Making Toys

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  asabh36 7:32 pm on February 21, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  LED Box 

  What I found most challenging for this project was getting my individual  functions to loop once the function was called upon. I had a hard time figuring out how to order my functions and to get them to act as an individual function instead of take on elements of others while performing. I knew the problem lay in my coding so it was mostly a guess and check system during its building process.

  I am still struggling with adding characteristics to my functions. I cant seem to get the code to perform certain actions within the function without jeopardizing the entire functionality of the segment.

  

  However, I am proud of the way my box cam out. Its a simple, clean and very effective way of presenting the LED lights. It looks great when lite up in a dark room.

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  aisencc 11:18 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Desert Terrarium 

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    aisencc 11:24 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply

    This project was surprising in all aspects. Having left the practice of making projects every week since the brake reminded me that it is practice that makes perfect. It is important to keep these skills current. The delay threw me off! having to rename it so it can be checked and not interfere with other commands was the most unexpected challenge this project brought to me. Also, I forgot how fun it can be to find beautiful colors rather than have the cycling rainbow effect. This project brought me back to my earthy roots, I am glad to incorporate sand and its other state silicon.

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  naterudolph 11:14 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  White LED Box 

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    naterudolph 11:20 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply

    I was out of town til Wednesday this week, so when I found out we had an assignment for Thursday’s class my main concern was just getting something presentable. I was surprised at how quickly I was able to get a working prototype with some cardboard and the wire wrap tool. Thankfully everything was laid out neatly with the header pins so I was able to test the code and ensure there weren’t any short circuits.

    The code was actually the portion that took longer than I assumed it might. Making the whole series of LEDs do something was simple enough with a for loop, but trying to do any sort of pattern proved a little more counter intuitive. Using the fade code from Monday’s class I was able to add some variety to that simple sequence of LEDs turning on into something different for the “waking up” function of the box.

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  Amira Pettus 11:14 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amira Anne Pettus   

  Assignment 1 Moody “Cube” 

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    Amira Pettus 11:20 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply

    1.What was surprising about making your project?

    Instead you using multiple separate LEDS I used a single RGB LED, I assumed that the methods for fading and flashing would be almost identical to single LEDS and I was mistaken. I learned that different colors are activated and are visible in different amount and trying to arrive at a single suitable color combination proved to be interesting.I thought it would be simple to come up with switches for transitioning between “moods” but the potentiometer I used is quite finicky. Instead of moving smoothly between each mood it is hard to determine how to be in specific sections of fading,flashing A and flashing B.

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  christopherkoelsch 11:12 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  “Bleep…Blop” 

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    christopherkoelsch 11:18 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply

    Surprises for this process: it wasn’t too difficult to get the LED’s working. Working with Mike Susol, we both had a sense of satisfaction with this revelation especially with the “sleeping” state. We both hadn’t worked with brightness before.

    What was difficult was “perfecting” the project. Putting ‘for’ loops inside the else, else if statements — and timing the pauses between the states accurately.

    Taking arduino to the ‘next’ level jumped me to understanding a bit more. There was an additional satisfaction in making a complete project. Also, the several ways our code can be written was also seen.

    I hadn’t ever seen Arduino as an art medium previously: I’d always only concentrated on just trying to make the code work.

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  ramiroc1 11:12 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  EmoBox 

  An emotional box.

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    ramiroc1 11:22 pm on February 16, 2012 Permalink | Reply

    1. While I was aware of this, it’s easy to forget how much of the time you spend on a physical computing project comes down to debugging. Unlike software debugging, where 99.9% of the time the problem is with your code, in physical computing you have to worry about two different problem areas: software and hardware. This can make debugging a bit fun (it takes you away from the screen), but it can also make debugging super frustrating when things go wrong.
    2. Working with 3 LEDs of different colors in a clear box lined with paper, I expected the LEDs to simply blend together to make new colors. It turns out that diffusing LED light is not as simple as I expected. Whenever I managed to diffuse the light more thoroughly, it became almost invisible. I had to settle for a not-quite-diffused light.
    3. I’m still making simple mistakes that I did not expect to make. For example, I put both legs of an LED as well as the ground wire on the same line, so the electricity was just skipping the LED and going straight to the ground wire. That slowed me down for a few minutes.

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  Yury Gitman 10:48 pm on February 14, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Making Toys Assignment for Tues 21st. 

  Make a “Living Light Object”

  Create an enclosure (of any material) that diffuses and hides your LEDs (and optionally your Arduino).

  Using If and Else If, create 3 different LED Animations.  The 3 animations should be Keyboard controlled.  The three animations should show 3 different states:

  1) Waking Up, or Alert

  2) Falling Asleep, or Soothing

  3) Think or Chaos

  Use If statements, Knighrider, and Fading LED code to make your 3 animations.  Your enclosure should not expose that LED’s are creating the light, but should instead be itself the light source.  Concentrate on the use of Light, Color, and Time to recreate the illusion of life.

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  Yury Gitman 2:00 am on February 14, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Major Studio Assignment for Feb 16th. 

  Make an “Emotional Box”

  Create an enclosure that diffuses and hides your LEDs (and Arduino).

