Evaluation

From the prototype to the final result, there were changes in design, but the concept kept the same. Looking at other artist's work made me realize that the impression of the piece can be improved by changing the design. Though a finished artifact was not demanded, I am glad I finished everything I wanted to do. The message of the Three wise Monkeys would not have been able to understand if one of the cows does not do what she is supposed to do.

I am quite proud of my work and fell in love with the three funny looking cows.

During the process of my work I felt increasingly confident in the fields of programming, electric circuits and even in construction. Now I would not panic as much when starting a similar project.

Going to Maplin and ordering photo cells or resistors, does not bother me anymore, whereas before I felt a little uncomfortable, especially as a girl.

Actually, I really enjoyed working at the project. Research enabled me to achieve things I expected to be too complicated.

The progress also enables me to judge other artist's work better. Their concept, but in particular their execution of artifacts appears to be easier understandable.

When I look back to where I started the project, I must confess that I have chosen my project, so the costs would not be too high. Also, I decided only to use the Arduino software to be able to have the sculpture separate and independent. Though my workshop has improved, it is far away from being sufficient to create more sophisticated projects.

These were all constraints and I hope that for the next project, I will overcome them at least to a certain degree.

I am looking forward to become inspired for the next project and will continue to invest time into it.

Randomize

The syntax to randomize is actually quite simple.

The command "randNumber" basically districts the program to a specific number the loop passes through. So, by changing this number, I can influence how frequently the cow speaks.

Three different melodies are stored in form of individual loops.

These loops are called at a certain number.

Example:

If randomNumber==30

mana();

So, if the number 30 is called out of the "randNumber", the loop/melody will start to play.

It is as simple as that and will hopefully help me with future projects.

http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/RandomSeed

Save Sound

During the process of development, I wondered whether instead of the rather simple piezo buzzer, there are other possibilities to save and produce sound. It would be funny if the cow could actually really make her original "Muhhhhh" sound.

There are a couple of possibilities indeed. However, it seems to be quite complicated. Either the quality of the sound ends up very poor or he equipment is quite expensive and complicated to use.

The first way is to use an audio shield for the Arduino. The shield consists of an onboard DAC, filter and op-amp and an SD card.

 

It is quite hard to build this kind of tool. I tried to find out where all components are available, but it turned out that already the appropriate SD card holder is quite difficult to find. If there is SD card holder is not available, the card could also be inside a camera. Unfortunately, that would make the project unnecessary big and another way to connect the USB from the camera to the Arduino needs to be found.

Moreover, writing a program for the music library that is supposed to make playing music easy is quite challenging. It would be a total different approach to what I have programmed so far.

Another key point to consider is that the music files cannot be compressed. It has to be ".wav". Converting anything to .wav may not be that complicated. Nevertheless, a lot of space will be needed to store the file.

The second possible way to achieve some sound quality is to use a Pulse-width modulation (PWM). According to Wikipedia "PWM of a signal or power source involves the modulation of its duty cycle, to either convey information over a communications channel or control the amount of power sent to a load."

Though this is a relatively cheap way to duplicate sounds, many programs need to be downloaded for a successful execution and a computer needs to be connected throughout. When watching the video it surely becomes obvious that this process is tricky.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulse-width_modulation

http://www.rpi.edu/%7Ekouttd/03/Rage_against_the_arduino.html

There is no problem to save sound when using programs such as Max MSP. Since I am interested in building a digital sculpture that does not depend on a connected computer, but that works on its own, this option cannot be considered.

Making the box

The actual making of the wooden box turned out to be quite difficult. Due to the fact that I do not usually do any woodwork or similar projects, I do not have any tools. Therefore, I tried to find ways of how to get all my equipment at a low cost.

The wood I chose a first was cut at homebase. Unfortunately, the huge machine is not the best for small measurements. My pieces were not precisely cut and the the nails did not get a proper grip. So, I had to get different, more appropriate wood as well as a saw to be able to cut everything at the exact lengths.

Finally, after getting the right nails, everything is put together. The space on the bottom of the box is used for storing the Arduino and all other electronic devices. This shelf is very useful. If any changes need to be done, you just need to take it out without damaging anything else.

It was definitely worth spending a lot of time arranging the wires as tidy as possible. If I want to change something now, or a wire gets lose, it is very easy and quick to do.

The soldering, especially when connecting the LEDs to wires was quite difficult. There is some sort of fat that I was not aware of that makes soldering easier. Without it, the soldering material hardly attaches to the wire, but sticks to the soldering tool.

James Seawright

James Seawright is another American artist who is greatly influential.

He"uses modern electronics and controlled technology to apply to sculpture." What I like about his art is that very often the electronic component are not just visible, but they seem to be an important part of the works appearance.

Ursa Major

Very often his work employs sensors and demands interactivity.

