Website finished

My Website is Just finished. Have a peep and enjoy the Flash animations embedded into it. It can be viewed on the following link:  http://cambellp.richie.idc.ul.ie/

Interactive Table Development

Below shows the first tests that I done with the Touch Screen Table. I was using a short throw projector and the image was very sharp. This I felt worked very well. When the sides of the table are put into place this will mak the image more visible. 

Pure Data patch for Interactive Bin

Below was the final patch that was used in the Interactive Bin. This had all the sound files and when the pressure pads were activated, PD was triggered to play the selected files. This worked very effectively and we plan to develop this further. 

Sketchs for the design of Interactive table

Below are some of the initial sketchs that were created for the interactive touch screen table. The stainless steal frame was designed in such a way so that it would hold the Plexiglass, flush with the top.

The schematic for the interactive Bin

Below is the schematic for the interactive Bin that was designed. This was linked to a car battery, a computer and an arduino board. 

Week 16 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Presentation today for the Hunt Museum project

This video was part of our presentation today for the Hunt Museum. We developed a prototype that would project the miniature and invisible images in the museum onto the celling in the Captain's room. My self and Conor Liston developed this as part of a module on the Interactive media and design course at the university of Limerick.

My first prototype for my final year project

In this video I experiment with different materials to see how effective they are to make an interactive touch screen table. This prototype is part of my final year project doing a Masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Testing of Interactive table

This video is part of a series that I am posting to map the development and research of my final year prototype. This project is part of a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.  In this video I'm testing the Plexiglas and Short Throw projector for the Interactive Table.

Final year project prototype

This video is part of a series that I am posting to map the development and research of my final year prototype. This project is part of a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Evaluation of Interactive Frog Bin at the University of Limerick

This video is part of a series that I am posting to map the development and research of an interactive bin to promote the disposal of litter. This project is part of a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Pure Data Development

This video is part of a series that I am posting to map the development and research of an interactive bin to promote the disposal of litter. This project is part of a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

The final prototype development (Full Video)

This video is part of a series that I am posting to map the development and research of an interactive bin to promote the disposal of litter. This project is part of a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Week 15 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Further testing of bin

Further development of interactive bin. Implementing the electronics to function with all the components designed within the bin. Further testing is need to have this bin run successfully. But we are near there : ) 

Testing the Pressure Pads

This video shows the testing of a pressure pad and how simple it is to make it. This then was connected to the Arduino board to activate the on/off states and make the bin interactive.

Arduino development for prototype

This is a video showing the development of using Arduino combined with electronics for the interactive bin that our group was designing. Good fun :  )

Presentation day

Civil Liberties and computer monitoring

Pretzi presentation http://prezi.com/ycut3sei7a-7/computer-monitoring-and-civil-liberties-1/

The presentation went well today and we had lots of fun putting everything together.I have photos of the T-Shirts and I must up-load them. Below is my final though

For Aristotle and Socrates there is nothing more important than the task of cultivating and practicing excellence as a human being, meaning as a human being engaged with making ethical and political judgments and choices. In particular, if we subordinate our cultivation of excellence as ethical and political beings to any other activity e.g. the pursuit of wealth or power – we thereby putt our capacity for reason and ethical judgment at risk.

Socrates and Arastotle argue that if we allow our interests in wealth and power to persuade us to judge and act against our reason and better judgment, we therby harm these capacities (just as we would harm a race horse, to use Socrates’ analogy, by using it as a plow-horse instead.

They both believe that reaching your maximum potential and being happy is still possible with moderate amount of Power and wealth. But the contrast danger is to let out interests in wealth and power overshadow our pursuit of excellence as ethical and political beings – and thereby, to paraphrase Jesus for centries later, to gain the whole world but to lose our souls.

Is it really worth it???

Aristotle

Plato taught Aristotle and Socrates taught Plato  

Both argued that no one knowingly does evil, Socrates believed that if someone knows what the right thing to do is, then they are going to do it….If they don’t do it, The evil person then is simply ignorant or mistaken about what the right thing to do is.

