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09

Audio-Visual Actuation: light and sound

LEDs

The most popular visual actuator is the Light

Emitting Diode(LED). These lights come in various
different forms. The image on the right shows single
color 8 mm LEDs. There are different sizes - 3mm,
5mm, 8mm and 10mm.

www.elechouse.com
8 mm single color LEDs

The LEDs are sometimes mounted on a board

and arranged into grids. The image on the right shows
a 32mm 8*8 square matrix. Such boards come in vari-
ous sized and the lights can be different colors.

www.elechouse.com

32mm 8*8 Square Matrix

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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

LEDs

Besides single color LEDs, most sources of-

fer RGB LEDs. These light bulbs have all three color
components (red, green, and blue) and are able to
produce any desired color. They are bigger in size.

www.detail.en.china.cn/
RGB LED

The image on the right shows IR (infrered) LED

transmitter and receiver. These two lights come in
pairs and can be used in many different conditions.
An example of their use is to detect motion. The trans-
mitter LED is constantly sending a signal to the re-
ceiver. Once the signal is interrupted ( by the presence
of something or somebody), the system detects the
change.

www.elechouse.com

IR transmitter + receiver
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

LEDs

LEDs can also be mounted on different sur-

faces. This particular image show a 10 segment bar
graph. It can be plugged into a breadboard and con-
nected to Arduino. The different bars light up when
electricity is sent to them.

www.sparkfun.com
LED bar graph

Dimension Engineering sinewinder lights are

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjvlZ9NcVcI
easy to plug into arduino and have an interesting ef-
fect. There are 12 LEDs that scan from one side to the
other and leave a slight trail behind.

www.robotshop.com
DE sinewinder lights
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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

Displays

The moving message display on the right has

seven segments each connected to a different LED
and lights up when electricity is sent to it. Such dis-
plays can be used for moving message boards, bank-
ing boards, score boards and any other display that
used the system for writing information. They come in
different colors and sizes.

www.elechouse.com
Moving Message Display

LCDs (liquid crystal displays) come in different

sizes and colors. The colors of the dispay background
and characters varies as well. There are dusplays with
different number of rows and characters.

www.elechouse.com

LCD 16*4 characters

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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

lasers + solar cells

Laser module emitters can be found in different

colors - RGB. They produce a intense and concen-
trated beam of light that can travel long distance.

www.elechouse.com
5mW Laser Module Emitter

Solar cells are becomming widely used to col-

lect solar power. They can either be used to collect
and store the power or to power devices as they col-
lect the sunlight. They come in diffent sizes depending
on the necessary power.

www.directindustry.com
Solar Cell
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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

light actuators

There are some devices that are able to detect

light and generate light. The image on the right com-
bines an RGB LED, light sensor, and a microcontroller
that can be used as ambient light detector and color
generator.

www.pololu.com
Parallax ColoPal

ShiftBrite is a high brightness LED light that has

all three color components and therefore can produce
any desired color. It can fit on a breadboard and can

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7aUaMiqoIE
be powered by 5.5 - 9 volt supply. SHiftBrite is usually
used for larger and brighter displays.

www.macetech.com

ShiftBrite
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

physical pixels + holograms

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZysu9QcceM
An interesting approach to visual actuation is
the use of physical objects to create images. The in-
stallation shown on the right is Daniel Rozin’s Weave

http://www.smoothware.com/danny/
Mirror. It uses C-shaped strips with a grey gradient.
The strips are controlled by a motor and react to a
camera to rotate to the necessary gradient in order to
recreate an image.

Daniel Rozin - Weave Mirror

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/7a9DWV1JTuFjp6NnDUiJOA
This installation of the flag uses different panels
to create a hologram. Depending on what side of the
installtion a person is standing, the image changes.
The panels also rotate in order to reveal several im-
ages.

