Visual Art and Obscure Technology

Impressive Machine Blog

mindlock — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 07:05:23 +0000

Check out my new blog at Impressive Machine.

Toccata and Fugue on Disk Drives

mindlock — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 01:16:51 +0000

New art related web site

mindlock — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 06:27:23 +0000

I created my new art web site.

Chaos oscillator

mindlock — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:10:21 +0000

I was getting fed up with the interface on wordpress so I downloaded the free blog writer from Windows Live.

I have been experimenting with the Chua circuit for generating chaos. Here’s my video of the circuit working with a light sensor:

Chua chaos circuit

Augmented Reality Treasure Hunt

mindlock — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:15:07 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXCp88wHvs4

This is my demo for our augmented reality engine. This is actually a year old now – the engine is improving all the time.

Swell idea

mindlock — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:09:29 +0000

http://spectrum.ieee.org/energy/renewables/this-renewable-energy-source-is-swell

This article describes a very nice way of generating electricity from ocean movements by using long range swells and converting the rise and fall into wind energy for a turbine which does not need to be submerged. I like it!

More augmented reality writeups

mindlock — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:59:56 +0000

I read often about augmented reality applications being developed. Some are available on the iPhone. It fires me up because I am working in this area, but I am focusing on actual computer vision for augmented reality. Most of the apps I have seen are only using GPS plus the compass to layer up some graphics on the camera view. What is needed is a lock with the real time image and that is the technology I have developed. Here is another article about AR on phones.

Beautiful ant robot

mindlock — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:44:13 +0000

I’m really very keen on this ant robot. The designer has got the movements really nicely coordinated. If only it were combined with sensing and able to sequence its movements appropriately with the environment. Am I the only person who does not consider something a robot unless the emphasis is put on sensing the environment and reflexive real time behaviors? Anything else is just remote control or automata.

Gravity bowl vehicle

mindlock — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:44:11 +0000

Here are some videos of the Gravity Bowl Burning Man art car project I was involved in a few years back. I designed most of the electronics. The project was to build a circular vehicle which could travel in any direction and had three computer-steered wheels.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc00w1ngB8k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpYfe1_gXgI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=no0wL72kBkk&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujVwJevVU_U&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zX3NtwW7U4Q&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhBPJoIUbGs&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns8boJLROUc&feature=related

The project was almost successful but we had a lot of mechanical breakdowns and dust fouling the control panel switch contacts etc.

Whats particularly funny is this video of the Gravity Bowl drive motor at an early stage

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF-kX3HiPGQ

generates tons of views on youtube. Everyone seems to think its some form of free energy anti-gravity motor, when its obviously a very short video of an electric motor driving a shaft.

Ultra-thin flexible speakers

mindlock — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:22:55 +0000

http://spectrum.ieee.org/consumer-electronics/audiovideo/flexible-paper-speakers-on-the-way