In this recitation we I had to use Processing and Arduino together, both communicating with each other to work on both on Processing and Arduino.
Step 1:
For this step I had to make an “Etch a Sketch.” I had to use Arduino to input values through a pentameter to go through to processing. To do this I had to use value inputs so that the pentameter would translate to movement in processing. Once the values could be translated, all I had to do was tell processing to draw every time it moved in x and y intercepts, and after that I was all set.
In this step I had to create a musical device on processing and then have it play through Arduino. To do this I had to add variables to processing so that when I could click the mouse a sound would play, depending on the x and y coordinates. I also had to use pitches example from Arduino so that it could know what tones to play when the mouse was pressed on Arduino.
For our final project, my partner Megan and I decided to create an interactive video game project called “Are You Going to be a Criminal?/Check your Assumptions” to highlight the importance of not to judge a book by its cover and educating the masses about justice system statistics.
Project Statement of Purpose
In this project, we strive to educate our audience about common perceptions and judgment towards justice issues like who will most likely become a criminal. We want to create this game to allow people to grasp more knowledge about common perceptions toward criminals and incarcerated people and to hopefully alleviate some of those preconceived notions by creating a game that has quizzes about what is a paradigm of a criminal or about to commit a crime based on family history, personalities and physical attributes. Then, commenting on how people should not judge a book by its cover, and to hopefully diminish some of those negative attitudes towards people of certain communities.
Project Plan
We plan on using Arduino and Processing to create an interactive game that allows user input through Arduino’s sensors and buttons and then displaying output on the computer using processing animations and graphics. We want to combine physical input from users to connect it with a processing game to make the project more interactive. Also, users can also use the keyboard and mouse functions to play with functions on the screen through processing and code. We will also use laser cutting as our digital fabrication method to decorate our Arduino and add it to the interactive project. The colors in this project will be simple, as we will use mostly black and white colors to create a sleek style.
Project Context & Significance
We were inspired by The Marshall Project‘s online journalisms about criminal justice, as the website creates stories about incarcerated people and tries to educate people about the on-going issues in hopes of changing the system and inspiring people to go out and vote, to change public policies. We were inspired by the efforts made by this non-profit online journalism company and wanted to create a project that will be A. educational and spark interest for people to learn more about the U.S criminal justice system; and B, be a fun and interactive way for people to know about social issues that need to be discussed. At the end of our project, we will also attach links to websites and news sources for people to read more about these social issues if they wish to learn more about it. This way, we hope to educate our audience (NYU Shanghai students and faculty) to learn more about how our perceptions and biases could influence our judgment. This could be especially critical in the case of the futures of the younger generation exercising misdemeanors and how assumptions could critically and negatively affect their hearings and cases, in times of trial. Because no matter how hard we try, sometimes our biases get in the way of understanding each other.
One of our readings from Tom Igoe’s article “Making Interactive Art: Set the Stage, Then Shut Up and Listen” is especially inspiration. In particular, the author states, “Think of it [interactive artwork] more as a performance…Figure out how to suggest to them what their course of action could be, and how they might uncover their story, and their own emotional interpretation of the work.” This quote was inspirational in framing how we should set the stage for this interactive project. We want this performance to work and allow our audiences to include their honest and raw input, whether it be a biased assumption or not. We want to make the project simple, intuitive and entertaining, so the audience finds joy in it and hopefully wants to learn more about it in the future, in our case, criminal justice issues and how our psychological biases influence our judgment in the case of criminology. We also want this to influence our audiences, to inspire them and hear their story as well.
Additional Info: one article that raises awareness about perceptions can turn innocent people into criminals. https://theintercept.com/2019/01/13/misdemeanor-justice-system-alexandra-natapoff/
The Marshall Project: https://www.themarshallproject.org/
Working on combining the power of Processing and Arduino
Objectives:
Combine Arudunio and Processing to create a program to carry out a desired function
Materials (as listed on the IMA website):
From Arduino Kit:
1 * Arduino Uno
1 * USB A to B cable
1 * breadboard
1 * buzzer
2 * Potentiometer
A handful of jumper cables
Process:
Exercise 1: Create an Etch-A-Sketch
For this first exercise, I created my circuit which consisted of two potentiometers. The main idea of this exercise with the basic code was to get used to having one input that would convert this input to ACIIS. Once I was able to get one synced up appropriately, I worked on getting the second potentiometer to be able to do the same thing. The fun part of this recitation was actually being able to combine the codes from the samples and then creating a device that allowed us to create our own sketches (although mine were rather abstract since I am not too adept at using the device).
The link below has a video attached of the success from connecting one potentiometer to a screen. This first part acted as one of the feet in the soon-to-be Etch A Sketch.
The last video is of the final product and actually being able to draw with the Etch A Sketch. One problem that I had was that my lines were not so stable. I think this was due to loose connections on the part of the potentiometer. In the future, I think that ideally I would like to use a bigger bread board in order to make this the most efficient because then I would have to bump into the wires in order to manipulate the potentiometer.
The circuit below is for part one that was used to create the Etch A Sketch. The circuitry for this lab was simple compared to some of our projects; the main challenge was the code and getting Arduino and Processing to work together.
Again, the circuitry for this code, as seen below, was extremely simple. The fun part came with creating the code. I think the most fun I had was with figuring out how to get an object to follow my mouse. Ideally, I would have wanted an object with a fade behind it, but I think the process that looked the cleanest and clearest was when I had a shape such as an ellipse follow my mouse. This combined with the processing function of “mousePressed” allowed me to connect the buzzer to create a “music” (if you define that as poorly timed beeps).
