Month: November 2023

Week 11 – Final Project Ideas

Idea 1:

For my first (and main) idea, I want to work with the concept of IOT and Home Automation. In this case, as cliche as it might sound, I would like to have a central control unit for every interactive part of our houses. What this allows is to have direct control over every item in the house, which at the same time allows me to make the main part of this project, which is an assistant that will be able to act on every interactive item of the house. The multiple ways of connecting to it will allow a variety of options and ideas.

Idea 2:

For this project, the idea is to create a combination between 2 of the most popular game genres this year: rhythm games and combination games. The concept is to create a rhythm game that every time you get a perfect hit, a  ball will fall, which will allow the user to drop the balls in order to combine them and achieve a higher score.

Week 11 – Exercises

  1. Make something that uses only one sensor  on Arduino and makes the ellipse in p5 move on the horizontal axis, in the middle of the screen, and nothing on arduino is controlled by p5

    let rVal = 0;
let alpha = 255;
let left = 0;
let right = 0;




function setup() {
createCanvas(640, 360);
noFill();
//create an ellipse with x position changing and y (300) position constant
}


function draw() {
background(255);






if (!serialActive) {
fill(0)
text("Press Space Bar to select Serial Port", 20, 30);
} else {
fill(0)
text("Connected", 20, 30);
}
let xPos = 300;
xPos = map(alpha, 0, 1023, 0,640);
ellipse(xPos, 150, 50, 50);


console.log(alpha);
}


function keyPressed() {
if (key == " ") {
// important to have in order to start the serial connection!!
setUpSerial();
}
}

     

    For this question, we decided to create a simple ellipse that changes direction based on the values from the potentiometer.

  2. make something that controls the LED brightness from p5t 
    function keyPressed() {
if (key == " ") {
// important to have in order to start the serial connection!!
setUpSerial();
}
if (key== "1"){
left = 50;
}


if (key== "2"){
left = 100;
}
if (key== "3"){
left = 255;
}
if (key =="4"){
right = 50;
}
if (key =="5"){
right = 100;
}
if (key =="6"){
right =255;
}
}

     

    This one was pretty simple. Pressing the keys 1-6 increases/decreases the brightness of the left or right LED light. 1-3 correspond to the left, while 4-6 correspond to the right led.

  3. take the gravity wind example (https://editor.p5js.org/aaronsherwood/sketches/I7iQrNCul) and make it so every time the ball bounces one led lights up and then turns off, and you can control the wind from one analog sensor.
let rVal = 0;
let alpha = 255;
let left = 0;
let right = 0;
let velocity;
let gravity;
let position;
let acceleration;
let wind;
let drag = 0.99;
let mass = 20;


function setup() {
createCanvas(640, 360);
noFill();
position = createVector(width/2, 0);
velocity = createVector(0,0);
acceleration = createVector(0,0);
gravity = createVector(0, 0.1*mass);
wind = createVector(0,0);
}


function draw() {
background(255);
applyForce(wind);
applyForce(gravity);
velocity.add(acceleration);
velocity.mult(drag);
position.add(velocity);
acceleration.mult(0);
ellipse(position.x,position.y,mass,mass);
if (position.y > height-mass/2) {
velocity.y *= -0.9; // A little dampening when hitting the bottom
position.y = height-mass/2;


}
console.log(position.y);
if(position.y >= 330){
left = 1;
}
else if(position.y <= 330){
left = 0;
}
console.log(rVal);
wind.x = map(alpha, 0, 1023, -1, 1);








if (!serialActive) {
fill(0)
text("Press Space Bar to select Serial Port", 20, 30);
} else {
fill(0)
text("Connected", 20, 30);
}
}
function applyForce(force){
// Newton's 2nd law: F = M * A
// or A = F / M
let f = p5.Vector.div(force, mass);
acceleration.add(f);
}


function keyPressed() {
if (key == " ") {
// important to have in order to start the serial connection!!
setUpSerial();
}
if(key == "1"){
left = 1;
}


}

 

For changing the wind direction, we followed similar logic to the first question. The ball changes direction based on values mapped from the potentiometer.

