Project Title: Hand Pen
For my final, I’m going to make a project using Arduino and Processing. Basically, I’m thinking of making a device with a sensor on it which can be tied to the users’ hands. This sensor will be connected to Arduino and will send values it detects to processing. This project is designed for people who like to draw, and also would like a more virtual representation of their art.
I did some research on interactive projects, and I found some interesting projects, as I stated in the last blog post. Basically, the interactive project I found was asking the users to draw whatever they were thinking and let the computer “guess” what they were drawing. I was inspired by that and thought maybe I can do something else based on the drawing idea. What’s different is that I’m thinking of drawing on the screen without touching it by using sensors to connect the users to the computer. Simply put, I’m going to create a device which the users can draw “in the air”. What’s more, in my project, the users can make their own art pieces with not only lines or dots, but also other shapes, for example, squares, circles, triangles, etc.
I think there will be challenges in the process of making this project. The most concerning one would be that how I can make the value Processing receives become a “pen” which can draw on the screen. Also, how to switch between different shapes are also challenging.
For people who love drawing, I think it will be an very interesting device for them to practice their drawing skills or even just for fun. For further steps, I think this device can be developed to a kind of 3D drawing with a projector, which will be helpful in lots of areas in life.
During the process, I will first connect the circuit. Then I will test how to use the sensor to transmit the value to processing. Next, I will write codes for both arduilno and processing. I will try to make a button which can be used as a switch. Last I will make a glove like cover to decorate the sensor and make it more user-friendly.
The most important part that I will emphasis is the button. My initial intention is to make it convenient and multifunctional. So the button part is where I will make the whole project better meet the requirement. This button is used to switch the shape of the pen. For example, if the user press the button, the shape of the pen will change from a dot to a small square, which can draw a series of squares on the screen. This makes the drawing more multifunctional, and the user can use this function to make a more forms of drawing.
I will start my project from now on. By the end of next week, which is the week of April 29 to May 3, I will finish collecting all the materials I need and try to connect them together to test if the sensor works. By the end of week of May 6-10, I will write codes for both processing and Arduino and start testing the whole project. By the end of the weekend of May11-12, I will decorate the interface of my project and make it more user-friendly.
As far as I’m concerned, my final project is aligned with my definition of interaction because for me, interaction is a process of performance where people communicate with the machine in a specific language, and can only be completed with both the people and the machine together. For my final project, if either part of it is missing from the project, the process would not be completed, or interactive. It can only be completed by both people and my computer.