The interaction for Etch A Sketch is pretty clear cut and obvious. Your movements result in the object on the screen consequently moving and creating whatever it is you want to make. This interaction is a high performance-level of interaction because there is not just an input action and then an output action. The device responds with how you respond which creates a more meaningful interaction.
In the same way, creating the instrument does the same thing. Depending on where you move will depend on where you your object goes. In addition, whenever you feel compelled to press your mouse, then the buzzer will make a noise. I do not think that creating this so-to-say is as “interactive” as the Etch A Sketch because you are merely pressing a button which in turn has one action. I think an additional component to make this device more interactive would be if moving your mouse up and down the screen made the subsequent note from the buzzer higher or lower.
This recitation’s aim is to learn to connect the Arduino and the processing, which can let us interact with animation. From this class , we can primarily control the image in the computer by the outside circuit.
Step 1 Make an ellipse with potentiometers:
Actually the beginning of the story is full of the problems. I thought the first step is just what we down at the class at the first glance.’It just a piece of cake!’ I tacked to myself. But the truth is, I only finished the first step at the end of the recitation. But this is not because of the code, it just takes me a little time to use the sensor value[0] and sensorvalue[1] to take the place of the x and y of the ellipse();in the model code A to P.Then I was stuck by the range of the potentiometers. No matter how hard I tried, my circle â•ď¸Ź only move in a very narrow place. I taken the advice from the assistants to test it, and figure out the range of my potentiometers only from 465 to 654. I change the potentiometers but it makes no difference. Once the professor pressed hard, its range fixed for a seconds. I was so exciting, considered we solve the problem, but soon the range change again. After test it on the recitation and after the class, I finally make sure that the problem is on the Arduino. Everything goes well after that.
Step 2 Make a line etch-a-sketch:
special code:
processing
float px=0;
float py=0;
float x=0;
float y=0;
……
x=map(sensorValues[0],0,1023,0,500);
y=map(sensorValues[1],0,1023,0,500);
stroke(x,225,y);
strokeWeight(12);
line(px,py,x,y);
px=x;
py=y;
Then come to the next class, at first I totally can not understand the logic of this code”How to make the new X=previous X?’I even try to use array functions. But another the help of my classmate, I figure out the secret of it is the order. This practice really inspire me a lot.
Make an instrument:
add code
Processing:
if (values[1] == 1) {
float x = map(values[0], 0, 500, 31, 4978);
//float y = map(values[1], 0, 500, 31, 4978);
tone(9, x);
} else {
noTone(9);
}
Arduino:
values[0]=mouseX;
if (mousePressed) {
values[1]=1;
} else {
values[1]=0;
}
To the last one, I know it is time to change the model code to P to A, but I really cannot understand of that code. Even now, though I ask many assistants for this, I still confused about the complex part of that code. At the first I used the mouseY to control the duration, but when I try to see the mousePressed, I find the y is useless, so I cancel it. Then how to use the mouse in the processing to control the action in the Arduino which really trapped me, I was surprised by the idea that set a values[1], and realize that the values[1]==1 need to equal.
The final project proposal chosen was the adaption of my partner’s and my midterm project: Pirate Chase. The conception of this project was to allow users to interact in a space that assesses their willingness to sacrifice others in order to achieve personal gain when in reality, cooperation is more beneficial. However, the existing model of this project did not fully realize this intention and, therefore, we’ve decided to adapt the project to have a stronger focus on this idea. The new design of the project is one that is larger and has a singular goal, allowing more users to compete and an increase in competitive interaction. The concept mimics closely to the concept conceived by evolutionary biologist Garret Hardin called “tragedy of the commons” which describes a circumstance where an individual acting on their own self-interest will deplete resources against the benefit of the common good. The interactions accumulated by a public audience engaging with Pirate Chase will physically display the repercussions of competition with a singular goal.
In order to realize this goal for our project, my partner and I have devised several new components that will allow for better user engagement and comprehension of the idea. Firstly, we plan on making the design a lot bigger by using a small plastic pool made for small kids. The size will allow the game to consist of up to 4 different users, which would make competition higher and the game more challenging. Secondly, we will design several obstacles placed throughout the body of the game to increase navigation challenges faced by users in comparison to the former one-lane model of our midterm project. This will not only enhance competition but also make the game more dynamic as if offers users to be more strategic in their interaction. Another component is the island sensor, which will be a singular infrared sensor placed in the middle of the body symbolizing the “limited resource” of the common. Lastly, processing features will allow us to display game rules and a clearer proclamation of a winner relative to the red LED used in our previous model. Additionally, this will allow for better game aesthetics.
There has been a lot of research that has inspired the design and conception of this project. One of the articles that really stuck out to me was Bret Victor’s A Brief Rant On The Future of Interactive Design, as he mentions that we should strive to design interactive products using a “dynamic medium that we can see, feel, and manipulate”. I thought that by including the element of using your breath to move the boats takes away this privilege of interaction and would further support his idea as there’s a struggle of not being able to fully feel or manipulate the boats. Another piece that inspired me was one I saw at the Chronus Exhibit that used both natural elements along with technological ones. Although I enjoyed seeing this juxtaposition aesthetically, I thought the main conceptual purpose of having both nature and technology presented in my project would fit the context of the “tragedy of the commons” very suitably. I feel that both of these pieces are insightful to the general public, which is the primary audience of Pirate Chase. I think that for younger users, the purpose would be contextualized as something more entertaining and fun, whereas for older users, the context would be more apparent to this idea of competition for a limited resource.
