Start Animating..

I start worked out on my interface animation even though the programming part for my project is still floating at somewhere.*=_____=!!!* I was masking out all the graphic one by one using Adobe flash. At the same time, I continue research for the scripting and hope I will get it before new year. So that, I could proceed to the next stage.

Interface Refine...

After the tutorial session, lecturer suggested me try to explore on different style and colour for my interface. So, after several time of testing *@___@...eye blurring after keep on try out on different colour and style*Finally....Here it goes..My final interface:

Before

Final Interface

Research again & again...

Throughout the research, I found a project that have similar execution way as mine which is "The Bird Table" by Norman Lau. The information is very useful to me where it has clearly stated out the way of construction for mechanism, programming and execution method. However, in this reference, he is using reacTIVision as a cross platform. 


reacTIVision
It is an open source, cross-platform computer vision framework for the fast and robust tracking of fiducial markers attached onto physical objects, as well as for multi-touch finger tracking. It was mainly designed as a toolkit for the rapid development of table-based tangible user interfaces (TUI) and multi-touch interactive surfaces.


"The Bird Table"
http://www.normanlaudesign.com/projects/software/birdtable_book.pdf
The idea of the Bird Table is a simple, playful app that let’s multiple people
interact with a visualization of birds. Utilizing the object recognition capabilities of a multi-touch table, users can manipulate properties like color,
scale, and number of birds.

Meeting Jazmi...

I was meeting Jazmi this afternoon for further understanding on the interactive tangible interface. Eva and Evie were joining the testing session as well. We helped Jazmi set up the mechanism using the recycle material that leftover by the student after their project presentation (e.g. a wooden cabinet). At first, we encounter a problem which is the projector could not perfectly projected the screen onto the glass because of the limited space in the wooden cabinet. We were then tried to change to position of the projector and at last we get to solve the problem. After that, we set up the PS3 eye and we found out that it can only captured the images on small surface. Therefore, Jazmi connected two cameras together to captured the whole screen. It seems successful but it is quite hard to perfectly merge the images that being captured by the two cameras together. However, we still continued test out on the fiducial tracking by using CCV as the cross platform. The tracking was unstable. Jazmi told us that it might be cause by the lighting and also the camera itself. 

Test Out video clip-Set Up

http://youtu.be/hTFDbuG7i7A

Test Out video clip- fiducial tracking

http://youtu.be/HrX3GF57DuU

Scripting!!!

Scripting is one of the more trigger and difficult part for me because I'm not really good in programming. However, after some researches, I found out that the software needed in creating this project is:


Adobe Flash (scripting)


Community Core Vision (CCV)
http://ccv.nuigroup.com/
An open source/cross-platform solution for computer vision and machine sensing. it takes an video input stream and outputs tracking data and events that are used in building multi-touch applications. It is use for finger, fiducial and object tracking for interactive works like multi-touch and tangible interface. CCV can interface with various web cameras and video devices as well as connect to TUIO/OSC?XML.


TUIO
http://www.tuio.org/
It is an open framework that defines a common protocol and API for tangible multitouch surfaces. The TUIO protocol allows the transmission of an abstract description of interactive surfaces, including touch events and tangible object states. This protocol encodes control data from a tracker application (e.g. based on computer vision) and sends it to any client application that is capable of decoding the protocol. 


Flosc
http://benchun.net/flosc/
A standalone application written in Java that sends and receives OSC packets via UDP, translates bidirectionally between binary OSC packets and an XML encoding of OSC packets, and sends and receives XML entities via TCP in a way that’s compatible with Flash’s XMLSocket feature.


After knowing the possible working software for the project, it is time for flash actionscript 3 sources. OMG~~I get some resources from NuiGroup but it seem like i do not really understand the whole structure of the script. I think I should meet up Yi Wei or Jazmi for further understanding towards the scripting.(* luckily we been touched CCV the semester before, so I think I still remember how it work^^)

"Mr. Tablet on duty"

Been disappear for some time..OMG...Time to update...What I've done during those times?I start digitalize my interface. I have try out different art style and colour for my interface. Choosing colour and art style for my interface really take quite some time. Below is my test out for the interface:

Interface test out 1 

Interface test out 2

Interface test out 3

Interface test out 4

Interface Test out 5

Interface test out 5

and......My little man...

"Mr. Pencil & Mrs. Paper on duty"

Time to start sketching...Interface...Mechanism planning..interaction planning..Art direction..

Rough Mechanism Planning

Interface Sketch 1

Interface Sketch 2 (Idle mode)

Interface Sketch 3

Interface Sketch 4

Come Across...

Before confirming on the final idea, I had actually come across with different aims and ideas concerning EMR issue. However, after further research, I found that there are two bipolar views regarding the possibility of EMR causing cancers, tumor and other disease. Because of this, I had reviewed my projects. I decided to shift my project direction into creating awareness regarding EMR instead of telling the users the impact and consequences of EMR on our bodies. On the previous ideas, the main focus is to telling public how EMR harm our bodies and the consequences of EMR in distort the balance of body's electromagnetic field. However the aims now is to raise up public awareness and concern toward this issue where it seem wasn't be concerned in Malaysia yet.

