I recently shared my electronic, internet-connected, physical story book at Marlboro College. The video below tells the story of my process.
Special thanks go to Lucie deLaBruere, David Cole, Natalie Freed, Jie Qi, Silvia Libow Martinez, and Gary Stager for their inspiration and/ or encouragement.
Forgive me in advance if you are taken aback by my subject matter in this post, but sometimes art is the best way to wrangle with angst and uncertainty. In this case, making a presidential pop-up did the trick.
I created this beauty using the principles of Robert Sabuda's Frankenstein. I almost went so far as to make his comb-over pop-up as well, but diplomacy and my better angels won out.
And let's face it. The outcome could have been so much more disconcerting if I'd positioned the lights where his eyes are.
When a QR code in my book is scanned, this illuminated pop-up glows steadily while a LilyPad buzzer plays the tune "This Land is Your Land" (see video). While my subject matter may not be to everyone's liking, I take solace in the juxtaposition between a welcoming Woody Guthrie anthem (played on a tinny buzzer) and the image of a divisive wall.
My biggest take-away in constructing this pop-up was that paper circuitry may be used as more than just a tool of personal expression, but an instrument of political commentary. I found the experience cathartic.
From a technical perspective, conductive fabric works very well for pop-ups with folds that need to bend a lot.
I used conductive fabric tape in places where the copper needed to bend.
In the future, if I'm going to continue making illuminated pop-ups, I'll need to better design my books to accommodate the added bulk.
This is the back view of the pop-up, prior to being glued down
In my most recent experiment with paper circuit pop-ups, I scanned artwork from another page in my book and used it as a backdrop for a related image, a raised fist holding a pencil. The new piece packs far more punch than the original.
Chibitronics Circuit Stickers
I did a better job of concealing the copper leads this time.
I've been experimenting with creating light-up pop-ups, in a book controlled via a Photon microcontroller. I initially tried to light up both sides of the statue (and both sides of the book in her arms), but I ended up abandoning the idea after several failed attempts (and lots of short circuits). It had seemed easy in theory, but it was far more fiddly than I expected.
The copper tape, connected to the Photon, runs from the center of the book up the pop-up's arm.
Only one side of the statue lights up.
I used conductive fabric tape in the gutter.
In the end, I decided to illuminate one side the torch and a border around the pop-up. The torch flickers like a candle, while the border glows steadily.
I overlaid a fresh piece of paper with a cut-out for the pop-up.
I haven't decided whether I want to write on this or just leave it the way it is.
I recently completed my second internet connected book, embedded with a Photon microcontroller.
The conductive fabric on this iteration has a more uniform look, because I made an effort to cut all of the strips the same width.
Like the first model, I embedded a Particle Photon, LilyPad Simple Power, and an 850 mAh lithium polymer battery. Prior to binding the book, I tested each of the copper leads with a multimeter.
I used a paper circuit, clipped to the conductive fabric with an alligator clip, to test each connection.
One significant change that I made was using stranded wire instead of copper craft wire. I found that it was less prone to breakage, as well as being easier to twist and solder.
While I started out using the same code that I composed for my first book, I've tweaked it in a variety of ways, to achieve different effects and play different music.
Nine pages of this book are illustrated/ animated with the help of paper circuits, compared with only six in my previous model.
For those of you who may be wondering what type of music my internet connected story book plays, when the Particle function is triggered, I've uploaded a short demo video above.
I got a head start by looking at this "Music Time" tutorial that plays "Never Gonna Give You Up" by Rick Astley. Since I didn't want to rick roll people, I changed it.
In a future iteration, I'd like to figure out how to get the lights to flicker in sync with the music.
I am in the process of designing a wifi-connected book that will have a Particle Photon and a battery embedded into the back cover.
Today I went to St. Albans City School where my friend +Melissa Haberman, a tech savvy art educator, was kind enough to let me cut a book cover prototype on the Full Spectrum laser printer in the school's maker space.
While I ultimately hope to create a cover using cherry wood, I chose 1/4" medium density fiber board (MDF) for my first laser-cut prototype, thanks to the recommendation of the amazing +Leah Joly, Design Technology Instructor at Williston Central School. I'm hoping that this sturdy material will be easy to cover, using traditional bookbinding methods. Because my first attempt at creating a cover, thick enough to embed the Photon and battery, involved cutting through four layers of binder's board with a pen-knife, I am thrilled that the laser cutter worked so well.
Although this remains a work in progress, here is a link to the Inkscape design for my book's back cover: Book Cover SVG File. I'll be backing the covers with binder's board. Of note, the Full Spectrum has a 12" X 20" bed. I used a piece of 1/4" MDF, at 100% power and 50% speed, which took three passes to get through the material.
Over the past three months, I've been learning how to program the Particle Photon, with the goal of creating my own wifi-connected book (inspired by Natalie Freed and Jie Qi). So far, I've been documenting my learning on another blog, because most of my work up to this point hasn't been super artistic. Now that I've learned some of the basics of how the Internet of Things works, I'm pleased to report that I'm about to embark upon the next stage of my process-creating an actual book!
While I am still in the process of brainstorming some of the features that I'd like for my book to have, I'm excited that I've figured out a way to use data from a light sensor to trigger different animations on a paper circuit, through the Particle cloud. If you're interested in learning more about my process so far, feel free to visit my other blog, New Things I've Tried. My goal is to have a completed book by March 2017. I will be documenting my progress along the way.
Forgive me in advance if you are taken aback by my subject matter in this post, but sometimes art is the best way to wrangle with angst and uncertainty. In this case, making a presidential pop-up did the trick.
My biggest take-away in constructing this pop-up was that paper circuitry may be used as more than just a tool of personal expression, but an instrument of political commentary. I found the experience cathartic.