Therefore, in this regard The Three Wise Cows are not that different from his work. They are an interactive sculpture and the connection to electronics can be made through the visible LEDs and the electronic sounding noise.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Seawright

http://www.seawright.net/jamesseawright/works.html

Jim Campbell

Jim Campbell has been a very interesting artist for me. I believe especially the look and the way of his presentation influenced me with my decision to change the design from "tacky" to far more simple.

For one of his projects he uses advanced computer-driven custom electronics and video to represent memory. Some of the pieces fascinatingly require the viewer to become a participant. My favorite pieces of the Memory Works Installation is the "Night Light"

There are two memories in this work. One of them stores the level of lightness of the movie "Psycho" by Hitchcock and the other stores the level of noise. According to these data, the light bulbs will change their brightness.

This project does not seem to be too difficult to be rebuild. Attempting to do so would very likely end up in a number of great work.

http://artscenecal.com/ArticlesFile/Archive/Articles1997/Articles0697/JCampbell.html

http://www.jimcampbell.tv/

3 different functions for 3 individual cows

To avoid confusion, it is very important to specify the exact function of the cows.

Cow 1: Seeing

There is a photo cell hidden beh

ind the cow to measure the level of light. When it is light enough, the eyes/LEDs will be on - the cow can see. When it is too dark, the eyes will be off.

I decided not to use the ping sensor because of two reasons. Firstly, it is very difficult to make the ping sensor invisible. Secondly, in case of an exhibition, complications may occur if the sensor is accidently covered.

Cow 2: Hearing

A ping sensor hidden can sense the frequency. When the signal is above a certain threshold, the LED light up.

Cow 3: speaking

Something I am interested in, but have not done before, is a randomizer. I intend to store some short melodies and led them play at a random time and order. That will give the appearance of the cow having an own mind. Sound is played with a ping sensor.

A sketch helped me to connect the right wires to the cows.

Sophisticated tackiness or not?

At the presentation of my prototype I realized that it's tackiness is slightly distracting. Though I spend a lot of time beforehand thinking about making it as tacky as possible, it probably works better if it is kept simple.

If is is very simple at first sight and then makes a funny noise, for example, it surprises far more.

In contrast to the paper box I presented as my prototype, I would like to build a deep wooden frame. It surely looks better hanging at a wall in an exhibition place. There will also be enough space for the Arduino to be hidden inside.

Project Planning - Motors

For my first assignment, "The Frog-Prince", I have already made many experiments with a few sensor working all within one program. I am confident with the usage of different sensors and its programming. Now it is time for me to look at some motors. The motors ought to help emphasizing the cow's reaction.

There are several motors that are suitable for the Arduino.

http://www.ladyada.net/make/mshield/

On this picture you can find (from left to right) a DC motor, a 5V hobby servo and a Stepper motor.

DC motors:

There are a couple of things that are important to consider when using these motors. First of all, you need to find out what voltage the motor has. Usually motors range from 6V to 12V, but you can also get little hobby motors running at 1.5V. Cheap motors generally do not have a great sufficiency.

Secondly, the current needs to be carefully looked at. Once you go towards 1A, there is the possibility that you burn out the chip. That can be avoided by adding a heatsink.

Servos:

These motors are the easiest motors to use. Servos have a 3-pin 0.1" female header connection with =5V, ground and signal inputs. The output lines to 2 3-pin headers of 16bit PWM. Therefore, it can easily be plugged in. Because they use a lot of power, a 9V battery will not last very long.

DC motors:

DC motors are very versatile. Up to 4DC motors can be attached going forwards and backwards. Their speed can be varied and will be very constant.

Stepper motors:

Stepper motors may not be as precise as DC motors, but can still be used for many robotic functions. Usually they have five wires that all need to be properly connected. That is why stepper motors seem to be a little more complicated.

All in all, the servo motor seem to be the easiest motor for me to use. I do not have to pay so much attention of damaging the Arduino and their installation seems to be quite easy.

Examples of coding for all these motors can be found at the following link.

http://www.ladyada.net/make/mshield/use.html

Keith Newstead

Another very interesting automatist who creates mechanical sculptures is Keith Newstead. At the Cabaret Mechanical Theatre he found inspiration to produce his own mechanical life-like models. What makes him stand out from other automatists is the fact that he likes the working parts to be visual. He believes that mechanical devices can look quite elegant.

Though I will not have as many mechanical devices, I will have electronic once. There are artists working with electronics who seem not to be concerned about cables, power sources and circuits that are visual. When looking at Eric Raymonds work, I personally feel that it would have been so much better, if he had found a way to hide the wires etc. , so the observer does not get distracted. I am not sure why he did not try, but maybe he intended to express something with the slightly chaotic view. Since the landscapes he shows are of a natural origin, he may seeks to show the dynamic between nature and technology.

