Bedazzled Gremlin - Interactive Kinetic Sculpture
An experiment in creating dynamic, characterized, kinetically-activated fabric sculptures using microprocessors, pneumatics, and conductive fabric.
March - April 2021
Class: IDEATE: Kinetic Fabrics
Teammate: Yael Canaan
Skills Used: Python, Microprocessors (Adafruit Circuit Python), Fabric-Electronic Integration, MQTT Protocol
Two art devices that interact in a sort of ‘call and response’ where one signals to the other if there is a problem and the other device has the ability to execute the solution.
The Furrypine
Explores the telematic connection through two vastly different types of spaces, specifically between a private versus a public setting.
The narrative here is between these two creatures who seek to support each other in their vastly different environments. The gremlin lays open, with its treasures exposed as it sleeps, only alerting the Furrypine when loud sounds are detected so it can receive aid in return.
Project Narrative
The project came together as a Gremlin in a public space and a private space.
The Gremlin was constructed through a piece of muslin sewn together to establish several knife pleats. These pleats were strengthened by stitching the flapped edges
of them along with inserting a small weight inside each pleat. This was done to encourage a flat and closed state. Between the flat pleats is the precious treasure of the Gremlin.
The Furrypine consists of a small piece of furry fabric that is sewn to a piece of conductive fabric. Conductive threads extend from the conductive fabric and connect to the Bluefruit and peak out of the fur in order to create the touch sensor. The combination of the conductive and furry fabrics is then sewn onto the horns of a hobby servomotor.
Together, the two creatures communicate through sound and touch. When a loud noise is detected on the side of the Gremlin, the Furrypine begins to tremble and shake, asking for anyone nearby to help the Gremlin. Once the Furrypine is touched, the Gremlin will receive the signal to drop its pleats closed, protecting its treasure and ideally startling anyone nearby who might be interesting in stealing the gems.
Process Work
This project was developed through the use of iterative prototyping.
Overall Process
Over the course of several weeks, my partner and I made quite a few adjustments to the project, with many different attempts and iterations.
The Gremlin took several weeks of careful testing and small adjustments. The process slowly progressed from developing the pleats themselves to the mechanics of how they should move. Different attempts and small adjustments all came together in the end for a refined result.
Constructing the Furrypine was relatively straightforward. The main challenge came in refining the code so that it vibrates in response to a signal from the Gremlin and does not send too many signals to the Gremlin at once when it is touched.
Testing Sound-Responsive Servomotor
An important part of the design was making the hobby servomotor responsive to loud noises. In one of the early prototypes, my partner and I isolated this issue to get it to work.
Testing Furrypine Vibration
The Furrypine was made to be touch sensitive through the use of conductive thread. The conductive thread was sewn onto the Adafruit Bluefruit microprocessor and into the furry fabric of the Furrypine. The conductive thread was made extra long in order to make it more likely to be touched when petting the fur. This also had the added benefit of allowing the conductive thread to match the texture of the furry fabric which disguised it and helped to create a novel feeling every time the device reacted.
Testing Gremlin Motion
The motion of the Gremlin relied upon a syringe pushing or pulling the knife-pleated fabric structure in order to create the bedazzled vs. plain effect. In the video to the left, we tested a system of actuating the desired motion which was later activated by a servomotor in the final.
Reflection
If there was more time, we would have liked to take these devices and explore them in the public-private context that they were intended to be explored in. Additionally, it would have been helpful to work with these devices for a few days in this context. Interacting with these devices over a longer period of time, especially with the Gremlin transmitting sound data from a more public venue, will create a better understanding of how people would perceive and engage with these devices.
The construction of the Gremlin itself would also change slightly. My partner and I thought it could be interesting
to explore how the pleats would respond in a basket-like or cavernous shape, resembling more where we’d expect the Gremlin to live. Similarly with the Furrypine, we would have liked the ability for it to be entirely wireless, and for all the components to be entirely contained within the body, giving it more of a feeling of a small timid and curled up creature.