Flag Hologram, Ellis Island

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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

projectors

In order to play images or videos, the market

offesrs a large variety of projectors. The image on the
right shows the Pico projector which is a small size
projector that can be connected to various devices in
order to project and image. The Pico is usually used to
project on surfaces that are very close to the projector
itself.

www.diytrade.com
Pico Projector

The image on the right shows a SONY projec-

tor that is highly used in institutions and businesses
for presentations and instalations. Projectors similar to
this can be found at many online sources and stores.

Projector
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

projections

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7Oz-cOKQzI
The image on the right is captured from a video
that shows an example of projecting on a moving sur-
face. With the help of tracking the moving object and
mapping the desired image on it, the projection follows
the object. This method is used in many installations
and interactive exhibitions.

moving surface projection

Interactive installations allow for many different

effects. In this particular image, the person is inter-
acting with the screen projection. The system detects
the presence and particular movements of the person
and replicates them on the screen adding different ef-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc2sSWdo25I
fects.

ice + water effects on screen

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5dDAn6pWyA&p=81B7DF0555955
Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

projections

Projections can be very interesting when the

environment is creative. In this case, the video is be-
ing projected on fog/smoke and the interaction with
the viewer is quite different. The image seems three-
dimensional and yet transparent since the surface is

B2E&playnext=1&index=15
actually fog.

fog projection

Another interesting approach to projections is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl-DkF2AjOA&feature=related
showing a three-dimensional movie on a two-dimen-
sional surface. The video on the right shows how a
wall can be transformed into a moving matrix of boxes.
The surface is actually becomming a three-dimension-
al object.

3D projection on 2D
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

projections

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCZUyY305Oo
Images and videos can also be projected on a
three-dimensional object. This example shows a cube
that takes information from three different projectors to
create this effect. The images can be used to create
various effects.

projecting on 3D object

Multi-screen displays are usually used in large

events and exhibitions. Many concerts and games use
this technique in order to enlarge the desired image.
The displays work by separating the image into differ-
ent parts and sending each part to a different display.

multi-screen projection
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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

projections

Backlit projections can be used in interactive

installations when the interaction happens in front of
the screen. This technology allows for avoiding inter-
ruptions caused by shadows. There are screens and
projector displays that can be used.

backlit display projection

Transparent dispays are also available for pro-

jections. They are mostly used for movie effects, store-
fornts, and many high-traffic areas as dispay boards.
The image is projected from the back or front or side.

transparent display projection

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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

UDP

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_Datagram_Protocol
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ox8D2YBRIrQ
User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is one of the
main protocols in the Internet Protocol Suite, a set of
network protocols for the internet. UDP is used to send
messages, or datagrams, to other hosts without prior
set up of transmission channels or datya paths.
It is a simple transmission model and useful for
sending information fast and easy. However, it is not
a reliable service and datagrams may “arrive out of
order, apprear duplicated or go missing without a no-
tice.”
It provides for a conectionless transmission of
data and many users prefer it over TCP - Transmis- Sending information
sion Control Protocol, which is designed to secure the
sending and receiving data in the exact desired man-
ner.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Computer_Networks/UDP
UDP header structure
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http://tywkiwdbi.blogspot.com/2009/03/semi-transparent-concrete.html
Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

light conductivity

The image on the right shows semi-transparent

concrete. It is construction-grade concrete with optical
fibers embedded in it. The can fibers transmit light for
up to 50 feet, but do not take much of the space so the
structural integrity of the material is kept.

Semi-transparent Concrete

Optical fibers have been used in many light in-

stallations, lamps etc. They work by trapping the light
within and letting it out when there is a cut. The image
if the plexi-glass shown on the right uses the same
principle. The letters are engraved into the plaxi and
an LED sends light through it. The letters glow be-
cause they are cuts (interruption) on the material.

Fibers + LED lit Plexi

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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

natural light

There are several important principles that de-

scribe the nature of light and how it travels. The first
image explains the light reflection when light hits a
reflective surface, in this case a mirror. The impor-
tant note to remember is that, the angle of incidence
equals the angle of reflection. This is important when
dealing with collection and distribution of light.

