Per our group agreement we all signed we have generated a large number of ideas and reduced them now to two. This is actually lower than our target of three. We were unable to choose between them and remain split three and three between them.
Idea one: A school of robots on a surface that interact with each other and form shapes and unique patterns and movement. Personally this idea sounds less like a surface and more like a bunch of robots. I would like to see this become a window covering surface, a shade, of many moving and flipping panels. These panels would have some ability to communicate with each other promoting some sort of emergent complexity.
advantages; could get power from solar panels if on window, could perform a purpose like shading an area from a light source, a more interesting adaptive surface (smarter, more of an adaptive surface)
Idea two: A collection of ceramic, plastic, and wood shapes that contract and when they contract make noise. These would be somewhat linear in shape and be arranged in an array. The noise makers would respond to human movement and contract like a coral reef full of unique noisy critters.
advantages; could take advantage of lighting and auditory effects, many different ways to make noise, could immerse a person in a space full of these, modular building ability, easy set up (big movable panels that can be set up on site)
We hope to pick tomorrow in order to establish a useful budget and concentrate our effort on a prototype.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
New Project
Our focus with this project went immediately to the use of the solar panels for gathering energy, as well it should. In the natural world the sensing of the location of the sun was used for maximum energy harvesting or for avoiding the sun, we went with the former.
We imagined eyes and then focused in on the funcion of eyes. Additionally Melany had seen an article on the stalk plant on the Ask Nature site which concentrates light for increased energy absorbtion through a clear dome and directs it down a stalk.
Spherical lenses will be placed on the top of a building allowing us to concentrate light incedent on the sphere to the center. In the center there will be an expensive solar cell (multilayer) which could not be deployed over a surface area the size of the sphere due to cost per unit area of solar cell. The concentrator we propose would allow for highly efficient capture of solar energy impacting a large surface area of the earth without buying a large amount of expensive high end photovoltaics.
We imagined eyes and then focused in on the funcion of eyes. Additionally Melany had seen an article on the stalk plant on the Ask Nature site which concentrates light for increased energy absorbtion through a clear dome and directs it down a stalk.
Spherical lenses will be placed on the top of a building allowing us to concentrate light incedent on the sphere to the center. In the center there will be an expensive solar cell (multilayer) which could not be deployed over a surface area the size of the sphere due to cost per unit area of solar cell. The concentrator we propose would allow for highly efficient capture of solar energy impacting a large surface area of the earth without buying a large amount of expensive high end photovoltaics.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Solar Tracker
So, its been a while since my last post.
We presented our solar tracker last week on thursday. Our solar tracker sort of became a side note however to our application of the tracker. Based on a window plant we conceived of a huge glass (or whatever) focusing dome that would concentrate a huge region of incident sunlight onto a highly efficient solar cell. Theoretically if al the light was focused to the solar cell we could increase human solar gathering power four fold. Furthermore if solar cells became more efficient the central gathering component could be exchanged with relative ease. We imagined this device as part of buildings on an undulating glass roof covered in places with fields of spheres. The light would focus onto the solar collector in chambers visible from the rooms inside the building, the dynamos of a solar society. Smaller scale they could serve as illumination. With a 5 to 8 ratio of sphere surface area to floor space we could power corporate buildings today all over the country. That was the vision.
Not to say there arent an array of problems.
We made a solar tracker too, but it sucked, just a couple of servos literally strapped together. So in this case we have a passionate, inventive solution to a real problem but we got sidetracked away from the assignment, which was to build the solar tracker.
We continued this week to build a solar tracker that will fit into the roof design, but this time it will work and look beautiful.
We presented our solar tracker last week on thursday. Our solar tracker sort of became a side note however to our application of the tracker. Based on a window plant we conceived of a huge glass (or whatever) focusing dome that would concentrate a huge region of incident sunlight onto a highly efficient solar cell. Theoretically if al the light was focused to the solar cell we could increase human solar gathering power four fold. Furthermore if solar cells became more efficient the central gathering component could be exchanged with relative ease. We imagined this device as part of buildings on an undulating glass roof covered in places with fields of spheres. The light would focus onto the solar collector in chambers visible from the rooms inside the building, the dynamos of a solar society. Smaller scale they could serve as illumination. With a 5 to 8 ratio of sphere surface area to floor space we could power corporate buildings today all over the country. That was the vision.
Not to say there arent an array of problems.
We made a solar tracker too, but it sucked, just a couple of servos literally strapped together. So in this case we have a passionate, inventive solution to a real problem but we got sidetracked away from the assignment, which was to build the solar tracker.
We continued this week to build a solar tracker that will fit into the roof design, but this time it will work and look beautiful.
