I’ve already looked into the mechanism of the buttons and joysticks. It’s a wonder these things could take such a beating and keep going for years without breaking. Depending on the team that I’m working with I can go with either look as part of a Luxury vehicle or  LED Bonanza. The joysticks can come in either 4 or 8 way the feel, accuracy and tension on these can vary depending on the spring, shaft and quality of parts. I think the main challenge here is to design some thing as ergonomic as possible. So the orientation of the buttons is crucial to a comfortable resting place for the hand. As far as the number of buttons I say the more the merrier but too many can have a negative impact when it comes to gaming. My idea is similar to the one below:

                         Obviously this is a control surface developed for playing games but it can be used to control anything else because in the end its a control surface and you can tell it to control anything you want. Maybe you want to control a synthesizer or you can control the LED along with the synthesizer. You could add an RF and use it as a remote controller for your robot or camera. I’m looking forward to working with a team that has motivated ideas to bring to the table and having fun making a fun project.

In researching for my final project I came across the new STEAM control pad. The goal is bringing for PC games that require a Keyboard and mouse to be played from your couch via a game pad controller. some of the key-points that set it apart from the competition are:

– Keyboard and mouse games from your sofa! Which means it will be wireless

– No buttons more trackpad, one for each thumb, high resolution, higher fidelity input means more precise control than your mouse pad. It has another set of 16 buttons to use with out lifting your thumbs and much more ergonomic than Xbox or PS controllers

– Haptics? basically their improvement on the “rumble” feature which is a super precise feedback to the user by using dual resonant actuators ( small weighted electromagnets) for that “visceral feedback” and more

– Other features Touch screen, community shared configurations, open source design

You can check out the details here:

http://store.steampowered.com/livingroom/SteamController/

But if you’re too lazy to read here’s a video from STEAM and a Beta tester which is very interesting to hear them as they talk about input, feedback, sensors, actuators, and the learning curve to use this device which could be its downfall.

http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/store/livingroom/rljKewyz3M/controller_bindings.jpg?v=2

After searching for the component to the light gun cabinet components, I needed to search for the kind of coding would be needed to make the light gun idea work with the Arduino. Well for starters, the program must consist of an arrays and strings. This will allow the arduino to know the amount of targets that are on the screen. Next would be the Serial function. This function will allow the arduino to communicate between the computer and the device. This will allow the computer to indicate whether or not the device’s trigger or button is pressed and in which location in order to create a specific interaction. The next function the program needs is an if statement. The if statement will allow the arduino program to tell the device whether the button was pushed and in the right location to do a specific function if not to do that function. Each of these functions will be essential in order to make a light gun project work.

One of my favorite gaming consoles and one of my first gaming consoles I have ever gotten. Inside the gaming console you find various controls and boards making this gaming system. Inside the machine you will find a audio video port outside with the chip controlling it inside. On the outside there is an bottom cover and an top cover which is covering inside motherboard. On the outside you can see an cartridge slot where the video game goes into. Inside you can find the motherboard that controls the information and sends information to the TV as well as receiving information from the controller and the cartridge. However, before you see the motherboard attached to the top of the motherboard is a metal plate protecting the motherboard. Inside the Nintendo 64 is an array of various components like LED bulb and power input. All of the parts mentioned above are important on making the video game system what it was  and still is today.

The JDI Phantom 2 is one of the more interesting and expensive quadcopters on the market and can be very useful when it comes to aerial shots.  The quadcopter has sensors that allow it to be operated by both regular remote control and an app on your Apple or Android powered device.   It has 4 motors that self stabilize its rotors to keep the body level throughout the flight.  An on board camera can be tilted during flight from the ground using one of the devices.  I would like to see if I can build a properly flying quadrocopter that is operated by an arduino board for a fraction of the price.

I have been into to video games since I was a little. I remember gaming a lot on my Sega genesis playing games like sonic, batman, and streets of rage. But there would be times that I would go to the arcades, either by my house or at New Roc City. I remember get my tokens and looking for a game to play, but the games that I would love to play the most were the light gun games like “Ghost Squad”, “Time Crisis”, and “Maximum force”. But my favorite light gun game series was The House Of The Dead.

When you look at the “The House Of The Dead III” deluxe arcade machine, you can see it has a screen, two corded light gun controllers and a slot for the coins. But upon further research I have seen not only other part to the machine but the technicality of each of the parts. For starters the cabinet itself contain the billboard, AC Unit, cash and coin doors, controllers, and a PTV. But inside there are certain chips that used to make the machine work. First is the game board, which is dedicated circuit board that contains the video game on the board. Next is the media board and last is the GD-ROM Drive. Each of these chips works together in order to make the PTV work. The PTV contains a plug that connects to the PTV cabinet, which contains the controller. The next chip is found within the coin slot and is called the VTS credit board. This use as indicator for the machine to validate the amount of credits is put into the coin slot. Once the credits are met the machine validates and the game, Start buttons, and the controllers can be used. The next important part is the light gun controllers themselves. Each of the guns contain micro switches, which is located on the trigger of the gun which serves as an actuator and tells the game to shoot when the trigger is press and the slide mechanism which tells the game to reload, and a sensor unit which tracks the motion and location of the gun. Aside from all the electrical work that are inside these machines these parts are what come together in order to from a working arcade light gun game.

http://soe-web-arcade2-pub.s3.amazonaws.com/sharedfiles/HOTD%203%20DLX%20Manual.pdf