Since that is not my intension at all, I will not follow his route, but rather try to keep technology hidden.

http://www.keithnewsteadautomata.com/broadband.htm

http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/k25100/linescape/linescape.html

http://www.kinetica-museum.org/new_site/index.php?ptitle=Past%20Exhibitions&mfile=event_exhibition_main.php?

Project Planning

For making the cows look like being on a stage, it is necessary to build a proper stage with curtains.

Curtain:

It turned out to be a problem finding the most appropriate fabric, so I found red tinsel instead. It looks quite striking and provides a festive touch. However, I have to be very careful when making holes in it, so it does not tear apart. Making the holes large enough to give room for the thread to get through smoothly, turns out to be quite a challenge. If it was some fabric with larger holes, moving the curtain along the string would be far more easy.

Shoe Box:

The stage itself is a shoe box. It is stout and has enough space for the Arduino and all electronics. The box should be large enough to support the three cows and to hold the curtain. I am painting the box in a friendly grass-green. Holes need to be cut out of the box, so the ping sensor can reach through the box. Flowers will be painted on the surface to hide the sensor.

Mechanics vs. Electronics

I am very much fond of mechanical projects. Automaticts such as Paul Spooner and Carlos Zapata have been creating very interesting work. The reason their work attracts me is because they kind of give an impression of being something like a toy. Moreover, the way they work is so fascinating. When you look at them you just want to find out how they might work.

Spooner’s mechanical artwork looks charming and you appear to feel sympathy for his characters straight away. It also provides a far more warm atmosphere than the metallic works of Jim Bond, for example.

http://www.jimbond.co.uk/index.html

Spooner mainly uses wood and warm colors for his works, which makes it look somehow more friendly. Though, not all of his plots make sense, his topics convey a certain type of humor. The following example, for example, is quite amusing.

The size of the work is usually quite small, which forces the observer to step very close. Sometimes the observer also needs to interact to drive on the machine. Every individual work appears to be on a little stage on their own. When you get very close, you may feel like becoming part of it. It is a rather an intimate experience.

For somebody as unexperienced as me it surely would be very hard to reproduce pieces that demand so much attention to detail and time. Therefore, I could start with producing only a few simple elements and allow the overall look of my work to be a little comparable with Spooner’s work.

Spooner’s work is usually presented within glass boxes. Unfortunately, that would be unsuitable for my project, since some sensors wont be able to work properly. Hence, I need to make sure I come up with an idea how to show my work, so interaction with the observer is possible, but also no destruction can occur. So, putting it up on a pedestal and protecting it with a surrounding fence is an acceptable solution.

Even though my Three Wise Cows project will be influenced by these mechanical applications, I will still use electrical means such as the Arduino. The result will be a mixed media object.

http://www.kinetica-museum.org/new_site/event_seminar_main.php?id=54

Cows and their traditional background

As I have already explained in a previous post, I am going to use little cows instead of monkeys for my project. I made that decision basically because the cow's depiction is very different in various traditions.

By employing cows I provide even more room for interpretation, since they have many traditional and religious meanings.

In Japan, there is a traditional toy in form of a cow that is supposed to protect against illnesses.

The Massai tribe in East Africa believe that all cows are God-given property.

Because they provide milk, in the Hindu tradition, cows are even treated with the same respect as one’s mother. They are a symbol of wealth, strength, abundance, selfless giving as well as full earthy life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattle

http://www.non-idem.de/graphics/marke.jpg

Artists dealing with the Three Wise Monkeys

Keith Haring

Keith Haring is best-known for his graffitis inspired murals all over the world. As a social activist he also established the Keith Haring Foundation supporting organizations assisting children, educational organizations and research and care related projects to AIDS.

Haring was diagnosed with AIDS himself and created arts dealing with the disease.

One of the paintings uses the three monkeys in form of three humans to convey the idea of ignorance.  I believe his approach is quite powerful. The three monkeys i.g. humans help very much to bring across his strong message.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Haring

http://www.haring.com/about_haring/bibliography/periodicals.html

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/ja08/graphics/keith_haring.gif

http://www.haring.com/cgi-bin/art_lrg.cgi?date=1988&genre=Painting&start=0&id=00604

Most other artists may use the Three Wise Monkeys, but usually far less dramatical.

Max Magnus Norman created interesting sculptures of the monkeys.

He portrays the monkeys by giving them by giving them rather modern devices. The sculptures look quite funny and surely act entertaining.

http://maxmagnusnorman.com/english/sculptures.shtml

Due to their strong expressiveness, the monkeys are also used in caricatures. Here are some examples:

http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/rmc/lowres/rmcn94l.jpg

http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/ksm0753l.jpg

A few more pictures of the monkeys that indicate the wide range of styles:

lget4001.jpg 452×320 pixels

Doug-Hyde-Three-Wise-Monkey.jpg 400×155 pixels

Image:The three monkeys.png - Wikimedia Commons

three-wise-monkeys-c11765657.jpeg 350×355 pixels

Three Wise Monkeys - Representation

Another great thing about the Three Wise Monkeys is that there are numerous ways of representation.