Light reflection

This mage shows the polarization of light. Light

coming from the sun has waves that oscillate in planes

Relevant youtube video webaddress

in all different directions. If we have a screen that has

Relevant website of the provider

slits in only one direction, light waves oscillating only
in that plane are able to pass through.Threfore, we are
able to use polarizers to manipulate light.

Light polarization
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http://www.passmyexams.co.uk/GCSE/physics/concave_&_convex.
Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

light lenses

Convex lenses are thicker at the middle. Rays

of light that pass through the lens are brought closer
together (they converge). A convex lens is a converg-
ing lens. When parallel rays of light pass through a
convex lens the refracted rays converge at one point
called the principal focus. The distance between the
principal focus and the centre of the lens is called the
focal length.

html
Convex lens

http://www.passmyexams.co.uk/GCSE/physics/concave_&_convex.
Convex lenses are thinner at the middle. Rays
of light that pass through the lens are spread out (they
diverge). A convex lens is a diverging lens. When par-
allel rays of light pass through a concave lens the re-
fracted rays diverge so that they appear to come from
one point called the principal focus. The distance be-
tween the principal focus and the centre of the lens is
called the focal length.

html

Concave lens
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/lightandcolor/filtersintro.html
filters + heliostats

Light filters can be used for different light ef-

fects. They consist of a thin film that is able to trap
some light and reflect other so that desired colors and
effects are perceived. Filters can be placed on cam-
eras, projectors, etc.

Light filters

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xDSueV45pg
Solar tracking is becomming more and more
used for solar power. The image on the right shows a
device that follows the sun and collects the solar ener-
gy. A system like this can be connected to arduino and
works with a simple program. It takes the light intensity
read from three photocells and a motor responds to
the readings.

Solar tracking heliostat

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Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_
speakers

The image on the right shows a 12mm buzzer

that can be used to generate tones when attached to
arduino. It can be create simple music or user inter-
faces.

id=7950
Buzzer

http://www.lizarum.com/assignments/physical_computing/2009/piezo.
The piezo is an electronic device that can de-
tect and generate sound. It uses two metal plates that
vibrate when electricity is sent to them. The device
can be seen as shown at right or in a small black cov-
er. When connected to arduino, it can make simple
melodies.

html

Piezo speaker
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Audio - Visual Actution: light and sound

http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_
audio modules

The image on the right is a SOMO-14D audio

module. It is a “tiny audio module that can play back
stored audio files from a micro-SD memory card. The
module supports 4-bit ADPCM audio files (.ad4) with
sample rates from 6kHz up to 36kHz. The compact
14-pin module takes up very minimal board space and
is ideal for any application that requires embedded au-
dio.”
There are several different types of audio mod-
ules that can be found on the market. Depending on

id=9534
what the device needs to do, there are different op-
tions. Audio module

http://www.elechouse.com/elechouse/index.php?main_page=product_
This audio device a little different from the on
eabove. It has built-in flash which has several advan-
tages: mechanical contact can be avoided, no loosen-
ing problem as with SD cards, no compatability issues.
It is suitable for applications with vibrations. It supports
mp3 format and has a high quality stereo output.

Audio module info&cPath=168_170&products_id=623

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ryID/38/List/0/Level/a/ProductID/482/Default.aspx?SortField=ProductN
Rhttp://www.parallax.com/Store/Accessories/Sound/tabid/164/Catego-
Audio - Visual Actuation: light and sound

audio devices

The image on the right shows SoundPAL which

is small device that can play canned and custom
sound sequences. It is completely self-contained and
icludes a microcontroller which creates sounds and a
small speaker to play them. It is very easy to connect
and the programs which it needs are very simple.

ame%2CProductName
SoundPAL

A sound actuator that is more known in every-

day life is the speaker. There are speakers in all differ-
ent shapes, colors, sizes and they can be connected
to an interactive system in order to amplify the sound
effect.

Speakers