Materials

• 1 * Breadboard
• 1 * LM7805 Voltage Regulator
• 1 * Buzzer
• 1 * Push-Button Switch
• 1 * Arcade Button
• 1 * 220-ohm Resistor
• 1 * LED
• 1 * 100 nF (0.1uF) Capacitor
• 1 * 10K ohm Variable Resistor (Potentiometer)
• 1 * 12-volt power supply
• 1 * Barrel Jack
• 1 * Multimeter
• Several Jumper Cables (Hook-up Wires)

Circuit 1: Door Bell

Here is the circuit diagram:

Image from https://wp.nyu.edu/shanghai-ima-interaction-lab/recitation-1-electronics-soldering/

In this circuit, the LM7805 is a voltage regulator integrated circuit which converts the input 12V DC to 5V DC. The 100nF Capacitor connected in parallel with pin1 and pin2 of LM7805 can prevent the regulator from self-exciting. The buzzer we used in class is an active buzzer, which is integrated with an oscillating circuit. So it only needs a stable DC power to drive it. When the button is pressed, the speaker will work.

Here is our work:

Circuit 2: Lamp

Here is the circuit diagram:

Image from https://wp.nyu.edu/shanghai-ima-interaction-lab/recitation-1-electronics-soldering/

The most part of this circuit is similar to the first one. The only change is that we replaced the buzzer with LED. Moreover, a 220-ohm resistor is connected to LED in series to protect LED by limiting the current.

Here is our work:

Circuit 3: Dimmable Lamp

Here is the circuit diagram:

Image from https://wp.nyu.edu/shanghai-ima-interaction-lab/recitation-1-electronics-soldering/

I think this circuit is yet another improved version of the second circuit. By adding a 10K-ohm potentiometer, we can change the resistance of the potentiometer by turning the knob. Correspondingly, the current passes through the LED changes, and the brightness of the LED also changed.

Here is our work:

Thoughts and Knowledge

In the course of the operation, I was fortunate enough not to have any problems. However, I also have some ideas:

Be careful when using the breadboard

The holes on the breadboard are very dense. If you don’t look at it carefully, it is easy to connect jump wires incorrectly, which will cause the circuit to not work properly. So it is important to look at the breadboard from above when connecting the wires.

Measure resistor size by looking at their color rings

The size of a resistor can be measured by the multimeter, which is very helpful. However, the best way to get the accurate resistor size is to look at the color rings. Usually, the last ring indicates precision; each of the other color rings represents a single digit. It can be a bit difficult to find the correct direction, my technique is to observe the distance between rings. The color ring representing precision usually has a larger distance from other color rings. Here is a table for reference:

Image from hahatv5.com

The capacitor is important

Initially, I didn’t know why we need to use a capacitor at the input of the regulator. After checking on the Internet, I know that this capacitor is used to filter the high-frequency signal at the input (capacitor can hinder the high-frequency signal), thus avoiding high-frequency self-excitation of the LM7805. Also, there are cases where another capacitor is used at the output (this time it is stabilizing the output signal).

The buzzer is an active buzzer

Buzzers are usually divided into two types–one is active buzzers, another is passive buzzers. Passive buzzer makes sounds through the vibration of the ceramic piece. To drive a passive buzzer, we need a square wave like this, which periodically drives the ceramic pieces:

Image from phy.ntnu.edu.tw

However, the buzzer we used in class is active buzzers. These buzzers are integrated with oscillating circuit, which generates square wave. So we can directly drive them with DC power.

Questions and Answers

Question 1

After reading The Art of Interactive Design, in what way do you think that the circuits you built today include interactivity? Please explain your answer.

Answer 1

I think the circuits we built include interactivity. Though according to the reading The Art of Interactive Design, interaction should involve listening, thinking and speaking. In the reading, interaction is defined as “a cyclic process in which two actors alternately listen, think, and speak”. Though the logic of the circuits is very simple–just light up the LED when the button is pressed, they still include the key factor of interaction–input, process, and output. Obviously, they cannot speak nor listen, but they can buzz and receive a click. In this sense, we can say that they include interactivity.

Question 2

How can Interaction Design and Physical Computing be used to create Interactive Art? You can reference Zack Lieberman’s video or any other artist that you know.

Answer 2

In the video, interaction design and physical computing are combined to build a helpful system, which helps the artists living in the hospital continue creating. I think interactive art can be achieved only when interaction design and physical computing are combined. Without physical computing, interaction design cannot be turned into reality. In the video, the eye-tracking technology provides the possibility to the whole project. Also, interaction design is necessary. Without the design, physical computing is nothing else but dry technology.  In a nutshell, only when interaction design and physical computing are combined, interactive art can be created.

 

Questions

1. After reading the article, I see how much interaction we truly had put into creating this circuit. Not only were were my partner and I interacting at the beginning to figure out our plan, but our constant interactions with the circuit itself eventually led to an interactive final product. Our end products all required some interaction from an user, like pushing the button or twisting the knob. 

2. When you combine both of these elements you create something that must be considered art. Take for example the eye tracking writer, where not only is it art where it allows the user to express themselves, but also something practical that solves a real life issue. Sheer ingenuity allows something to become art, something everyone could interpret differently.  