………………........Me……………………….

Bad………………………………………Good

Good Plato said is a property that all good things have n common. He also believed this was eternal, what was then is the same for now, Then same for bad. Socrates believed that people always naturally want to do the good, but because of ignorance aim at the bad.

Case study 

Worst Cereal Killer, usually what they say is, what they were doing is something what they would interpret of being Good. Helping the person, freeing them, perhaps thinking that they were evil, perhaps they deserved to die,

Very rare that they say yes, it was a terrible action, but I did it anyway. I.e. they generally aimed at the bad, but usually people tell themselves a story and they are the good guys in the story,

They are simply ignorant about the real truth about the matter is in this case, and they have mistakenly identified something that is good which is not. simply got it backwards. They don’t properly identify with the thing which is Good.

………………………………………………………………………………………

Aristotle denies that this is true. He believes that there are case where people know what the right thing to do is, but simply don’t do it.

Case Study

Persons wallet, with 100Euro, persons name and address, but you choose to keep it… even a tax return, so you know they don’t have a lot of money. You say, ah gee, I know I have to give it back, but I don’t for what ever reason, you keep it for the new video game. I know the right thing to do is, but, hey, I not going to do it….

If there are case like this, then Socrates and Plato’s theory fail, they can’t be right…   

The lesson for Aristotle is, from these kinds of cases, person knows the right thing to do is, but fails to do it, well the lesson for Aristotle is, being a good person is, not about knowing something, but performing the right actions. 

More on Aristotle

Virtue ethics begins with the sensibility that we ought to do as human beings is, first of all, to become excellent human beings. Becoming excellent human being, more precisely, means to develop and fulfill our most important capacities as human beings.

If our goal as human beings is to achieve happiness, then it is equally important that we develop what Aristotle (and, subsequently, Kant) identified as practical reason. 

Such practical reason involves first of all our ability – given our best knowledge of reality and thus of our possible choices and actions – to make the sorts of analyses and ethical judgments required for us to do “The right thing” both for ourselves as individuals (the ethical Aristotle) and for our larger communities (for Aristotle, the political)

As we have seen, these sorts of ethical decision-making further require what Socrates and Aristotle term Phronesis, a practical judgment that is able to discern that right choice (or, some-times, choices) among the possibilities before us.

And learning from mistakes means, as Aristotle emphasized, that our developing these capacities of ethical judgment and analyse, and of reason more broadly, is an on-going task: just as the ethlet or physician must constantly practice if s/he is to maintain, much less improve, his or her abilities, so we as human beings must likewise cultivate in a conscious and on-going way our rational abilities, including our use of Phronesis.

Week 14 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

What is Aristotle's perspective

To analyse the video that shows how the benefits of computering monitoring can help defeat crime these are the points that Aristotle would look at,

Aristotle virtue ethics is interested in the question of how you become a good person.What would a good person be doing?Good actions.What’s a good action?Good actions are defined in terms of what a good person would do.Knowing what makes a person good and then seeing what kinds of actions the good or virtuous people perform.What are virtues? Virtues are character traits, like honesty, generosity, chastely, bravery, courage etc.A person is good when they have virtues.

……………………………………………………………………………………….

Nico ma che an Ethics asked about the ‘Good’ which was the aim of every action and about what could constitute a ‘final good’ Aristotelian view is that the highest good for man was eu daimonia, which latterly means having a good spirit, but could be translated as happiness.He saw it as a state in which a person was fulfilling his or her potential and natural function. It expressed a form of human excellence of virtue.This tied in with his general view that everything had a ‘final cause’: a goal and a purpose to which it moves. If you understand the final cause of something, you understand its fundamental essence, which finds expression in that goal.If a knife had a soul, Aristotle argued, that is what it is there to do. What then is the essence of human kind? What is it there to do? What is it’s goal?

Final bits of filming

Today we finished the last two movies. One shows how the support of GPS tracking, and how it can help rescue a person if in a kidnapped position, and finally the last movie shows a possible outcome for the future of computer monitoring. As soon as the movies are edited they will be up-loaded to you tube and I will post a link to them.

