Follow the Leader - Animated Origami Birds

coca201 - final projects

More images from the coca201 exhibit.

 can you connect?

 

 Matt and Andrea celebrating their pussy willows 

 stone synthesizer...

 

 crazy silicon synthesizer by blake and nick

Animating Paper

Nitinol hounts me.

But after several burns, two minor fires, one exploded LED and a fried Arduino UNO I decided to abandon it for now. (Dont ask. I am clumsy some times...)

Instead I stumbled upon a simple but intreaguing origami folding pattern which enables motor actuated animation. I turned it into what will be our final project for coca201. The mechanics behind it, the coding, everything, is very, very simplistic. But its beautiful and I am happy about it. Take a look:



The interesting part of this is that you have paper animation as input and output.

More videoclips of the birds are here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yc6EwgwI9uw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW7r0lj5CL0

*

Now, I actually am really sad about letting the nitinol be. I guess I should just get myself some propper relays and do the math and do it the propper way... but maybe another time. Also, Cameron created a really nice Max Patcher for handling projection on a moving surface...

You can take a look at this - unfinished - project here:

Update on coca201 Project

Animated Paper

Exploring different techniques of animating paper as well as exploring animated paper as a medium. In particular the use of paper animation as an input device, as well as an output device and as projection surface.
 

Excursion 1: Hide your Fears (Earth?)
Projection on paper animated by Nitinol and activated by proximity. 
Animation functions as Output

Possible Schematic for the Nitinol circuitry

Schetch of Content

Excursion 2: Tell the Future (Fire, Water?)
Projection on a Future teller, animated by magnetic actuators triggered by proximity. The animated paper is used as projection surface and output.

 

One opening will display fire, another opening will display water.

Excursion 3:  Follow the Leader (Air?)
A "Flock" of Doves, which copy the movements of a "Leader" Dove.
Paper animation is both Input and Output. The Output Animation is servo actuated, the input animation is human actuated.

Bird flapping its Wings:



The Input is sensed by stretch sensors incorporated in the Origami. A possible circuit may look like this: