Documents Of Record /Project Groups /07-08 /Mechatronics

DANM Project Group

Year: Spring 07 – Winter 08

Faculty: Ed Osborn

Research Foci: Mechatronics

Title: Call and Response: Hocketing for Physical Media

Abstract

This project group will focus on developing a series of interactive mechanical and electronic artworks that respond to site and to one another. Focusing on the principles of emergent behaviors as they are manifested in complex physical systems, the pieces taken together will form a responsive ecology constructed from electronic components and code.

Research into the conceptual framework for the pieces will be conducted concurrently with their material development so that a focused and specific vocabulary of electronic art is absorbed as the pieces themselves are constructed. This research will be used to compile an openly available resource of information acquired while developing the pieces.

Students – Participation/ Preferred Background and Skills

Students will learn about and work with a variety of electronic systems including PIC microprocessors, solar power, motor control, and BEAM (Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics, Mechanics ) principles. In addition, students will acquire skills in various fabrication methods commonly employed in physical electronic artwork.

It is strongly recommended that students have some experience with one or more of the following: Max/MSP/Jitter, BASIC, or Java, circuit construction, and mechanical design. They must be willing to learn new software and hardware systems if needed, be adaptable to a variety of working conditions and frameworks, and be willing to work in a collaborative manner.

Funding Sources, Equipment

The project group will take place primarily in the DANM electronics lab; the basic equipment needed for the project is already in place there. Extra parts and equipment will be purchased as needed with University and outside grant funds.

Outcome: Venues for Publication and/or Exhibition

The pieces that are developed in this project group will be exhibited in a professional context -- most likely off campus in the Bay Area -- and secured near the start of the project group. Exhibition in arts festival or conference settings is also possible, and will be investigated as opportunities arise for 2008. Accompanying the exhibit will be a website and written document that details the concepts, working processes, and final results of the pieces and their development. At the project’s completion, they will have taken a set of concepts from the drawing board to the real world and developed them as a group in an informed and critical manner.