Further developments for ethics presentation

In this presentation for Monday as I mentioned yesterday, we are using four philosophers to analyse the four movies that we are shooting. The first movie is based on CCTV and the beneficial factors that it's presence has when present in an environment. The movie we shot was done in a local corner street shop.We got permission to shoot a 10min movie where a person enter the store and shops lifts a few items and makes a run for it. The second movie was about a person who is arrested before he boards a flight because of his internet activity. In both of these videos we explore the civil liberties concerned with computer monitoring in both of these cases. 

Today's filming fun

What a day I had, me, Pauline, Stephen and Daisy are in a group for Joe's Ethics class and we are doing a presentation next week on Civil Liberties and Computer Monitoring. So we are creating four videos were we all act in them and then for the presentation, we analyse them using the different theories we have been learning in class. I'm looking forward to putting the videos up on the blog. We had great fun shooting the scenes today, and a great deal of improvising through out them all, and we had a fantastic time. Making movies is a great way to portray a point and to use in a presentation, and tomorrow we have to shoot another two short movies for the final part. I pray that it will be like today lots of success and lots of fun. 

Building the prototype for Hunt Museum

Building the prototype from scratch. Starting with a sheet of wood and then with patients, slowly watch the beauty unfold as your prototype comes together.  

Week 13 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Final coat of Paint

The major thing me and Conor done today was give the frog bin and good coat of paint. It is looking so well, I'm actually surprised how well we have done. The hinge solution has been problematic, but finally it is solved. We will test the little bit of engineering that we done some day soon, and it will work a treat, please God. When I get a photo of the bin, I will post it. Just fantastic it is : ) 

Things we know...

Today I spent the most of the day re-shaping the code for the interactive bin. I have added two new button states to enable the bin and make it safer to use. This project itself could be fit for a final year project. Next week we have a presentation to finalize our essays to polish for submission, so I think we won't get prototyping next week, but could look towards doing this the following week, and we would be under less pressure. 

Just a though, this year has went so fast. We are almost finished. Classes are ending, and we enter into study week. The class battles on, completing work and meeting deadlines, what a bunch we are, Imedia 2012 has been an experience and I feel privileged to have shared my time, challenges and joys with this class. Just a little thank you as we slowly break up and head off to do our FYP's. All the best, good luck and thank you : ) 

Presentation today

Today I presented my presentation about my current research towards developing my FYP (final year project)

This thesis that I am writing explores the implementation of novel interactive technology to support the domain of art therapy and rehabilitation through Art. The focus of the research will centre on how art therapy and its augmentation through interactive technologies can support the therapeutic process in which a client goes through when creating art. The aim, using the findings from ethnographic research, is to explore how different client’s therapeutic process could be potentially exhibited within an exhibition with the support of interactive technology to enhance their overall welling being, and mental health.

The presentation went well and now I'm focusing on writing the first two chapters of my thesis, which is almost complete. 

Hunt Museum

This piece is part of an interactive project at the University of Limerick.

Prototype for Interactive table

This is a miniature version of how I will approach making an interactive table. Th aluminium L bracket will be used to mount the LED's and to support the acrylic.

Week 12 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

How taking art to the public eye can be healing

I came across an article on the British association of art therapist website and I found this to be very moving. The link to the article can been seen here, http://www.baat.org/edp_article.pdf#search="exhibition"

Jackie explained that one reason they decided to hold the exhibition in the Forum is that it is a very public place. People going about their day-to-day lives might suddenly come across the paintings in the same way that women simply going about their lives can be confronted by a diagnosis of cancer. “There is lots of colour. They  are not all full of doom and gloom. They look fantastic, really impressive,” said Jackie. “These women have agreed to put their images on display, anonymously, and show something very private to the world. It felt really unsatisfactory that it would just end without anyone really being aware of what had happened. The women wanted to tell people how much they had got from the group. We want to go out with a bang, not a whimper!”

