Off to Bocholt tomorrow. The train goes at 07:47 from Hbf & gets to Duisburg at 11:47. Change to go to Wesel, then change again to go to Bocholt 13:25. Well at least that was the plan. Almost everything was late, so I arrived an hour late.

Staying at Stadthotel Kolping.

Very new hotel. Lots of light wood and darker wooden floors, right in the centre of Bocholt.

Einen modernen Asiaten auch in Bochum.
Chicken Udong €5,90. Es hat gut geschmeckt.

What a queue to get a bite to eat on Saturday. Was actually quite good €5.90 for red curry chicken.

Hurra Licht

View Canal du Midi in a larger map

Art in Marseille

Appartment in Marseille

G. Bei der Arbeit. Ans Ende springen

….in Berlin ist’s auch schön!

Kurz geschoren für die Reise

So sind die Portionen hier im Norden.

Going up, going up, going up, up, up

EDIT

The FRAME

• House with several stories
• Mirror(s) in the middle
• Turn bicycle? crank at bottom to move everything
• Birds on roof
• Chimney sweep
• Children playing (seesaw) at bottom
• Parcel man ringing doorbell
• Water plants
• Clean windows
• Drink coffee
• Cat walking on balcony
• See Article on Probošt’s mechanical Christmas crib

The WATCHDOG

• Dog with bone, eyes closed, seated.
• Touch the bone, dog stands up, opens eyes, barks.
• The longer you hold the bone, the more he barks – n times.
• When you let go, it sleeps for n minutes, then wakes up and barks until you touch the bone or for 20 seconds.
• Power by rechargeable batteries
• Power only applied by touching the bone
• When cycle has finished, turn off the power

http://cmucam.org/projects/cmucam5/wiki/Can_Pixy_do_face_tracking_face_detection_or_facial_recognition
http://cmucam.org/projects/cmucam5/wiki

Kinect Arduino – Google?

Leap Motion – Arduino – needs PC/laptop …

A few links

• School of Machines, Making & Make-Believe
• Hackpad
• The Wye
• FabLabBerlin
• OpenTechSchool
• TinkerSoup
• Open Design City
• Fritzing
• Ultrasonic sensors find direction and distance
• MaxBotix Ultraschall Entfernungssensor – MB1013 HRLV-MaxSonar-EZ1
• Arduino playground MaxSonar
• Random value drops
• Using multiple sensors
• Maxbotix downloads
• PIC16F676 microntroller data sheet on small ultrasonic PCB
• Richard Clarkson Cloud $ 3,360
• Facebook
• Google group

EL wire

el-light.de
Experiments in dimming EL wire
how to dim el wire current limiting the oscillator

Tati’s Titfer

This very polite hat is lifted whenever anyone approaches. What a gentleman!
Add legs which move in 1 sec cycle as tick tock.

Text me

There is no need for polarized glasses or to stand in any particular location, this is the ultimate 3D display, which even includes the fourth axis of time to make the world’s first 4D visual display unit – a 4D-VDU (patent pending)! All that you have to do to put it to the test, is to send it a text message and it will display your message in glorious 4D-technicolour.

• 30 boxes with doors
• 5 rows, 6 columns
• 1 solenoid or servo per box to open the door. Servo would be smoother. Which is cheaper?
• €9.90 small servo plus driver.
• 15 mm stroke 12V solenoid €10.79 Plus driver.
• Each box contains a letter or something else
• 1 to 26 = A to Z
• 27 – 30 = something else = 4 jokers
• When motion is detected, door opens showing “text me – 0176123456” message, lit up
• For instance -When SMS received each letter opens door for 1 second, then next letter
• For some letters, when door opens, something moves
• “O” spins
• “I” blinks
• “X” scissors closing & opening
• Keywords initiate some other behaviour
• Prompt for “haven’t got a phone?” – door opens on gun
• Some letters laser-cut
• Some letters 3D printed
• Typewriter type mechanism? Might be too slow …

#1 There’s no arm in ’em

• Multiple armed god(ess).
• Arms counterbalanced to make easier to move.
• Not Indian-looking, goddess-looking. Modern technical goddess
• Rotating, hypnotic spiral eyes.
• Arms move to show changing postcards/smartphones.
• Buy old smartphones / iPod Touch as displays?
• Games consoles are cheap e.g. EUR 60
• Maybe wrists twist 180° turn to reveal image.
• Reacts to approach
• Make body move like Paul Spooner’s Olympia?
• Send SMS, then text is displayed one letter at a time

#2 The Edward Snowden Academy of Observation

• 16 eyeballs open when you stand in front of unit
• They track your movement left to right
• They close when you go away
• They blink every few seconds when open
• Row of green plants in front

#3 Dental Clock

• Two rows of teeth
• Each tooth moves up & down separately
• Eyes & ears could wiggle too
• Eyes could show the time?
• Fan to blow hair up
• Eyes like a cash register
• Mechanism like slide projector for eyes

Things could happen

• every second – tick
• each minute
• every 15 minutes
• each full hour

At the jaws of Hell?

Being dragged into the jaws of hell

€5 solenoid
12V solenoid
€9.90 small servo
Cheap linear actuator

#4 Who’s there?

• Box with lid.
• Only opens when there is a noise e.g. Knock, knock,
• Opens just a crack at first and then fully e.g. if you sing.
• Snaps shut if you get too close … Starts to shake?
• On wheels so that shaking is more visible?

Nervous box

#5 Mirror mirror on the wall

• Eyes pop up to look at you
• Sensor locates you and moves eyes
• Something lights up behind the mirror
• 1-way mirror film

#6 Physical Space Invaders

On-line example

Light Relief

• Hanging from light
• Swinging corkman
• Upside down automata
• React to approach
• Swivel spotlight
• Make 3
• Pan/tilt