Materials

• 1 * Breadboard
• 1 * LM7805 Voltage Regulator
• 1 * Buzzer
• 1 * Push-Button Switch
• 1 * Arcade Button
• 1 * 220 ohm Resistor
• 1 * LED
• 1 * 100 nF (0.1uF) Capacitor
• 1 * 10K ohm Variable Resistor (Potentiometer)
• 1 * 12 volt power supply
• 1 * Barrel Jack
• 1 * Multimeter
• Several Jumper Cables (Hook-up Wires)

Tasks

Task 1: Build the circuits (Success)

With your partner, build Circuit 1: Door Bell, Circuit 2: Lamp, and Circuit 3: Dimmable Lamp on a breadboard based on the provided schematics. When you’ve finished a circuit, take pictures or film the finished circuit working. Record notes about the building process for each circuit, such as problems that you encountered, and how you fixed them.

Task 2: Switch the switches (Success)

During the recitation, you and your partner will be brought to soldering stations to learn how to solder. Here you will solder long wires to an arcade button.  Once you have completed this, you should replace the push button switch in at least one of the circuits you built with the newly soldered arcade button.

Circuit 1

In our first circuit, my partner and I first looked over the sketches and the parts to try to understand our task. Then, using our knowledge from the first two classes and help from the wandering instructors, we were able to slowly put the components together. The instructor gave us advice to start from the power source and go on from there. After we figured out where each component would be placed, the wiring came naturally. 

Circuit 2

Building from our first circuit, this one was pretty easy. This was because we already had the foundation placed, and all we needed to figure out was where to put the resistor in an already connected circuit. After replacing the speaker and moving some wires we were able to successfully light up the LED.

 

Circuit 3

Using the experience from our previous two circuits we build this one pretty quickly, but it wasn’t working. Not yet finished we were called to the back to solder a large button. After learning how solder, and with a new button in hand we tried to fix our circuit once more. After trying for a few more minutes, we eventually asked for help from another instructor, and found out our issue. When we replaced the LED we forgot about the polarity, after that our circuit was fully functional. 

Information: 

Time: 13:45-15:00, 15 February, 2019 

Location: 824 & 825, 8th floor, NYUSH

Partner: Sheldon Chen

Preparation:

Learning to solder: 

Our goal was learning and practicing how to solder an arcade button.  We used the soldering machine to melt tin to connect the wires with the metal rings on each side of the button. The problem was that I was a little nervous. My hands were shaking so that I can not perfectly control the soldering pen. It was hard to operate because the wire was fine and the soldering pen is too sharp. When it came to the soldering part, we learned how to take advantage of the metal conduction for a better operation to make the solidified tin shiny.

Materials: 

Process:

Circuit 1: Door Bell

We first selected the needed materials in this circuit, which are: 

• Breadboard
• Voltage Regulator
• Capacitor
• Buzzer
• Switch
• Couples of hook-up wires
• 12-volt power supply 

Then we met our first and the biggest question:

How can we build the circuit according to the schematics? 

We both learned some knowledge about the circuit back to high school, but this was the first time for us to try to build it on the breadboard. What’s more, the regulator and the capacitor are two electronics we never used before. 

However, we came up with an idea that we can use the numbers labeled on the wires to distinguish the direction of current flow. First, we collected the power with the regulator which was the most simple one. Then, for the regulator, we collected “2” to the cathode of the capacitor and “3” to the anode of the buzzer. By using the number, we finished the building process.

But when we turned on electricity, the buzzer kept ringing and the switch didn’t work. 

So we turned off electricity and started to check. Because the buzzer was working normally, we believed that the problem was from the switch. We removed the switch and the buzzer could still work, which confirmed our suspicion. We looked twice to the schematics of the switch and found that we had collected wrong legs of the switch. 

This time we changed the direction of the switch and finally succeeded!

Circuit 2: Lamp

This time was easier because we already had the basic circuit. We removed the buzzer and inserted the resistor and LED. Each Leg of the resistor and LED were in a new line on the breadboard to avoid short circuit. 

Circuit 3: Dimmable Lamp

Also by distinguishing the number on the variable resistor, we inserted it into the circuit. 

Extra: Dimmable Buzzer

Since there was time, why not to create something new?

We changed the LED to the buzzer but found that no matter how we turned the variable resistor, there was no sound. We thought that it might because of the 220-ohm resistor that made the current too small. So we removed the 220-ohm resistor and BOOM!

Question 1 :

I do think there is interactivity in the circuit we built, but not a strong one. The author defines interaction as “a cyclic process in which two actors alternately listen, think, and speak”. Like the fridge in the article, in this process, the circuit listens to the pressing switch, thinks with also all the processing power of a single switch, and speaks by ringing the buzzer or turning on the LED. For me, I listen to the output of the circuit, think what I want to do next,  and speak by turning off electricity or rotating switch of the variable resistor. 

Question 2: 

 I think Interactive Design provides creativity and Physical Computing offers the possibility.  Mindstorms in your mind, no matter they are cogent thinking or fantastic imagination, give birth to new ideas maintaining great creativity. Physical Computing makes those ideas real in life and keeps improving them to be better. Compounding the two is like connecting the abstract and the concrete to create Interactive Art. Like Zach’s recent project, the eye-tracking system for disabled artists. Interactive design gave him ideas and physical computing made it possible. The process might be hard. But when Interactive art finally shows up, you can see how inspired it will be, just like what Zach did.