Week 11- Reflection

The author states that in the past, people thought it’s best to hide disabilities when making things, and this gives a bad feeling. It doesn’t just hide a part of the person, but it might also make them feel like they should be embarrassed to show and talk about their disability, which is actually a part of who they are.

They give an example of making things for people with disabilities, like glasses. Glasses show how some people don’t follow the old way of thinking. There are many kinds and styles of glasses so people can choose what feels comfortable and looks nice to them. Nowadays some people even get glasses just because they like how they look even if they don’t need them to see better. But if we think about another thing they talked about, like a fake leg for someone who lost a leg, some people might think it doesn’t look good and hide it, even though it works fine. I really think this should change. No one should feel bad about having a disability.

I think that disability itself isn’t the primary challenge; rather, it’s the environment that often creates difficulties for individuals with disabilities. When surroundings lack accommodations or accessibility features it becomes harder for people with disabilities to navigate and participate fully. So by creating inclusive environments and removing barriers, we can empower individuals with disabilities to engage more effectively and comfortably in various aspects of life, promoting equality and inclusivity for all.

The last thing I want to say is that I agree that these things should be simple. The main point of making things for people with disabilities is to help them. The things should be easy for them to use without making them feel stressed.

Final Project Idea

For my final project I envision revolutionizing waste management with an innovative automatic trash can that transforms the way we sort and manage our garbage. Imagine a single, sleek unit that dynamically categorizes different types of waste on its own, eliminating the need for multiple bins and the hassle of manual sorting. This intelligent trash can intuitively detects and segregates various materials like plastic, paper, and general waste as items are discarded, streamlining the recycling process effortlessly.

The system operates seamlessly, leveraging advanced sensors to identify the composition of incoming waste in real time. As items are tossed in, the trash can harnesses its sensor network to recognize the material type, swiftly directing each piece to its designated compartment within the unit. With a smart sorting mechanism at play, the trash can effortlessly organizes and manages the disposal, making eco-conscious living incredibly convenient for users.

This isn’t just a mere disposal unit; it’s a sustainable innovation aimed at promoting efficient recycling practices in households and public spaces. The simplicity of tossing items into a single receptacle while knowing they’ll be automatically sorted for proper recycling is not just convenient—it’s a step towards a cleaner, greener future.

Week 11: Elora and Saiki Assignment

Assignment 1: Move Ball With Potentiometer

I attached a picture of our setup below:

I took the P5JS sketch we used in class and made a few changes, seen here. First, we created the ellipse. When writing the parameters, we made the x value alpha, because the sketch already set alpha as the value that is reading the Arduino board. In order to read Alpha, we had to make sure we mapped the potentiometer range to the range of the P5JS screen. So when you turn the potentiometer, the x value changes, making the ellipse move backwards and forwards. See the important code snippet below:

ellipse(map(alpha, 0, 1023, 0, width),height/2,60);

Assignment 2: Control LED Brightness From P5JS

We took the same P5JS sketch from the slides and altered it, seen here. Here are the changes we made:

let value = map(mouseX,0,width,0,255);
right = int(value);

 

We created a new variable called value and then mapped the width of the P5JS screen to the LED values, so that as you moved your mouse horizontally across the screen, the LED brightened and dimmed. We used pin 5 because it supports PWM. The LED connected to Pin 5 was the “right” one in the code we used in class, hence why used “right” above to connect the LED and the P5JS bit above. We also had to go into the Arduino code that we had used in class and changed a bit of that as well.

digitalWrite(leftLedPin, left);
analogWrite(rightLedPin,right);
// digitalWrite(rightLedPin, right);

 

As you can see, we commented out the digitalWrite regarding the right pin and replaced it with analogWrite so that the LED didn’t just turn on or off, but actually got dimmer and brighter on a spectrum.

Assignment 3: Make The LED Turn On When The Ball Bounces

Here is our video. Here is the link to our sketch.

