GMU:The Conceptual Sensor/Vanessa Yepes

Assignments/Projects for GMU:The Conceptual Sensor - Winter Semester 2015.

By Vanessa Yepes Serna

FINAL PROJECT: ELECTRIC MIMOSA

I. Circuit Overview

Inspired by the smooth-organic movement of the Sleepy Plant (Mimosa pudica) this circuit wants to experiment with different methods of locomotion, testing the possibilities of the nickel - titanium wire alloy.

Mimosa movement

a. Circuit Diagram with Photocell

II. Circuit construction

Materials:

Flexinol (nickel - titanium wire alloy)

555 timer

Potentiometer 100k

Capacitor 0.1 mf

Potentiometer 100k

Photocell

Transistor TIP 120

Diode 1n404

Relay

LED

Resistor 1k Ohm

2 Batteries 9 volt.

Testing the wire video

See the embedded video below:

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If you can not see the video, please go to this link:

Testing shapes

Circuit 1 (movement detection with photocell)

Video Circuit 1 (movement detection with photocell)

Link

Plant and leafs construction

Cutting paper leafs

Installing Flexinol and wire inside the leafs

Assembling wire and leaves

Soldering the wire between the leafs

Assembling fixed leafs

III. FINAL INSTALLATION

Assembled Garden

The magic Inside the box

IV. INSIDE OF THE ELECTRIC GARDEN

V. FUTURE IMPROVEMENTS

1. Incorporate an Infrared sender and receiver instead of a Photocell in order to improve the reaction to “touch”

2. At the moment, I’m experimenting with 3D printing and a possible electronic object with this technique. These are photos of this process so far

3D Model file for the printing

Opps! Problems with the object design...

ASSIGNMENT 2 : THE EXPERIMENTAL RESISTANCE

I. Description

All the objects around us have its own amount of electric conductivity, some of then let the electricity runs wild and other just make it slow. This exercise is an attempt to control the flow of electric current, and show in a tangible way the electric current activity.

Using colored water with a dilution of different conductive materials like salt, soap and vinegar, this circuit makes different noises when the resistance of the piece of paper decreases due the amount of conductive solution in it. The result is a visual color mixing game that plays various sounds according with the ingredient diluted in the colored solution.

I. Photos

a. Before the colored solution

a. After color mixing

2. Circuit Diagram and Sketches

ASSIGNMENT 1 : THE IMPROBABLE SWITCH

I. Description

This exercise experiments with the different ways to close a circuit, any material could be a switch with the right construction with more visually interesting results than the black boxes in our daily electronic objects. In this case, a candle is used to warm the air around a metallic spiral and produce movement. When the spiral moves, it opens and closes the circuit, touching aluminum leafs installed inside of the small greenhouse. When the switch is on the little flag in the motor moves and the lights turn on.