It's the Final Countdown

Still the same idea, but more simplified. A large interactive paper fan. 

You know, it's easy to let an idea fester in your mind when there is no tangible concept being created.  I've been hunting the eBay pages for good servos.  I found one that I wanted to try that looks promising.  I did some light math on the torque and found it could lift about 3-4 iphones at about my arms length.  I was just using my work test devices at the time.  So, I could work with that ballpark range and scale down the size if I need to or choose a lighter material.  If only this guy wasn't so snobby about the price.  I tried to offer a reasonable $30 because it is pretty used and the wire is a little exposed.  Yet, he only dropped it down to $45.  Granted the servo retails for $100 new.  Half the battle is getting a good price.  It's in my blood (thanks mom).  Anyway, while I go back and forth with this guy on eBay, back to my final project idea/design.

When I originally came up with this idea it was quite complex.  Multiple fans, lights, arrangements and even fiber optic cables.  You know, I don't even need the fiber optic cables anymore but now I have a spool hidden in the dark corners of my cramped locker.  Along with my prototype and paints.

After discussing my idea with plenty of students and staff I decided I wanted to do simple well.  One fan, my "biggest fan" I like to call it.  And I want the movements to be precise and articulate (hence hunting for a discounted higher-end servo).  Servo city still hasn't gotten back to me on my educational discount request but after seeing some servo mishap during the midterm I think a frame to take the load off the actual servo would be a worth while investment.

As for the size, of course I'd like it to be big and elegant to make an impact.  However, I'll only be able to test the real world capabilities once I get the servo driving it.  I might cave in the next week and buy one of the used ones for $45 dollars.  It's kind of essential to the mechanics of the whole thing.  Having the servo as my limiter will give me a design constraint which I think will help tame my appetite for a huge installation.

I want the final to be a truly finalized form of my concept.  While yes I would love to make a 50 foot fan do the same thing, if I can have a spot on representation of it in a scaled down form perform extremely well, I'd be happy.  I decided to toss out the idea of having too many things going on and the potential for it to look more like a prototype than a conceptual build.

I already have a little interface shell built on p5.  Now I have to also focus on that.  I've been using my ICM assignments to help me formulate an idea for that portion.

The last bit is the actual human interaction.  Which I've still to decide on.  But the way I look at it is.  If I can build both the digital side and the hardware side.  While I test it out in a real world scenario, I'll find the right input idea to really bring out what I feel.  I've already used various input devices for other projects, so all I gotta do is pick one that I like.

All in all, I'm confident, just a little tired and worn.  As we all are.