"Trap"

Our life is an energy phenomenon. Everything surround us in this universe involves an energy exchange and transformation including our daily life. The electromagnetic spectrum is one of the widest spectrum of energies that affecting our daily life. Majority of the gadget surrounding us emanate some form of electromagnetic field and radiation which is EMW or EMR. There are categorized into natural and man-made EMR. The natural sources seem to be harmless and even good for the body. However, the man-made EMR is potential invisible threat to our health especially as more and more modern electrical gadgets enter our lives. Public know about the existed of EMR, yet the invisible impact of the electromagnetic radiation seem ineffectively alert public awareness and concern toward the issue. Prolonged and repeated exposure to destructive EMR will cause measurable stress response and negative shifts in the body’s key energetic system that will triggers a series of troubling biochemical responses. Thus it will affect the physiology of body and distorting the balance of the body’s electromagnetic field as well as it communication system.

With the advance of the technologies today, our everyday appliances emit electromagnetic radiation. With the intention to enhancing the conveniently and living standard, we are highly rely on those electronic appliances. Therefore, it is impossible to ask the world to unplug and dismantle all the appliances. However, we have the choice to reduce the risk and limit your exposure from electromagnetic radiation field (EMR) through the understanding on elements that affect the radiation consequence. Hence, the emphasis of this project is to alert public awareness and concern toward electromagnetic radiation.

Project Statement

Genre: Awareness Campaign

Format: Interactive Installation

The objective of this project is to alert public awareness and concern toward the issue of electromagnetic radiation. Meanwhile, it is also to let public understand that we can limit the exposure to the radiation through the understanding on the elements that affect the radiation consequence. The world is surrounding with the appliances that emit electromagnetic radiation and peoples today are highly relying on those technologies electronic. It is impossible to request the world to unplug all the electronic, yet we can protect ourselves by reducing the expose from EMR. Public know the existent of electromagnetic radiation but it invisible characteristic causing public hardly to visualize it. Therefore, caution and action do not take to protect themselves from electromagnetic radiation. So, I hope to create awareness and indicate the information of electromagnetic radiation to public through the interaction with the installation. I believe that throughout the implementation of interaction in presenting the information to the public may enhance user experiences and understanding toward the issue.

Project Execution Detail

It will be an interactive installation where a tangible interface will be setting up to enable users to interact with it in order to understand the electromagnetic radiation information throughout self-exploration with the installation. The electromagnetic radiation will be presented through creative visual where the interface will be showing a man being trap and tie up in EMR kingdom as it is being inspired by the story of “Gulliver Travel”. The whole picture is to reflect the situation of man in the real world with advance technologies as we are all being trap in the world that surrounded by EMR. Apart from that, it is also mean to replicate the sense of lament to the users.

The installation will be a tangible interface where there are different types of our everyday appliances model being place on the interface. Users will use those representation objects to interact with the interface. The response result on the interface will be affected by different element like type of interact object (different appliances with different EMR frequency), position of the object and time measurement. The design of the interface will be showing a man being tie up on the land where he was surrounding by building, tower and other facilities. The design approaches and quantity of the rope the being tie up on the man will be determine by the action that being interact. Each of the rope will be the representation of EMR accordingly to it frequency and effect.  

The user experiences (UX) of this awareness installation is to implying people that even though we couldn’t unplug the world and living in the zero EMR environment yet public still have their own decision on the way of life they want. The metaphor of this installation is letting users to choose the living life style they want through the exploration on EMR issue. Eithers reduce your exposure from EMR or trapping yourself into the world of electromagnetic in order to fulfil the enjoyment of your living. The decision is always on your hand. “Your choice. Your world.”  

Engine Restarted..."F.Y.P"

"Begin & Last"

This will be the begin of my final year project and also will be one of the last project for my academy life. What is my idea?? Actually the idea and progression should be bringing forward from last semester to this semester. However, I'm not really satisfied with the previous idea. Apart from that, after received the feedback from lecturer, I decided to restructure and rethink my idea, concept so as the execution way.( actually I'm not confident in create a commercial video as proposed in last semester.So...I decided to rethink again) My topic will still remain the same but now I will focus on create the awareness of Electromagnetic Radiation Field instead of promoting Scalar Energy. I have come across many ideas yet it is still too surface. *Banned*...After several time of meeting with lecturer ,finally... idea was "LOCK". Time to start planning. The issue that troublesome me is the way of execution of my awareness campaign but luckily after discussion with my lovely classmate, I have an idea on how to execute it. Unbelievable, I'm going to create a tangible interface for my awareness campaign.  *Gosh* TANGIBLE INTERFACE!! That's mean i need to build the tangible tabletop by myself and the programming part. Bless me...I really hope that I can achieve it. Time to challenge myself.