scholarly journals Beat Machine: Embracing the creative limitations and opportunities of low-cost computers

Leonardo ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Andrew R. Brown ◽  
John R. Ferguson
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Material Engagement

The Beat Machine is a hand-held music synthesizer and sequencer. We discuss the development of the Beat Machine and how creative constraints and opportunities were introduced by the particularities of low-cost microprocessors and associated electronics. The discussion is framed as an exemplar of Kåre Poulsgaard's concept of enactive individuation, a framework for relating material engagement to digital design and fabrication. In reflecting on the design and making of the Beat Machine we connect this framework with more established notions of creative interaction and the affordances of digital media.

scholarly journals Beat Machine: Embracing the Creative Limitations and Opportunities of Low-Cost Computers

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 8-13
Author(s):  
Andrew R. Brown ◽  
John R. Ferguson
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Material Engagement

The Beat Machine is a handheld music synthesizer and sequencer. The authors discuss the development of the Beat Machine and how creative constraints and opportunities were introduced by the particularities of low-cost microprocessors and associated electronics. The discussion is framed as an exemplar of Kåre Poulsgaard's concept of enactive individuation, a framework for relating material engagement to digital design and fabrication. In reflecting on the design and making of the Beat Machine the authors connect this framework with more established notions of creative interaction and the affordances of digital media.

scholarly journals Design of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Darrieus Type (H- Darrieus Rotor) of 0.20 KW from the Software Topsolid

2020 ◽  
pp. 52-70
Author(s):  
Hagninou E. V. Donnou ◽  
Drissa Boro ◽  
Donald Abode ◽  
Brunel Capo-Chichi ◽  
Aristide B. Akpo
Keyword(s):  
Wind Turbine ◽  
Permanent Magnets ◽  
Aerodynamic Force ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Coastal Region ◽  
Vertical Axis ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Geometrical Shape ◽  
Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

The design of a vertical axis wind turbine (Darrieus type) adapted to the site of Cotonou in the coastal region of Benin was investigated. The statistical study of winds based on the Weibull distribution was carried out on hourly wind data measured at 10 m above the ground by the Agency for the Safety of Air Navigation in Africa and Madagascar (ASECNA) over the period from January 1981 to December 2014. The geometrical and functional parameters of the wind turbine were determined from different models and aerodynamic approaches. The digital design and assembly of the wind turbine components were carried out using the TOPSOLID software. The designed wind turbine has a power of 200W. It is equipped with a synchronous generator with permanent magnets and has three wooden blades with NACA 0015 profile. The optimal coefficient of lift and drag were estimated respectively at 0.7832 and 0.01578. The blades are characterized by an optimum angle of attack estimated at 6.25° with a maximum fineness of 49.63. Their length is 4 m and the maximum thickness is estimated at 0.03 m with a chord of 0.20 m. The volume and mass are respectively equal to 0.024 m3 and 36 kg. The aerodynamic stall occurs at an attack angle of 14.25°. The aerodynamic force exerted on these blades is estimated to be 240 N. The aerodynamic stresses exerted on the rotor are estimated at 15 864 504 Pa and the solidity at 0.27. The efficiency of the wind turbine is 0.323. From TOPSOLID, the geometrical shape of each component of the wind turbine is represented in three dimensions. The assembly allowed to visualizing the wind turbine after export via its graphical interface. The quantity of annual energy produced by the wind turbine was estimated at 0.85 MWh. This study is the first to be carried out in the study area and could reduce the technological dependence of vertical axis wind turbines and their import for low cost energy production.

Using existing site surveillance cameras to automatically measure the installation speed in prefabricated timber construction

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alireza Ahmadian Fard Fini ◽  
Mojtaba Maghrebi ◽  
Perry John Forsythe ◽  
Travis Steven Waller
Keyword(s):  
Time Window ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Transformation Method ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Spatial Transformation ◽  
Exact Matching ◽  
Productivity Measurement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Surveillance Camera ◽  
Automated Method

