Category: PComp

Glow Box Test from coldsoup753 on Vimeo.

Other posts:

Play Testing

Planning

Materials

Accelerometers

LEDs

Multiples

In the end, I only got two boxes working consistently. And only one of those worked for the in class presentation. It was extremely frustrating. However, I got a lot out of the project and I’m going to continue experimenting with the idea. There are so many objects that are either delicate or intangible, existing on screens or projections. I ended up building a delicate project that couldn’t take the beating I wanted it to, but I’ve got some great next steps:

• Experiment with other materials, especially cast foam objects.
• Experiment with shapes other than blocks. Although this alters the original idea of building up and knocking over, other shapes could encourage more action. (Like a ball)
• Improve the robustness of my objects.

TLC5940NT from coldsoup753 on Vimeo.

I planned on using the TLC5940NT to drive the LEDs for this project. After finding the TLC5940NT library setting up the LEDs was pretty straightforward. I wrote  sketch that would change the LEDs to a color of my choice and it seemed like it was just a matter of dropping that code into the accelerometer sketch.

However, when I combined the TLC5940NT and the ADXL345, things just didn’t work. The LEDs changed to all different colors and they did not respond to the accelerometer. My best guess was that something from the accelerometer was throwing the clock off and that change was affecting the PWM in the TLC5940NTs. Also, I noticed the colors were changing every time the ADXL345 sent an interrupt. There were some good clues to investigate, but it wasn’t something that I really understood or could get fixed before the project presentation. In the end I decided to leave out the TLC5940NT, in favor of a bare bones proof of concept that worked.

Code to change the color of the LEDs, adapted from the TLC5940NT library example code.

/*
    Basic Pin setup:
    ------------                                  ---u----
    ARDUINO   13|-> SCLK (pin 25)           OUT1 |1     28| OUT channel 0
              12|                           OUT2 |2     27|-> GND (VPRG)
              11|-> SIN (pin 26)            OUT3 |3     26|-> SIN (pin 11)
              10|-> BLANK (pin 23)          OUT4 |4     25|-> SCLK (pin 13)
               9|-> XLAT (pin 24)             .  |5     24|-> XLAT (pin 9)
               8|                             .  |6     23|-> BLANK (pin 10)
               7|                             .  |7     22|-> GND
               6|                             .  |8     21|-> VCC (+5V)
               5|                             .  |9     20|-> 2K Resistor -> GND
               4|                             .  |10    19|-> +5V (DCPRG)
               3|-> GSCLK (pin 18)            .  |11    18|-> GSCLK (pin 3)
               2|                             .  |12    17|-> SOUT
               1|                             .  |13    16|-> XERR
               0|                           OUT14|14    15| OUT channel 15
    ------------                                  --------

    -  Put the longer leg (anode) of the LEDs in the +5V and the shorter leg
         (cathode) in OUT(0-15).
    -  +5V from Arduino -> TLC pin 21 and 19     (VCC and DCPRG)
    -  GND from Arduino -> TLC pin 22 and 27     (GND and VPRG)
    -  digital 3        -> TLC pin 18            (GSCLK)
    -  digital 9        -> TLC pin 24            (XLAT)
    -  digital 10       -> TLC pin 23            (BLANK)
    -  digital 11       -> TLC pin 26            (SIN)
    -  digital 13       -> TLC pin 25            (SCLK)
    -  The 2K resistor between TLC pin 20 and GND will let ~20mA through each
       LED.  To be precise, it's I = 39.06 / R (in ohms).  This doesn't depend
       on the LED driving voltage.
    - (Optional): put a pull-up resistor (~10k) between +5V and BLANK so that
                  all the LEDs will turn off when the Arduino is reset.

    If you are daisy-chaining more than one TLC, connect the SOUT of the first
    TLC to the SIN of the next.  All the other pins should just be connected
    together:
        BLANK on Arduino -> BLANK of TLC1 -> BLANK of TLC2 -> ...
        XLAT on Arduino  -> XLAT of TLC1  -> XLAT of TLC2  -> ...
    The one exception is that each TLC needs it's own resistor between pin 20
    and GND.

    This library uses the PWM output ability of digital pins 3, 9, 10, and 11.
    Do not use analogWrite(...) on these pins.

    This sketch does the Knight Rider strobe across a line of LEDs.

    Alex Leone , 2009-02-03 */

#include "Tlc5940.h"

void setup()
{
  /* Call Tlc.init() to setup the tlc.
     You can optionally pass an initial PWM value (0 - 4095) for all channels.*/
  Tlc.init(0);
}

/* This loop will create a Knight Rider-like effect if you have LEDs plugged
   into all the TLC outputs.  NUM_TLCS is defined in "tlc_config.h" in the
   library folder.  After editing tlc_config.h for your setup, delete the
   Tlc5940.o file to save the changes. */

void loop()
{

 showRGB(10000);

  }

  
void showRGB(int color)
{
  int redIntensity;
  int greenIntensity;
  int blueIntensity;

// This function translates a number between 0 and 767 into a
// specific color on the RGB LED. If you have this number count
// through the whole range (0 to 767), the LED will smoothly
// change color through the entire spectrum.

  // Here we'll use an "if / else" statement to determine which
  // of the three (R,G,B) zones x falls into. Each of these zones
  // spans 4095 because the Tlc5940 wants a number from 0 to 4095.