The art therapy group ran for more than three years, funded through charitable donations for women with

breast and gynaecological cancers, and led by Jackie and fellow art therapist.

This really shows you the healing power that work done by artist and presented in an exhibition can have a huge impact and help to support the healing process. 

British association of Art therapists

The following link  http://www.baat.org/searchpublic/search.php?zoom_query=exhibition will re-direct you to a webpage which will list a series of PDFs and articles relating to the relevance of creating exhibitions from patients work and how this is an essential element for the path of recovery. It also includes the article I posted recently Val Huet's opinion on how relevant and important creating exhibitions from clients work.

Art therapy in Australia

I came across this link, it is part of Australia's response to helping those with mental health issues, using art therapy. One of the key strategies they use is promoting solo and group exhibitions. 

Government of Western Australia, Department of Health 

Art therapy for mental health recovery 

CECAT events and exhibitions

CECAT hosts several annual group and solo art exhibitions through out the year open to the general public:

• Annual Schizophrenia Awareness Week art exhibition in May
• Annual Mental Health Week art exhibition in October
• Annual Sale and art exhibition at the end of the year
• Solo artists and group exhibitions throughout the year

All exhibitions are open to the public for viewing, Monday to Friday, 9am to 3pm. Many works are for sale at very affordable prices. Call to view or otherwise drop by during these times to view an exhibition. Most exhibitions are open for 2-4 weeks.

Today, CECAT continues to serve both inpatients and community participants, utilising the open studio for arts exploration and self-development, art therapy, consultation to other services and art education classes, all aimed towards the therapeutic recovery and well-being of participating participants.

CECAT continues to support several annual events – Schizophrenia Awareness Week and Mental Health Week with exhibitions on site.  We also host many other exhibitions through out the year, both group and solo ones, showcasing participants art works. 

What Are The Benefits of Art Therapy?

The Scope of Art Therapy

Often art exhibitions showcase works that run quite deep within the psyche of the human creator. Art therapy uses this creative process to help give the individual relief from the emotional stress and conflicts. The influence of art has not been felt only in emotional healing but also in physical healing and fulfillment. Many hospitals have included art therapy as a means of alleviating the physical stress of the harsh symptoms and hastening the healing process.

Though not all are gifted with the skills to be a master painter or sculptor, everyone has the creative ability. This creative process can improve recovery and communication between the patient and therapist. All benefits of art therapy lie in this concept.

Read more at,  'What Are The Benefits of Art Therapy?'

The healing powers of art therapy A new exhibition showcases work created by clients during art therapy sessions.

The Telegraph article can be read from this link, The healing powers of art therapy. What is important to my research is the statement which Val Huct gave. Bellow I have copied the three paragraphs which again underpins the direction in which I am heading in my work.  

"It is accepted that taking part in art therapy is usually beneficial for the client, and showing these works to the public is certainly good for raising awareness and understanding. So perhaps the only remaining question is whether exhibiting these artworks is good for the clients.

All clients must give their consent before their work is shown, but it could be argued that the very knowledge that the work may be exhibited changes the creation of it. If the purpose of art therapy is the process of making, rather than showing the final piece, couldn't it be said that exhibitions like the The Healing Mind distort it?

Val Huet says she understands such concerns, but doesn't feel that exhibiting the work has an adverse affect on the clients, because they were only offered the opportunity to exhibit the work after it had been created. In fact, she says that showing the work is good for the clients: "It gives them a feeling of empowerment as they are being treated as artists doing something, rather than patients having something done to them.It is accepted that taking part in art therapy is usually beneficial for the client, and showing these works to the public is certainly good for raising awareness and understanding. So perhaps the only remaining question is whether exhibiting these artworks is good for the clients.

All clients must give their consent before their work is shown, but it could be argued that the very knowledge that the work may be exhibited changes the creation of it. If the purpose of art therapy is the process of making, rather than showing the final piece, couldn't it be said that exhibitions like the The Healing Mind distort it?