  Using If and Else If, create 3 different LED Animations.  The 3 animations should be Keyboard controlled.  The three animations should show 3 different states:

  1) Waking Up, or Alert

  2) Falling Asleep, or Soothing

  3) Think or Random Activity

  Use Sketch 6-01 from Programming Arduino along with Knighrider and Fading LED code to make your 3 animations.   Recommended enclosure is a plexiglass box with paper to diffuse the light.

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  Yury Gitman 9:54 pm on February 6, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Wireless Toys Class Parts 

  Parts List, Spring 2012
  1) Arduino UNO, 1 unit:  [from any where]

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/11021

  ——————-

  2) Break Away Headers – Straight sku: PRT-00116

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/116

  5 x pcs

  ——————-

  3) usb a-to-b cable for arduino

  ——————-

  4a)
  Jumper Wires Premium 12″ M/M Pack of 10

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9387

  1 or 2 pack
  and

  4b) Jumper Wires Premium 12″ F/F Pack of 10

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9389

  1 Pack

  ——————-

  5) Breadboard

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9567

  3 x pcs

  ——————-

  6)
  3 x  Super Bright Red LED
  3 x Super Bright Green LED
  3 x Super Bright Yellow LED
  3 x Super Bright Blue LED

  http://www.sparkfun.com/search/results?term=super+bright+led&what=products

  ——————-

  7)
  Long Nosed Pliers

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10392

  ——————-

  8)
  WireWrap Tool, 1 pcs

  http://parts.digikey.com/1/parts/996035-tool-wrap-strip-unwrap-mod-30awg-wsu-30m.html

  or

  http://parts.digikey.com/1/parts/996034-tool-wrap-strip-unwrap-reg-30awg-wsu-30.html

  ——————-

  9)
  Wire Warp Spool, 1 x Red, 1 x Black, 1 x Green

  http://www.sparkfun.com/search/results?term=wire+wrap+spool&what=products

  ——————-

  10)
  Speaker,  3 pcs

  http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10722

  ——————-

  11)

  1 x Pulse Sensor 5V

  Use First Class Mail for shipping option. You’ll have is in 1 or 2 business days.

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  kasiawitek 4:58 pm on February 5, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Lil about me 

  1. background:
  I have a BFA in Film Art from Syracuse University.Essentially, in the long years since, I freelanced as a one-woman-band. I filmed, edited, authorized, designed logos, etc. I even spent a loooong year of my life editing footage shot on the U.S Navy’s Aircraft Carrier ( a floating high school ). I shot a lot of stuff for NYC’s non for profit typa places. I also dabbled in some photography and graphic design.
  It all was well until i ran out of steam and passion for what i was currently working on. I wanted to make things once again, not document others making things.

  2. Why in class?
  I want to make stuff. Technology is pretty new to me. I figured, there’s no better way to learn about circuits and arduino stuff then to learn it while having fun. Right? I know this class will be fun!

  3. Fave toy:
  CLAY

  Oh and this little number from Russia. It was all the rage.

  (wordpress is not letting me upload any images at the present moment. I will re-visit in a few)

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  Amira Pettus 7:33 pm on February 1, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  1st Post yeah! 

  1.) Amira Anne Pettus

  2.) 

  3.) I have a B.S. from Georgia Tech in Science,Technology,and Culture.

  4. I wanted to be in this class because I need to acquire practical skills that I can apply in the job market. I also would like to learn technical abilities so that I am able make physical objects/pieces.

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  lizastark 11:32 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Liza Stark 

  BACKGROUND: My way back background is in history and Russian Studies, but following undergrad I worked for an international ed nonprofit running in and afterschool programs for k-12 students in a bunch of schools all over NYC. I became really interested in using games for learning which is why I came to MFADT, then found soft circuits and physical computing which subsequently turned into an obsession. Currently I am running a few afterschool programs with elementary, middle, and high school students focused on soft circuits, everyday objects, and physical computing. For my thesis I am developed a toolkit using alternative/softer materials for students to explore electrical and basic computational concepts. Essentially paper boxes that talk to each other.

  CLASS?: I am in this class to learn more about wireless communication and make fun things.

  FAV TOY: Legos

  

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  lizastark 11:24 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  gallery 

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  
  

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  kierbarr 9:44 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  UFO toy deconstruction – KJ Barr & Kytzia Bourlon 

  Here are some photos from the deconstruction that we completed in class. 

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  kierbarr 9:37 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Kierstie KJ Barr 

  My name is Kj Barr. I am from the Bay Area. This is my first year in DT. My favorite toy growing up was teddy teddy roxpin

  

   

  This toy came with a book. I was able to place a small tape into the bum of the teddy bear and its mouth would move and he would read to me.

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  kasiawitek 9:37 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Tiny Love Sheep 

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  
  

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  Caitlin Morris 9:34 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  UFO ball 

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

  
  
  

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  mkmkmkmk 9:33 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Spin light toy 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

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  Joe Volpe 9:33 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Estefanie and Joe’s toy post!!! 

  Here are the photos from the toy camera we took apart today! YAY

  

  

  
  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  
  
  

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  theliztaylor 9:32 pm on January 31, 2012 Permalink | Reply  

  Spring Vibrating Baby Toy Deconstructed 

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  
  

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