The Process

Artwork

The first step was creating the background and overlays. I didn't want a static background so I created a looping video in Adobe AfterEffects. Next, I created five screens that would give information on the five major game fish in lake erie. The only artwork I needed after that were 3D models of fish which I paid for and coverted to OBJ files for this project.

Hardware and Software

For this project I used arduinos along with processing to create this display. To make my project touch sensitive I used the adafruit touch sensor MPR121 to track which metal plates were being touched. I also used a potentiometer to track how much the handle was turned so that the user could rotate the fish models.

Creating the Control Panel

The control panel was created to be easily moveable. Cords, arduinos, the potentiometer, and the metal ribbons are all found inside. To get the metal plates to work I drilled a hole to allow the metal ribbon to come through. Each metal ribbon was attached to one of the touch sensors. The potentiometer was attached to the box on one side and the handle on the other. This allowed for the handle to move but still provided stability. This was then hooked up to the second arduino.

Creating the Display

The first step was getting the background to work. I used a processing video library and threw the video in the draw function. Then I coded my arduinos. The touch sensor needed an extra delay, and the potentiometer needed mapped from 1024 to 360. (I needed 360 because I was going to use this data to turn the fish)

Then, I took the output from the touch sensors and hooked up the overlays to each metal plate.

the most difficult part of this project was getting the 3D models to work. I used P3D to be able to import OBJ and their material files into each project. Then had the rotation set to the potentiometers output. However, I had to reset this rotation each draw so that it wouldn't spin continuously without the users control.

User Testing