We combined the Gravity Wind example from the slides with the other P5JS sketch from the slides and changed a few things, seen below:

ellipse(position.x,position.y,mass,mass);
if (position.y > height-mass/2) {
velocity.y *= -0.9; // A little dampening when hitting the bottom
position.y = height-mass/2;


right = 1;
}


else {
right = 0;
}

 

We went to the part of the code where the ball hits the ground, and made it so that the Arduino read the LED as “right,” and the LED turned on (1) and off (0) depending on whether the ball was touching the ground or not.

On a side note, we also made sure that whenever you pressed n, that was how a new circle appeared. Because when we combined the two sketches, it had already been written that pressing the space bar makes the serial bar pop up.

if (key=='n'){
mass=random(70,80);
position.y=-mass;
velocity.mult(0);

 

Assignment 4: Control Wind With Potentiometer

Last but not least, we made the ball move left and right with the potentiometer by adding this bit of code.

wind.x = map(alpha,0,1023,-1,1);

 

We mapped the values of the potentiometer onto the wind values already established in the code. So that when we turned the potentiometer right, the ball went right (1) and left (-1) when we turned the potentiometer left.

Final Project Idea

Concept)
I still haven’t fully decided what I want to do for my final project, but I plan to have the main concept as ‘screaming.’ I created a game that required the player to scream and I really liked the concept. One thing I regret from last project is that if I made it so that the player would have to continue screaming in order to make the game playable (i.e. slower the speed), it would’ve made more sense. I think trying this approach in my final project would be nice.

I have two different types (still very general ideas) in mind.

One is a game that would have the goal of attacking (like aircraft wargame). In this case, I think I’ll give a gauge that can be filled up by screaming. Once the gauge is full, the player will be able to press the force sensor to use a booster. When this booster is used, the player will become invincible like players in mariokart when they have used starman (refer to the video below).

Second type is a more challenge-focused game without attacks. One example can be puzzle bubble. Also in this concept, I’ll have a gauge that makes the player scream. When the gauge is full, the player will be able to punch (or press) on the fore sensor. This will work as special item such as clearing 3 lines etc.

Although I’m still thinking about the general structure of the game, I have decided that I will make use of ‘screaming’ and ‘force sensor’ as the main theme of my game. By punching the force sensor, I mean something like below:

Implentation)

I think the first thing to do would be to get the general structure of the game decided. After that, I will decide how to make it clear that there’s a strong incentive for the player to scream and punch. I will first test simple codes with the sensors (arduino) separately, the p5js part separately, and then combine the two parts.

Week 11 – Reading Reflection

I really liked the approach of the reading. I think until now, based on the readings we’ve had, most of my  discussion on these posts and in class have been from a perspective that design tends to focus on a certain group of people- usually, the healthy and the capable. I remember multiple discussions I had with my classmates in our in-class discussion how different designs and pursuits of certain designs tend to leave out the minority. We had a shared emotion that this may be logical (from a company  or designer’s point of view) but such a sad downside of designs that pursue convenience or attractiveness.

I think this reading really makes us ask ourselves if really, a pursuit of something in a design means a give-up in other factors of a design, and if that’s ideal. One topic the reading looks at discretion and fashion. It talks about how they are concepts with tension, but not the opposite. I feel like there are some factors that we take to blindly think are at opposite ends and a pursuit of one means we would need to give up the other. I think as designers, one of our role is to realize such factors that are actually not at opposite ends and figure out how a design can pursue both (although there would be tension between them).

Week 11 | Final Project Idea

Final Project Idea- Hello Kitty and her Friends Adventure route :

As I contemplated a concept for my final project, I realized my true desire was to create a game. But not just any ordinary car game with normal obstacles. Instead, I envisioned a Hello Kitty-themed adventure.

Sanrio, a beloved part of my childhood and still a cherished brand in my adult life, inspires me to incorporate their iconic imagery. My vision includes using a Sonic distance sensor as an innovative control mechanism for maneuvering Hello Kitty, though her adventure but I’m still brainstorming additional features to enrich the gaming experience.

I already have ideas about how to present this game and I can’t wait to actually proceed with this idea. It might appear as just a regular game, but this time, I am personally committed to creating one, especially since my last project was an experience rather than a game. I’m not only incorporating a significant part of my childhood into it, but also who doesn’t love car games especially with a twist?