final project proposal

For my final project, I want to create something that intertwines my passion for fiber arts with my interest in interactivity and physical computing. Thinking about how the loom was the first “computer”, I also wanted to tie in a sort of physical programming aspect to the project. Therefore, I would like to create a woven piece that has lights and possible other aspects of physical computing tied to it. I would like to have the user actually “program” the lights with a punch card mechanism. The user would take a hole puncher (it is very lo-fi) and punch the cards for the lights they want to see lit up, and maybe even program the behavior of the light. The way this would occur is through a bunch of photocells covered by a box with openings aligned with the photocells. I may also add a piece in the back of the woven piece that would create movement through solenoids. It would be attached to the back and sort of press on the piece. This would be more automated and for a sort of moving visual effect. I imagine I will face some challenges, my primary concern right now being that the microcontroller will not have enough pins to both hold the photocells and to program the lights. My other challenge will be with general organization and presentation, and making sure all the parts work well with one another.

Here is a presentation I made with sketches, general ideas, inspiration, etc.