New project; review of first week
How we began
-considered our materials, primarily solar cells
-considered biomimetic options including eyes and window plants
How we proceeded
- considered problems currently faced by humanity
-settled on solar power approaches
-conceived of a solar tracking sensing surface based on an eye (pinhole with an array of photoresistors behind it which could indicate misalignment of the hole with the light source
-conceived of a solar concentrating lense, large scale which could be place on a building
What we settled on for thursday
- several team members create a solar tracking device
-the rest do the math of the glass domes and flesh out the concept
What Happened
- solar tracker sucked
What we are doing now
building a solar tracker based on an eye
-considered our materials, primarily solar cells
-considered biomimetic options including eyes and window plants
How we proceeded
- considered problems currently faced by humanity
-settled on solar power approaches
-conceived of a solar tracking sensing surface based on an eye (pinhole with an array of photoresistors behind it which could indicate misalignment of the hole with the light source
-conceived of a solar concentrating lense, large scale which could be place on a building
What we settled on for thursday
- several team members create a solar tracking device
-the rest do the math of the glass domes and flesh out the concept
What Happened
- solar tracker sucked
What we are doing now
building a solar tracker based on an eye
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Critique
Review of first project.
The model was the ultimate presentation we showed in class. I meant to have a scale model of an acrylic sphere that might be placed in the wall display but due to the immense time used on the model I had no time to construct it. I spent most of my build time setting up the arduino with Melany creating the three lighting effects, the control for the motor, and setting up the sensors. The approach was to create a sensing arduino and link it to other arduinos so that it could call on the others to individually perform light displays. This approach resembled asystems model, one controlling brain and systems with specialized functions. This was neccesitated by the ability of only 6 outputs on the ardiuno to output a fading signal. We wanted at least 18 and so decided to add several arduinos. Another approach which would have been more effective in this situation would be to provide each arduino with sensory equipment and had them cooperate rather than react to one code. This would have provided another interesting opportunity since the lighting of one led could have triggered another which had it own light sensor. The effect could have made a cascade effect starting with an arduino which had a triggered motion sensor. In this system it would truly have been reactive to people and had a unique response to each new stimulus. The limitation of this is that every light may need an arduino.
The individual control approach was suggested in class by the professors. Ihave only one uncertainty about it, most levels of natural organization have specialization, like a body or a cell. Then again simple systems do not in our case I suppose we are still well within the simplicity level that prefers individualization.
In general I thought our project was a good start. I liked best the display we settled on, the fact that we chose a local location, and the model building. I agree with our professors in their critique that we were marketing something for entertainment but did not sell it. Our lack of confidence and more importantly our lack of excitement made the sell impossible. Johns question was kind of bull though and I think it made the thing even harder for me to be excited about and sell in the q and a by setting a negative tone. I know he had a point and I'm sure all the groups will be more careful to consider what the professors are really asking for in the next round of presentations.
The most important thing for me out of this critique is to present the projects in the mood I want them recieved.
Now to a solar tracking device.
The model was the ultimate presentation we showed in class. I meant to have a scale model of an acrylic sphere that might be placed in the wall display but due to the immense time used on the model I had no time to construct it. I spent most of my build time setting up the arduino with Melany creating the three lighting effects, the control for the motor, and setting up the sensors. The approach was to create a sensing arduino and link it to other arduinos so that it could call on the others to individually perform light displays. This approach resembled asystems model, one controlling brain and systems with specialized functions. This was neccesitated by the ability of only 6 outputs on the ardiuno to output a fading signal. We wanted at least 18 and so decided to add several arduinos. Another approach which would have been more effective in this situation would be to provide each arduino with sensory equipment and had them cooperate rather than react to one code. This would have provided another interesting opportunity since the lighting of one led could have triggered another which had it own light sensor. The effect could have made a cascade effect starting with an arduino which had a triggered motion sensor. In this system it would truly have been reactive to people and had a unique response to each new stimulus. The limitation of this is that every light may need an arduino.
The individual control approach was suggested in class by the professors. Ihave only one uncertainty about it, most levels of natural organization have specialization, like a body or a cell. Then again simple systems do not in our case I suppose we are still well within the simplicity level that prefers individualization.
In general I thought our project was a good start. I liked best the display we settled on, the fact that we chose a local location, and the model building. I agree with our professors in their critique that we were marketing something for entertainment but did not sell it. Our lack of confidence and more importantly our lack of excitement made the sell impossible. Johns question was kind of bull though and I think it made the thing even harder for me to be excited about and sell in the q and a by setting a negative tone. I know he had a point and I'm sure all the groups will be more careful to consider what the professors are really asking for in the next round of presentations.
The most important thing for me out of this critique is to present the projects in the mood I want them recieved.
Now to a solar tracking device.
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