PurposeMeasuring onsite productivity has been a substance of debate in the construction industry, mainly due to concerns about accuracy, repeatability and unbiasedness. Such characteristics are central to demonstrate construction speed that can be achieved through adopting new prefabricated systems. Existing productivity measurement methods, however, cannot cost-effectively provide solid and replicable evidence of prefabrication benefits. This research proposes a low-cost automated method for measuring onsite installation productivity of prefabricated systems.Design/methodology/approachFirstly, the captured ultra-wide footages are undistorted by extracting the curvature contours and performing a developed meta-heuristic algorithm to straighten these contours. Then a preprocessing algorithm is developed that could automatically detect and remove the noises caused by vibrations and movements. Because this study aims to accurately measure the productivity the noise free images are double checked in a specific time window to make sure that even a tiny error, which have not been detected in the previous steps, will not been amplified through the process. In the next step, the existing side view provided by the camera is converted to a top view by using a spatial transformation method. Finally, the processed images are compared with the site drawings in order to detect the construction process over time and report the measured productivity.FindingsThe developed algorithms perform nearly real-time productivity computations through exact matching of actual installation process and digital design layout. The accuracy and noninterpretive use of the proposed method is demonstrated in construction of a multistorey cross-laminated timber building.Originality/valueThis study uses footages of an already installed surveillance camera where the camera's features are unknown and then image processing algorithms are deployed to retrieve accurate installation quantities and cycle times. The algorithms are almost generalized and versatile to be adjusted to measure installation productivity of other prefabricated building systems.

Looks count: Computing and constructing visually expressive mass customized housing

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Knight ◽  
Lawrence Sass
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Digital Fabrication ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Numerical Control ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Assembly Systems ◽  
Shape Grammars ◽  
Pilot Studies ◽  
Assembly Design

AbstractThis paper introduces new research that seeks to develop low-cost, high quality, mass customizable building assembly systems that provide visually rich design variations for housing or other small structures. The building systems are intended to be tailored for particular cultures and communities by incorporating vernacular decorative design into the assembly design. Two complementary research areas are brought together in this work: shape grammars and digital fabrication. The visual, aesthetic aspects of the research are explored through shape grammars. The physical design and manufacturing aspects are explored through advanced digital design and fabrication technologies, and in particular, build on recent work on monomaterial assemblies with interlocking components that can be fabricated with computer numerical control machines and assembled easily by hand. The long-term objective of this research is the development of formal, visual–physical grammars with rules that generate complete computer-assisted design/computer-assisted manufacturing data for fabrication of full-scale components for assembly design variations. This paper reports on the first phase of this research: pilot studies for prototype assembly systems that incorporate vernacular languages from different parts of the world. The results of these studies are very promising, and demonstrate a spectrum of strategies for embedding visual properties in structural systems. Important next steps in this research are outlined. If successful, this work will lead to new solutions for low-cost, easily manufactured housing, which is especially critical in developing countries and for postdisaster environments. These new housing solutions will not only provide shelter but also support important cultural values through the integration of familiar visual design features. Beyond the specific context of housing and building assemblies, the research has the potential to impact the design and manufacture of designed artifacts on many scales and in many domains, especially in domains where visual aesthetics need to be considered jointly with physical, structural, or material requirements, and where design customization and variation is important.

Iraqi media entrepreneurs across social media: Factors and challenges

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmed Omar Bali ◽  
Sherko Jabar ◽  
Hazhar Jalal ◽  
Mahdi Sofi-Karim
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
New Media ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
International Media ◽  
New Era ◽  
The Media ◽  
Media Firms ◽  
Media Market

Influenced by digital technologies, the cost of media production has considerably decreased, and the traditional media is faced with new agile, flexible and low-cost media entrepreneurs. This article examines the dynamics of the Iraqi media market transformation with an emphasis on factors that help to merge media entrepreneurs and digital media firms that target an audience on social media. A qualitative method was adopted in this study using open, in-depth interviews with nineteen media entrepreneurs and three managers of media firms. The study revealed that relative freedom and advanced communication technologies have encouraged media entrepreneurs to drive the new media on producing short videos and broadcast them on social media, which has become popular among media consumers. This new era in Iraqi media entrepreneurship has created an abstract space in which media entrepreneurs get involved in the media market, collaborate with international media and deliver values through the use of user-generated content and flexible journalism. This opportunity is shaped by three key interrelated factors: first, the relative freedom of journalism that resulted from the political environment, current regulations and advanced communication technologies that provide more space of freedom; second, the development of communication technologies that allow journalists and media entrepreneurs to employ the media market effectively; third, the emergence of media entrepreneurs themselves who are convinced to seize the opportunities presented by the two previous factors.

