Team: Brenda Son, Clear Shen, Joel Giambra Jr. Date: September 14, 2022
In our physical computing class, we were asked to create a homemade switch for an object and LEDs as our first assignment. Exciting stuff! To tackle our first “official” project of our fall semester, we dived right in.
The electric circuit is mostly straightforward: connect the switch, and the circuit is completed; disconnect the switch, and the circuit is incomplete. However, we wanted to be creative about using conductive materials as part of the circuit to add more possibilities of our design, rather than just using wires and batteries. We sat down and brainstormed our way through various different concepts.
From car accidents and buttons…
….to actual Nintendo Switches, and more!
We also took a stab at prototyping some of the interactions and concepts we sketched out as well!
Prototype 1: container & object
Prototype 2: Touching hands
Since we had to consider the different constraints we were under (e.g. time and resources), we decided to extend our concept of prototype 1, which was of a container and an object. Once we had the basic idea in mind, we sketched out a few more explorations and eventually chose to make an interactive LED puzzle box that features IXD (our program).
Sketches of the different iterations of our “container” concept
Final decision: an IXD-themed LED puzzle box!
For this LED box, each block (I, X, and D) is slotted into its individual letter module. When the user places it in the right spot, the LED underneath lights up!
After the idea was consolidated, we researched different types of material that would achieve our goal. Foam core had a nice thickness and was relatively easy to cut cleanly, which was perfect for building out our concept. Using adhesive materials, tinfoil, and wires, we set out to build our prototype.