Val Huet says she understands such concerns, but doesn't feel that exhibiting the work has an adverse affect on the clients, because they were only offered the opportunity to exhibit the work after it had been created. In fact, she says that showing the work is good for the clients: "It gives them a feeling of empowerment as they are being treated as artists doing something, rather than patients having something done to them.

Week 11 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

CASE STUDY: The role of art therapy as a potential space for the processing of psychological and physical experience following stroke

The Art Therapy (aka Art Psychotherapy) Profession is State Registered by the Health Professions

Council.  

Art Therapy is a form of psychotherapy in which art and image-making play a central role within the

therapeutic relationship. In the three-way process between person, image and therapist the art media

acts as the primary form of communication; the person and the image-making process (rather than the

product) being most important.  ‘The overall aim of art therapy is to enable a client to change and grow

at a personal level through the use of art materials in a safe and facilitating environment’. (British

Association of Art Therapists)

For me, one of the key elements to come from this paper is what I have mentioned above. This idea that art therapy is a three-way  process between person, image and therapist. The art media acts as the primary form of communication; the person and the image-making process (rather than the product) being most important. In many ways this statement underpins my motivation to choose the line of study that I am doing. It has been evident overt the past weeks that in my weekly art meetings that each person communicates in their own way, and they do this through different tools and media, but most important, it's this process to them which is important and not the end result.

To read the full document you can excess the link here at, CASE STUDY:  The role of art therapy as a potential space for the processing of  psychological and physical experience following stroke

ePAD: Engaging Platform for Art Development

This paper discuss the benefits of using touchscreen interfaces to encourage older people in the art therapy process. Although my research is going beyond this, it is still interesting to understand the benefits of using touchscreen and there positive influence on a user. The full paper can be read hear at,  ePAD: Engaging Platform for Art Development

Another publication that I came across Design and Prototype of a Device to Engage Cognitively

Disabled Older Adults in Visual Artwork is also a good paper that explains the benefits of using touchscreen technology. 

Ezscreen Helps Art Therapy Miracle

Five-year-old Deontay Isaac of Philadelphia, a patient at Blair E. Batson Hospital for Children,
does not need words to tell her story. The artwork-lined walls of her hospital say it all.


The breakthrough came with the arrival of a printer and an Ezscreen® RxKiosk® “All-in-One” Touchscreen PC donated by the Katherine Townsend Terral-Jessica Shelby Ferris endowment. This fund supports early intervention and art therapy in Batson Hospital. The computer is operated by touching its screen, so it could be controlled with a mouthstick which meant that Deontay could run the computer independently.


For further reading click on this link, Ezscreen Touchscreen Systems

Art therapy research

Art Therapy: Using the Creative Process for Healing and Hope Among African American Older Adults

This article provides an introduction to the field of art therapy and the potential it can offer to address the emotional needs of the frail elderly. Two case studies are discussed, and examples of artwork are provided. The case studies and artwork were created under the guidance of an art therapist at a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) site in an urban African American community. This article explores how art making addresses the specific developmental tasks of the elderly in a culturally competent manner. Included are practical considerations in the choice of art media and directives for working with elderly clients, as well as resources for further information on the use of art in therapy.

Plastico, Westport, Co.Mayo

Based in Westport Co. Mayo, Ireland, We at Plastico pride ourselves in providing the highest quality range of plastics and customised fabricated products which create maximum impact at point of purchase or enhancement at point of display. Plastico's superior workmanship and ability to listen to and meet our customers needs has seen Plastico grow from strength to strength from its inception in 2005. Talk to us about your needs and we will guarantee to give you a product that both you and Plastico can be proud of.

The reason for choosing this company is that they were very helpful and professional with helping to solve my design problem. The company sent out samples in the post the first day that I contacted them and this really helped me to clarify what material I exactly needed. Another thing that I felt company excelled at compared to other companies was that the owner took time to explain the different methods for polishing edges and how other companies do a cheaper job but with less success to do do what I was looking for. In my design, one of the challenges is to maximize the light that bounces through the acrylic. One way to increase the sensibility of my prototype is to have the edges buffed to a polished edge so that I have the maximum amount of light being used from the IR LED's. I will take photos of the acrylic when it gets delivered. 