  // In each of these zones, we'll calculate the brightness
  // for each of the red, green, and blue LEDs within the RGB LED.
  // x = 4096
  // color = a number from 0 to 12287 




  if (color <= 4095)          // zone 1
  {
    redIntensity = 4095 - color;    // red goes from on to off
    greenIntensity = color;        // green goes from off to on
    blueIntensity = 0;             // blue is always off
  }
  else if (color <= 8191) // zone 2 { redIntensity = 0; // red is always off greenIntensity = 8191 - (color - 4096); // green on to off blueIntensity = (color - 4096); // blue off to on } else // color >= 8192       // zone 3
  {
    redIntensity = (color - 8192);         // red off to on
    greenIntensity = 0;                   // green is always off
    blueIntensity = 8191 - (color - 8192);  // blue on to off
  }

  // Now that the brightness values have been set, command the LED
  // to those values
  // 1
  Tlc.set(0, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(1, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(2, greenIntensity);
  //2
  Tlc.set(3, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(4, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(5, greenIntensity);
  //3
  Tlc.set(6, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(7, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(8, greenIntensity);
  //4
  Tlc.set(9, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(10, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(11, greenIntensity);
  //5
  Tlc.set(12, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(13, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(14, greenIntensity);
  //6
  Tlc.set(15, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(16, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(17, greenIntensity);
  //7
  Tlc.set(18, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(19, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(20, greenIntensity);
  //8
  Tlc.set(21, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(22, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(23, greenIntensity);
  //9
  Tlc.set(24, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(25, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(26, greenIntensity);
  //10
  Tlc.set(27, redIntensity);
  Tlc.set(28, blueIntensity);
  Tlc.set(29, greenIntensity);
  Tlc.update();
}

I the original plan was to make a whole bunch of boxes. I didn’t want to use an Arduino in every box, so I was going to use an ATmega328P. I couldn’t even get the Arduino bootloader onto the chip, so that did not work out at all. Also, none of the perfboard circuits I built worked either. I couldn’t find the weak or broken connection on the board, so I ended up just using the breadboard.

I also tried building Arduino shields. They didn’t work either. Making multiples of this project failed big time. It was very annoying.

 

 

 

 

One of the main pieces of feedback that I got from play-testing was that the boxes seemed to delicate to really throw or kick, partially because they could see the electronics inside. So, I decided to frost the interior of the boxes. The material tests went well and the frost held up to the kicking and dropping, but not to opening and closing the boxes. The paint has no elasticity and started just flaking off.

Other material options include making the boxes from plank foam, frosting the boxes with contact paper instead of spray, or casting custom shapes from foam. I’m interested in experimenting with casting shapes, but I’d also like to try and maintain the ‘building block’ component of this idea. I’m guessing that this is going to end in a bunch of experiments and idea doodles.

 

 

I went into the play testing for this project without doing any substantial planning for the project, or even a clear idea about how to achieve the effects I wanted technically. During the play testing Danny suggested that I could achieve most of what I wanted with an accelerometer, and I think that this is true. The basic interaction for this project is:

The accelerometer knows it is on the floor
1. A person stacks a block on top of another block
The accelerometer senses the change in the X-Axis
The LEDs change color according to the height, creating color gradient
2. A tower is knocked over
The accelerometer senses the change in the X-Axis
The LEDs change color according to the height, creating explosion and sparkle effect
3. The blocks are back on the floor
The accelerometer senses the change in the X-Axis
The LEDs chage color according to the height, resets to the base color
4. Repeat

With that in mind the components in each box will be:

• MPU-6050 (Accelerometer + Gyro)
• 6 Common Anode RGB LEDs
• TLC5940 (16-Channel LED Driver)
• ATmega328P (Microcontroller)
• On/Off Switch
• Button
• Power (TBD)

The blocks themselves will be made of:

• A Shoe Box
• Frosted Glass Spray
• Corrugated Plastic
• Bubble Wrap
• Hot Glue

I’m sure that I will end up needing other components and materials as I test and prototype everything, but that list should be what’s at the heart of each box.

Something that won’t make it into this version, as it’s not central to the concept, but that I would love to add to a future version is the MRF24J40MA-I/RM (RF Transceiver Module). It would be a great way to let the boxes communicate with each other and other, as of yet unimagined, components.

My current build plan is:

But that is highly dependent on all the different component orders arriving in a timely manner. I think that one of the main challenges of this project, besides simply getting everything working, will be allowing enough time to make multiple blocks.

 

 

My original pitch for the P Comp final was “I want to smash things”. I was fed up with projects that were tied to laptops and other delicate technology or projections that have no corporeal presence. Instead, I wanted to make something that existed as an object on its own that required a fully physicality.

I considered a number of different ideas (including conductive smashables and foam bananas) but eventually settled on light up blocks that can be used to build a tower and then knocked down! I’m hoping to capture the childlike joy of building, then destroying.

For the play test I wanted to see if people would build a tower and then knock it over if I provided the blocks. I also wanted to use the opportunity as a quick materials test for the plastic boxes I’d sourced.

I wired up some LEDs to see how they would look inside the plastic boxes and to see how they would hold up to being thrown around.

My take-aways from the play testing were:

• No one knocked the tower over on their own.
• People generally wanted more interaction, wanted the blocks to do more or to have more of a construct around the interaction.
• More people played with the blocks on the floor than expected.
• If they change to the same color each time it gets boring.
• Maybe they shouldn’t change color at all until they fall.
• ITP people/ adults might treat things too delicately. (But people really liked it after they knew they could kick it)