Category Archives: Assignments

Paper Switches Assignment

3 Super – Hero Paper Switches

1. Super Hero Mask switch

‘Soft-Circuita’, the soft-circuits hero would attache this mask to their face and with a PINCH would close the copper tape circuit which would lead to the illumination (green, red and purple – colors of strength and power) across her face. You see, simple hero masks actually do not hide your identity well, but with the paper switch illumination technique she developed, the colorful glow would disguise her, and temporarily blind her foe!

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2. Paper Cuffs of Strength and Voltage

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3. Paper Lazer Ring of Doom and Joy

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by Joselyn McDonald

Switches, yo

Switch 1: Waving.

I made this switch using pop-up book elements. The hand waves back and forth and the ring shines when the switch is engaged. It’s got vintage hip hop concert written all over it (in my head). Everybody say hey!

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Switch 2: Dancing. (Challenge accepted.)

This switch also uses some pop-up book fun. When you pull the tab, the figures dance around the center of the page (on a super confined track :) ) and on end, the light (their love) shines.

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Switch 3: Clapping.

This switch uses little magnets to clap the hands and engage the switch. Light ensues. The way I see it, things should always happen when I clap my hands.

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Week3: Switches

Switch 1: Kite Flying

Copper tape, conductive threads, 2LEDs, 3v battery x 2, pen, traditional Korean paper, wood craft sticks, colored paper

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Switch 2: Graphite Pencil drawing

Graphite Pencil, LED, 3v battery, alligator jumper lead, colored paper

Switch 3: Experimental nitinol wire for wavy transformation, but did not work. :(

I will try again next time!

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[Week 3] Switches

1. Idea Hat – Hey, I have an idea!

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When we got an idea, we’d like to show a light bulb over our head. So… idea hat is design for a group meeting, if someone got an great idea, he could wear the hat.

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Here is the hat, with a red led on it. When you wear it, the led will light up.

2. Colorful Guitar – You have a light gadget on your guitar? Cool

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In a music show performance, you would like to hear great music, also see cool things in visual. Colorful Guitar has LEDs on it, when you play it, LEDs will light up.

3. True Love Ring – Look! How sweet the couple are.

 

[Week 2] Illustration

“But eyes are blind, you have to look with the heart.”  —- The Little Prince

glasses function

People could see things through this glasses, and it could change different colors of light. The illustration of a rhino which colored with red, green, blue. The different color light from RGB glasses could control by Arduino, when people try to see the illustration through RGB glasses, the rhino’s head and tails are moving, because of light’s color changing. It’s like a gif picture of an animation. That means you look by your eye, you could not see the rhino, you could only see something not make sense, but when you look with your glasses, you could find magical.  

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[Week 2] In class parallel circuits

In class parallel circuits, Xiaofeng and I work together to create.

First one is normal circuits, using coper tape and electric cloth.

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The second one we try to use water as the conductor, the coper tape not enclose totally in the left side, we try to let water connect them. The LED finally showed faint light.

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Assignment 3: Switches

1) 3 Switches!!
Part 1: Each of you should make three separate switches embedded in paper using the conductive material we have discussed in class. Each switch should have a core mechanic – or interaction – that turns the LED on and off. (Just a reminder that a core mechanic is the verb describing the action that turns the switch on and off – at least for our purposes.) Document all three on the blog and bring them to class.

For example, let’s say I chose “balancing” as my mechanic. Perhaps I would build a paper box out of tracing paper. In order to connect the circuit and light up the LED, I would have to balance a metal ball on top without crushing it. Or “winding” – I might wind conductive thread around or inside a paper structure to complete the circuit. Or “snapping” – I might use neodymium magnets to connect two paper structures (or more!) to complete the circuit.

Part 2: Choose one of your switches and write a *brief* story about it. Why does someone use it? What is the context for someone using it? Think of the LED as a proxy for another output. Use your imagination – it can be a fantastic or functional use.

For example, maybe my snapping switch above in actually a musical instrument. Played by 50 people at once. During the one holiday when people can play music in a dystopian future society. The act of creating music is no longer delicate but aggressive.

2) Email me your group for the Learn a New Craft project. Remember: You do not have to design an actual concept and project. This is literally for you to learn how to use a sewing machine or how to fold paper in complex ways or how to weave. It’s that simple :)

Please email me if you have anymore confusion around this assignment or the class content!

Homework from Week 2 – Quote

“In Paris I saw panoramas of Jerusalem and Athens. I recognized all the monuments immediately, every building, right down to the tiny room I stayed in in Saint-Sauveur Convent. No traveler has ever endured a rougher ordeal: how was I to know they were going to bring Jerusalem and Athens to Paris?” Chateau-briand in preface to complete works

I found this quote in my thesis research surrounding virtual reality.  These immersive panoramas are considered one of the first forms of VR.  My panorama is the setting sun over Jerusalem, an LED taking place of the sun.

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