Week 10 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Hunt Museum proposal

Below are images that our group created to give to the curator and director of the hunt museum for our proposal. We have finalized the measurements and over the next week we plan to go forward to the making stage of our project.

Ceiling plan of where our projection will circulate. 

Floor plan of where the projection table will sit in the middle of the room

Hunt Museum project

As part of the ‘Contemporary Art in the Public Realm’ module in Interactive media, we were given a brief to explore the concepts of scaling, miniature and invisibility within the Hunt museum. We have decided to create an instillation piece that would display a catalogue of the pieces that reflect the concept of the projects outline mentioned above. We propose to build an interactive table that would project the objects we choose onto the ceiling within the Captains room. This interactive table will be 24 inches square and a height of 35 inches. There will be four buttons on the piece that will allow the user in interactive with the projections, to choose an era with the catalogs of work, to stop the frame it will be on and to move back and forward. The projection will be animated to circulate on the roof and this will be very subtle so that it would not affect anybody with epilepsy. The interactive table will be either a dark green in color or black that it is in fitting with the color scheme within the room.

This video show the area in which the projection table will be. I feel that the design of the table will have to be subtle so that it fits with the feel and color of the room. It should be visible, but invisible at the same time.

This image is the picture of the ceiling, where the projection will circulate around the centre piece.

Motor turning and joy....

Further developments in getting the motor to work

Dr. Gabriela Avram's class on Mobile and Local

Today's class was the last of the series of lectures and from here on we will be looking at our individual projects and the research behind these.

Today's talk was very about being Local and mobile. I felt this was a very relevant discussion considering that today's technological advancements has allowed us to be more mobile within our own communities. Mobile phones allow a group of friends to communicate or a business to generate sales. Considering the function of mobile phones, they serve their purpose very well. The other interesting fact that I came across was that it was the military that designed the mobile phone to allow more accurate communication between their commanders in the field.  Another interesting fact that came about as part of research was that in an emergency or if its urgent we tend to call rather than text.

Another fact that we discussed is the use of CPS by the police to know the whereabouts of people who would be on probation. This brought up another interesting point that because of this technology it would force those who are wearing such devices to consider re-structuring their place with time, considering that the device they wear has to be re-charged every 5 hours, this would involve the person to get up in the night to recharge their device that can't be taken off, including structuring their occupation.

Finally we also discussed the layer apps for Iphone and how this allows augmented reality. So for example, the app that allows you to look at the sky and by doing so it will indicate and show you what stars you are looking at and the consolations. So layer apps are going in the direction of 2.0 Also 4 square and private square was also discussed.

Arduino developments on the interactive bin

This is currently a working prototype of the circuit board that we are making that allows an on/off switch to control a 12 volt motor. This is achieved by using a relay. The board out puts 5V and then this controls the relay. In turn this will open and close the relay to allow the motor to be controlled. 

This is a closer version of the circuit layout. This will be changed to perhaps have two relays and it will also be turning on/off a light inside the bin. Also what I'm working on is the motor, trying to reverse the motor with out switching wires. This is possible by using a double pole relay. Hopefully I get it working soon, and then I will post a diagram if my circuit board to help others. 

The therapeutic process of Art

Art Therapy: Healing Grief and Loss  This is a link that I came across that explores how the process of art can not only unfold emotional barriers, but also, the therapeutic process can on another level serve to enhance a persons life. 

Week 9 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick.

Meetings today about FYP

Today I went seeking for an exhibition space and I came across a space close to Sarsfield bridge which is a very bright open space which is ideal for the exhibition. This is a major development and I feel that when we do the exhibition of the work of the therapeutic classes, this place will be perfect.

More on the FTIR Research

FTIR multi-touch display how-to guide. I came across this link and like the other sites that I came across, this also gives a step by step guide to building the multi-touch display.

