This week, I failed. I did not anticipate the high current draw from the two servo motors, causing my Arduino Nano to brownout. This initially caused some confusion. I thought maybe my wiring or my programming was incorrect, so I spent a couple of hours debugging. I then realized that the servos require more current…

In the spirit of trying something new, I wanted to attempt to animate using a technique that I’ve seen done before where each frame is drawn on a sticky note. However, I plan to have a light shine behind the sticky note to the drawing lights up. After animating a short clip to test it…

This week my original plan was to get all the LED lights setup and running to take some practice shots. I figured my failing point would happen during my first couple of photos, but it did not go according to plan. My plan is to solder connectors onto the led light controller and then the…

I combined my two concepts to have both paper lamp and the idea of light box. I have built a “moon” using balloon and tissue, which after the glue is dry, it becomes a paper cover. Then I have install a bulb inside it, which makes this “moon” be the main light source of the…

This week, I worked on the software side of the Lightning Globe. The goal is to find out if the project is feasible and how would I go approaching it. First, I tracked down the source of the lightning data. Since Lightning Map, does not offer any Application Programming Interface (API), that I could connect…

For my Maquette, I practiced with figuring out how to create light painting with photography and experimented briefly with integrating that painting with portrait photography. I experimented with different exposure, ISO, aperture, and Shutter Speed settings. For the next step, I will look to combine more lighting elements together and find a more empty, dark…

I’ve created a small cardboard model of my design. The lights do not make an image as they would in the final design. However, through making this design, I have decided that the lights will have to be connected to the bottom to keep them straight. I wanted to be able to reuse the LEDs…

This week I sourced a number of materials and tools for my project and started experimenting to achieve different lighting effects. I collected glass recycling, in addition to some colored glass designed for stained glass. I also gathered some different Arduinos, stepper motors, and power supplies for the electronics system. I found my old set…

Since I am new to fiber optics, I decided to familiarize myself with the various sizes under different types of light. Doing this allowed me to see how the light would reflect throughout the cable and the intensity of the light. I favored the small and medium-sized cables the most. Clear cables would be the…

This maquette is being written on behalf of Caleb Wagner, Ben Liang, and Jarod Romankiw. The interactive robotic light painting (IRLP) has been working on the initial development of our artistic creation. This post focuses on the three main areas of our project, and how they’ve developed over the past week. Robot The robot has…

Earlier this week, I order all of the parts that I need to create a working Laser Etch-a-sketch. This includes an Arduino Nano, two Fast Speed Servos, two potentiometers, a push button, and some mirrors. Once the parts arrived, I started CADing in SolidWorks so that I could continue designing the Laser Etch-a-sketch. Below, you…

I experimented with a small drone which already had a few dim LEDs onboard. I took various shots indoors. I also used a foam glider with a flashlight attached to simulate an RC plane but the glider was too quick to capture well. I think flying an RC airplane at a higher altitude will help…

Shopping List: EL Wire Kit UV Flood Light Blacklight Kit This week I plan to finish up animating the ideas I am sure set on I also plan to brainstorm more visual ideas so that the following weeks I can film what I need to so I can get to animating the rest of the…