Ring my bell
mobile social networking
Milan, Italy. December 2006
Sometimes we get absorbed by computers and we don´t pay attention to any other action surrounding us. Ring my bell is project that brings the metaphor of interrupting a task with the sound (or annoyance) of a bell (sometimes used by maids, at restaurants or hospitals). When you ring this magic bell, your partner's computer screen will start vibrating and emitting ding! ding! sounds making it impossible for she/he to continue working :p
Brief
This project was completed as part of the physical interaction design course taught by Massimo Banzi in May 2006. The assignment was to create a one day prototype using a usb keyboard hack and parts of cheap chinese toys.
Technology
When the bell is played, the clapper activates a low tech circuit as it makes contact with the inside walls of the bell (covered with alluminium foil). This action will trigger a signal that will go through an octocopler (the octocopler transforms this signal into a switch) that will activate the remote control of the chinese hacked toy tank. The signal will travel wirelessly until it reaches the chinese hacked toy tank that instead of moving forward will activate a keypress into the usb hacked keyboard. This keypress is read in the computer with Flash that will react by shaking the screen and emitting annoying bell sounds.
Components
usb keyboard hack
remote controlled tank
low tech sensor (bell covered with alluminium)
remote controlled base for tank
octocopler x 2
cow bell
cardboard
laptop computer