Sowing A Synthesizer using fabric

Today we had artists, visual and musicians, who were giving us Master Classes from Sweden. We learnt how to create Synthesizers and to sow this into fabric. The thread acted like solder. I really enjoyed this, because it was new to me and I never knew that such thread existed for stitching. Below I have included some photos of my work, and at the end of today's class, we got into small groups to create music (like a small ensemble). This was indeed a very enjoyable class and it was great that these professionals took time to share their wonderful findings with students at the University. 

This shows the circuit board that we used

Here I have connected all the components including battery and speaker

Here you see in detail how the components were connected by stitching

How to build a MT - 50 multitouch table

This is a a site that was sent on to me by one of my lectures. It explains how to build a MT - 50 Multitouch Table. It breaks down all the components, software, and gives you a step by step guide to how to build this. It was very helpful because it provided links to websites to further my understanding, and also to how to excess open source software. A great site for any who are researching in this area. 

On the website, download the pdf, mt-50_multitouch_table_DIY_instructions_1.pdf 

Research Paper

This is a research paper I came across about the Design and Implementation of an FTRI device. The Paper is called and can be viewed at, Design and implementation of an FTIR camera-based multi-touch display. I will dive into more detail about this next week.

FTIR Multitouch and Display Device

This evening I was further researching possible solution to display the art work from my focus groups. At the moment we have developed a lot of material, that is all strong art work that shows the process the group has went through. I had previously been looking a reactables and now I have been further researching into new possibilities. The link FTIR Multitouch and Display Device, is a good site that explains a possible solution to display the work that we are doing. I have also come across a research paper that looks at this in further detail, Visualization and prototyping of a multitouch display device. I feel that this could be a a good solution, an from what the group has been talking about, in relation to what we want  to display, this technology could be very appropriate. 

Another site also showed me the process and different steps needed to develop this Multitouch Display Device. They were explaining how it was possible to create this device out of the basic elements that most people would have available to them. 

If you click on the following link, How to build a FTIR, it will show you a video and all the basic elements that you need to build you touch screen interface. The video below is a great outline of how to build the table. But what I still need to figure out is the software that I will need to allow me to present my images. I would imagine when your coding, it would be pacifically for touchscreen.

Week 8 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick. 

Interesting blog

Today I came across an interesting blog about Art Therapy. It helps those how are unsure about the area and provides useful links to further your research. The site can be found here, Art Therapy.

Presentation day

Today I gave my presentation on the Book, Art Therapy and Computer Technology. I used Prezi to present my findings and arguments. The class seemed to enjoy it and I had good fun sharing my knowledge within this area. To view the Prezi, you can watch it from the Prezi website on the following link, Book review on Cathy Malchiodi's Art Therapy and Computer Technology.

Emotional design

Today's presentation was the last one within the class. This was very interesting, and I think in many ways, it could relate to everybody considering we are all on the same boat, having to do our final year project. I really enjoyed the class activity of (eye bombing). This is were you try and find the character within an object, by sticking eyes on it.

The group highlighted professions within Interaction design that look at this as an important approach to designing, like Don Norman, who talks about these design elements. I felt that from this presentation, it helped to understand that within every design, we could possibility think along these terms of finding the character within, to make objects more fun and exciting to look at and use. Good work guys. 

A video that will help explain art therapy

This is a video that helps explain art therapy and how it can be beneficial to patients.

International Art therapy organization without Boarders

This is an organization that Cathy Malchiodi helped to set in in 2010 to support art therapist worldwide. 

Adlerian therapy

In the use of group work, Adlerian therapy works to develop group cohesion, which mirrors healthy functioning in social settings.  Members of the group are able to develop a sense of belonging and community that may be unavailable in their present situation.  Due to the flexibility and integrative nature of this theory, individuals, families, and groups are helped with the tools of this approach.  Contrasting this however, Adlerian therapy has its limitations, as it does not provide immediate solutions to client problems with more of a long-term focus.  With less of a simplistic approach, this therapy is suited more for individuals who are prepared to take the time to understand family of origin issues. 

