For this recitation we constructed a circuit that allowed us to control a stepper motor by using a potentiometer. After building an individual circuit I combined one circuit with Dom’s to create a drawing machine controlled by two people with potentiometers.
I had little trouble as I assembled the circuit to resemble the diagram given. However coding became an issue as I was unable to get the stepper motor to reach to the potentiometer.
I was able to finally fix the problem by incorporating the map function which finally got it to work. When combined with Dom’s circuit we had a functional drawing machine.
Recitation Questions:
I would be interested in building machines that serve utility functions rather than pure aesthetic. For example I believe the robots and machine in place on automotive assembly lines serve a more important role in society than some of the art projects reviewed. I would be most interested in constructing a machine that serves a purpose whether it be complicated or simple.
One of the projects mentioned in Stephan William’s article was a fish tank that was mechanically adjusted to automatically handle the many aspects required to support marine life. The machine had sensors allowing for it to adjust factors such as water temperature and food supply to accommodate the fish. I think that this project demonstrates a pragmatic solution to a simple problem much like the machine we build for this week.