In Japan, for example, the proverb is seen as a Golden Rule. "Not to be snoopy, nosy or gossipy." Other early representations that link to Buddhist teaching claim "if we do not hear, see or talk evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil." This may even be compared to the English saying "Speak of the Devil - and the Devil appears." A further depiction says that a person who does not experience evil through sight and sound, will not do any evil.

Nowadays, especially in the Western world, the words "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" describe a person ignoring bad things happening around him. This representation, in particular, has been used by artists dealing with topics as oppressive as AIDS.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_wise_monkeys#Meaning_of_the_proverb

Three Wise Monkeys - Origin

One of the things I like about the Three Wise Monkeys is that their origin is not absolutely clear. The probably eldest caving is over the door of the 17th century shrine in Japan, Nicco. However, there is evidence that the history of the proverbial principle "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" goes back even to the 8th century and the Tendai-Buddhist legend. Other theories claim that the saying initiated from a very similar Chinese phrase.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Hear_speak_see_no_evil_Toshogu.jpg

Arduino meets "The Frog-Prince"

Since the mouth of the frog is slightly too small, I need to take out a bit more of inside of the frog. I cut out a small slot in the inside of the mouth and then I can pull out a little of the content.

It seems to be a little more difficult to get everything at the right position. The eyes (LEDs) obviously need to be there were the eyes of the frog are already. I cut two holes from the back of the eyes to get the cables of the LEDs get through the fabric. It seems quite hard, but once their are inside, they do not move and fit properly.

On the arduino board and the blackboard I am using, I tight up all wires as short as they can possibly be. By doing this, I hopefully avoid that wires loosen when I enter everything into the frog's mouth.

By now I also know the name of the project. "The Frog-Prince".

The toy without its case

My aim was to put different functions into one program, to challenge the Arduino board and to see how much you can do by only using Arduino programming.

I the video, you can observe three different functions.

1) movement - melody

The circuit is the same as the one of a push button. When the frog is taken away from a sitting position, the circuit is interrupted and an alarm will ring and an LED will be switched on as long as the frog is sitting again.

2) distance - melody

A ping sensor is monitoring the distance in front of it. Once the distance is at a certain value, a melody will start playing and an LED will be turned on.

2) light - led (bluring)

There is also a photo cell. This sensor measures the light intensity. When it is quite dark an LED will start glowing. If it is light, it will be turned off.

Turning point for the whole project!!!

It is the morning of the 31st of October. Tonight many children are going to walk around in their neighborhood and ask for sweets.

Due to the fact that out presentation did not take place on the 28th of October, but is going to be on the 4th of November, I decided to get a new fresh pumpkin. Yesterday, I went to my local ASDA store. There were no more pumpkins! The flowershop close by offered only very small pumpkins. The owner said that this year, there is a shortage of pumpkins. Well, I thought then I will have to stick to my old one.

However, when I double-checked the pumpkin this morning, something seemed wrong. The dog did not stop sniffing around it. When I opened the top, I realized that there was mould inside it.

Today, I tried again to buy a pumpkin, but there was no way that I could find one.

So, I decided to change the project dramatically. The main item/concept will be changed. I am not using a pumpkin anymore.

I discovered this delightful object. The fact that it came with chocolate may have influenced my decision, nevertheless the main reason of choosing this frog is that it contains a bag inside its mouth. This bag hopefully provides enough space for the Arduino as well as the sensors and cables.

Pumpkin Carving II

Finally, I bought a pumpkin and can start preparing it. I did not want to buy it too early, because I am not sure how long it may last.

Once I started cutting the top off, it seemed quite easy to cut into the pumpkin. However, when I discovered how much there was inside, I felt slightly disgusted. It did not smell like lovely pumpkin soup, but of some unripe vegetable. It was not very difficult to get all the content out, but the space inside the pumpkin was surprisingly small. At that point I started wondering whether there will be enough space for the arduino board as well as the sensors and so on. Moreover, I realized, it will definitely be a challenge to keep all the cables and wires dry.

Then I cut out the eyes in form of stars. Though that may seem strange for a Halloween pumpkin, I do not intend to make the pumpkin look scary. It is going to be a friendly pumpkin, maybe even a pumpkin girl. Behind the holes of the eyes, I put colored plastic stars. Their surface will hopefully be large enough to show the LED's light effectively from within the pumpkin. The next step is the mouth. I let her show her tongue considering that there will need to be space for the Ping sensor, so nothing should get into its way and the real distance in front of the pumpkin can be measured.