A good link to read on more of this can be found at Adlerian Therapy from a Christian Perspective.

Week 7 Semester 2

This video is part of a series that I am posting as a blog about my weekly experience of doing a masters in Interactive Media and Design at the University of Limerick. 

Cathy Malchiodi

This is the book I am reviewing for the Joe Griffon's Ethics Class

Art Therapy

This is a short video made by Mia BloomBecker. The field of Art Therapy is growing, but many people still don't know what it entails. This is a film that has interviews with Shaun McNiff, the Dean at Lesley University and Art Therapy expert, and Jen Malloy and Maddie Dickerson. 
 

Display of Interactive Artwork: Pilot Test of two Different Interfaces

Presented at SIRC 2007 – The 19th Annual Colloquium of the Spatial Information Research Centre University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand December 6th-7th 2007

The display of interactive artwork plays an increasingly important role in modern museums and galleries. However, the reaction of visitors has not been extensively tested to date. This paper present a pilot study that investigates viewer's reactions towards two interactive display prototypes that were designed to present famous artwork in a new and more engaging way. They describe the first iteration cycle of a questionnaire that they composed which especially targets viewer satisfaction in a gallery context. The results of their first pilot study indicate that (1) interactive displays in galleries can create an engaging and exciting experience and (2)  that they can be especially suitable to present education about art in a new and more involving way.

The pdf link can be viewed here, Display of Interactive Artwork:  Pilot Test of two Different Interfaces.

Dr. Gabriela Avram's class

Today we were looking further into research methods for doing own individual research. We discussed quantitative and qualitative methods. We discussed things like, is it necessary to create a hypothesis, if so, then what ways will I try to prove it. In order to do my analysis, I can use one or two theories to inform my data collection. The theoretical framework will inspire the data collection. My research will be ethnographically based. One of the key things that Gabriela highlighted was  the fact to be reflective through out my research because I 'm meant to be a reflective practitioner.

Grounder theory is a method for collecting data. You start with data collection, then you try to categories and find a relationship from the original data. Is there a relationship between age, material used, paper etc. So the idea is to collect a lot of data, to try and confirm my ideas, or do the results seem contradicting, then collect more data until you see a pattern.

How do I represent my findings. This could be done using cooperative evaluation. Getting members of the public to test your early prototypes and get feedback to what could be amended or improved. You might find that things on your prototype could be improved and made better before you make your final design.

The idea in my thesis is to prove that I have learnt about interaction design and highlight this in my process by being reflective. Most designers use stories, stories that you find in your data. You abstract the key information which will help to inform your design decisions.

The introduction to my thesis will place the work in context, what is my field, exhibitions, pick up the questions that relate to me, where, when, what are the circumstances, people who are visiting, who will the user be, what ideas that I might possible have. Prove my decision, and create an arguement to as why there is need for my design. Do this by researching other papers that have been wrote. Chapter 3 is the methodologies that I will use, UCD process, focused groups, how long the research will be going on for.

The BinBot re-design

Here are some of the final design sketches for the BinBot. It has taken the shape of a frog for aesthetic reasons.  We are finalising the measurements and building the bin this week. Still working on  the electronics and programming, but it will be very exciting when frogee is munching good old rubbish.

Living Laboratories: Making and Curating Interactive Art

Living Laboratories: Making and Curating Interactive Art 

AUTHOR
Lizzie Muller and Ernest Edmonds
Creativity and Cognition Studios, University of Technology, Sydney

This paper describes the development of laboratory concepts in the making and curating of interactive art, in which the exhibition becomes a site for collaboration between curators, artists, and audiences. It describes Beta_space, an experimental public venue that seeks to realise the concept of the exhibition as living laboratory 

through the participatory qualities of interactive computer-based art. The paper places this initiative within an emerging phenomenon of hybrid production and exhibition spaces. It argues that the evolution of such concepts has been hampered by the continued distinctions, within traditional cultural institutions, among art, science and technology, object and experience, creation and consumption. 

Pdf available here Living Laboratories: Making and Curating Interactive Art.