scholarly journals Research on the Integration of Media Literacy Innovative Concept and Entrepreneurship Education and Digital Dynamic Creative Expression Talents

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Zhang ◽  
Mingming Zhang ◽  
Yaqian Liu ◽  
Ruimin Lyu ◽  
Rongrong Cui
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Media Literacy ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Dynamic Performance ◽  
Entrepreneurship Education ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Dynamic Expression ◽  
Specific Implementation ◽  
Innovative Concept

The rapid development of digital technology has created a variety of forms of digital media. In these emerging media, with the support of high-performance computers, increasingly dynamic performance has become possible, and the public has cultivated a preference for dynamic content cognition. This study, based on the basic characteristics of visual perception to the cognition of motion form, aims to cultivate the cognitive literacy of pan-digital media with innovative concepts and entrepreneurship education and to explore the cognition and innovative expression methods of dynamic language in digital design. The research leads the static oriented morphological exploration and expression to the dynamic expression and thinking of the same concept object. The basic thinking steps for students from “static” to “dynamic” are established, and students are encouraged to use “Synesthesia,” “metaphor” and other methods to carry out a “dynamic expression” level of emotional association. In the experiment, two different ways of design expression, static and dynamic, are required to design and evolve graphics. In this study, 50 freshmen were selected as the training objects for the planning and training of design thinking and performance means. In the visual elaboration and expression of the inner emotion of the same content with innovative concept and entrepreneurship education, not only should the changes and combinations of the graphics be innovated, but the emotional characteristics of the more abstract graphics should be explored as well. The feedback data of students’ thinking and cognition differences in the two stages of expression were obtained through a questionnaire and analyzed and compared. The experimental results show that after the training, students’ ability to develop innovative concepts and entrepreneurship education through dynamic expression, consciousness and perception were significantly improved. This research also provides a new vision and specific implementation method for the future training of digital dynamic innovation expression ability and the cultivation of innovative concepts of digital media literacy and entrepreneurship education.

scholarly journals Leveling Up: Connected Mentor Learning in a Digital Media Production After-School Space

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-54
Author(s):  
Nathan C. Phillips ◽  
Virginia Killian Lund
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Youth Development ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
After School ◽  
Public High School ◽  
Development Professionals ◽  
Learning Labs ◽  
Video And Audio ◽  
Youth Development Professionals ◽  
Urban Public High School

This article introduces mirrored practice of leveling up as a model for educator learning grounded in connected learning and the connected mentor framework. Our purpose is to introduce this model and share examples of how it can be enacted. We argue that the model is a rich and successful way for youth development professionals to expand their capacities as educators and to support expansive possibilities for young people’s learning. The model supports all educators’ learning and growth, but it is particularly applicable to mentors working in interest-driven, informal learning environments like makerspaces and YOUmedia learning labs. The model is drawn from our analysis of 2 years of ethnographic observations in an after-school digital design studio housed in an urban public high school in Chicago. We describe mirrored practice as the mentors using the same principles and tools to learn that their students utilized. In the model, leveling up means that both students and mentors are supported in constantly moving towards progressively complex tasks, knowledge, and understanding. Methods of data collection include video- and audio-taped observations and interviews with digital media mentors.

scholarly journals The Impact of Digital Text

2020 ◽  
pp. 209-217
Author(s):  
Hye K. Pae
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Information Processing ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Significant Influence ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Visual Aids ◽  
Digital Text ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
The Impact

Abstract This chapter discusses reading on screen and in print, as the emergence of digital age has transformed our reading and attention. Digital reading reshapes the concept of reading with the use of various forms of social media that are full of acronyms and emoticons or emoji. Advantages and disadvantages of reading on screen and in print are reviewed. The effects of digitally-mediated text on information processing and reading comprehension are also discussed. Although reading online has merits, such as convenience, low cost, and easy accessibility, readers are likely to scan through an F-shaped gaze pattern. The use of digital media may have a significant influence on brain networks due to the brain’s adaptability and accommodating abilities. Digital text that includes more images and visual aids than hardcopy text may lead to more balanced brain functions. This may have implications for reduced script relativity in the future.

scholarly journals A low-cost mobile multidisciplinary measurement platform for monitoring geophysical parameters

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivier F. C. den Ouden ◽  
Jelle D. Assink ◽  
Cornelis D. Oudshoorn ◽  
Dominique Filippi ◽  
Läslo G. Evers
Keyword(s):  
Data Storage ◽  
Pressure Sensor ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Barometric Pressure ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Geophysical Data ◽  
Circuit Board ◽  
Joint Analysis ◽  
Mems Sensors

Abstract. Geophysical studies and real-time monitoring of natural hazards, such as volcanic eruptions or severe weather events, benefit from the joint analysis of multiple geophysical parameters. However, typical geophysical measurement platforms still provide logging solutions for a single parameter, due to different community standards and the higher cost rate per added sensor. In this work, the infrasound-logger is presented, which has been designed as a low-cost mobile multidisciplinary measurement platform for geophysical monitoring. The platform monitors in particular infrasound, but concurrently measures barometric pressure, accelerations, wind flow and uses the Global Positioning System (GPS) for positioning of the platform. Due to its digital design, the sensor platform can readily be integrated with existing geophysical data infrastructures and be embedded in the analysis of geophysical data. The small dimensions and lower cost price per unit allow for unconventional experimental designs, for example high density spatial sampling or deployment on moving measurement platforms. Moreover, such deployments can complement existing high-fidelity geophysical sensor networks. The platform is designed using digital Micro-electromechanical Systems (MEMS) sensors that are embedded on a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). The MEMS sensors on the PCB are: a GPS, a three-component accelerometer, a barometric pressure sensor, an anemometer and a differential pressure sensor. A programmable microcontroller unit controls the sampling frequency of the sensors, and the data storage. A waterproof casing is used to protect the mobile platform against the weather. The casing is created with a stereolithography (SLA) Formlabs 3D printer, using durable resin. Thanks to a low power consumption (9 Wh over 25 days), the system can be powered by a battery or solar panel. Besides the description of the platform design, we discuss the calibration and performance of the individual sensors.

scholarly journals Development of Low Cost Miniature USB Based Data Acquisition System for Biomedical Instrumentation

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Abdullah Al Amin ◽  
K Siddique E Rabbani
Keyword(s):  
Data Acquisition ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Medical Physics ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Sampling Rate ◽  
Data Acquisition System ◽  
Acquisition System ◽  
Biomedical Instrumentation ◽  
Bioelectric Signals ◽  
Very High

In biomedical instrumentation, computer based data acquisition system is required for recording of physiological parameters and bioelectric signals, which allows signal processing, display, analysis and storage in digital media. However, Most of the commercially available PC based Data Acquisition systems are of very high cost and requires specific commercial software, again at a very high cost. Moreover, if the data is not stored in raw binary or known format, it is not possible for the user to use the data in other system or software of their own choice. Therefore, a low cost, simple and open source PC based data acquisition system for biomedical application would be very useful for biomedical instrument developers and researchers in the low resource countries. In this work, we present such development of data acquisition system. The developed system utilizes an 8-bit ordinary low cost microcontroller and some electronic circuit component to develop the data acquisition system and implementation of USB 1.1 (Universal Serial Bus) interface to PC. The onboard 10-bit ADC of the microcontroller was used for analog data sampling. Two sampling and data transfer mode is implemented, (i) Continuous mode with low sampling rate (800 sample/sec) and practically real time plotting and (ii) Batch mode, with high sampling rate (76.9 k sample/sec) but with batch type plotting. To evaluate the system, PC side GUI (Graphical User Interface) software was also developed. The GUI of system shows that a test sinusoidal signal is reproduced very nicely without any amplitude and phase distortion within the frequency band of 1 to 10 KHz. The system is suitable for low frequency bioelectric signals like ECG, EEG etc. and as well as high frequency signal like EMG, NCV etc. The system is low cost, miniature, simple, and efficient and being used in several indigenously developed medical devices like ECG, EMG, NCV and FIM [Rabbani et al, 1999] at the authors’ department with excellent satisfactory results.Bangladesh Journal of Medical Physics Vol.10 No.1 2017 1-11

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