Nutshell: Turn any conductive metal surface into a noise/musical interface.

SoundMetal: An Unreal Touch Experience is a simple system that turns any conductive surface in the city into a conduit for unexpected sound generation. For instance, users might simply grasp a subway pole and any further skin contact would influence the system to create unique and intriguing sounds.

To test metal in public spaces using our custom conductivity circuits.

1. build an “unreal” and amusing moment in the everyday
2. encourage people to become more aware of their environment
3. avoid getting arrested

Dan Wilcox in collaboration with:

• Lee van Kraus: prototyping, fabrication
• Leanne Wagner: conceptual design, graphic design
• Patrick Grizzard: conceptual design, graphic design
• Reid Bingham: prototyping, fabrication

Touch controlled oscillators, wood, amplifier

Instructions: Clamp a red/green pair of cables to two separate pieces of metal. Touch the metal to complete the circuit with your hands.

Acknowledgements: Eyebeam Staff, everyone with Interactivos?, Taeyoon Choi, Nicholas Collins, Ma & Pa

Dan Wilcox (Hunstville, Alabama) otherwise known as Danomatika

http://www.robotcowboy.com

http://danomatika.robotcowboy.com

Collaborators

• Lee van Kraus: prototyping, fabrication - www.leevonk.com
• Leanne Wagner: conceptual design, graphic design - www.leannewagner.com
• Patrick Grizzard: conceptual design, graphic design - www.gneumatic.net
• Reid Bingham: prototyping, fabrication - www.alloverthewhere.org

This is day by day progress of the project as it happened at Eyebeam between June 27 and July 12.

We took a break after the exhibition to get some sleep of course.

I spent a few days observing and adjusting the machine. The steel cables used to suspend the signs were the AM radio antennae. I was able to eliminate the radio feedback by electrically isolating the wire from the sign. This problem returned, however, when I changed the power supply from the battery to a computer supply and I was not able to isolate it before I needed to leave New York. As of now the machine works but will play a little radio to go with the oscillator when the cables are touched.

Reid and I made a short, 60 second demonstration video (see above) and I managed to take our device out into the public space to Chelsea Waterside Park (see above). We were not hassled by any city officials due to our convincing construction vests and helmet. These two videos were added alongside the poster at the Eyebeam exhibition.

Ok, this is really just a continuation of the day before as we worked through the night.

The cartridge slots were becoming a real pain. Lee and Reid worked on them for a good part of the night and it was clear that there wasn't going to be enough to time to build them properly. I decided it was more important to have the project done without cartridges at about 5am.

With the cartridges out of the way, Lee and Reid mounted the 3 finished circuits together and wired a faceplate to fit behind the cartridge slots in the front panel. I attempted to build the mixer circuit, but as we had no sleep I ended up screwing it up. At about 9am, I vowed to leave Eyebeam and “not return without a mixer”. Radioshack provided and Lee and I mounted the mixer onto the side of the box.

The 3 circuits, which worked fine separately, were acting strangely together. I had forgotten to add isolation between them so they were modifying each other constantly … woops. This means the controls really don't make any sense as they do not do what is expected!

I pounded the wheels onto the axle and put in the battery and amplifier. Since I had added a rear access panel, the amplifier could not fit to rear from the inside so I mounted it upside down in the speaker compartment. The speakers are louder and more bassy in the enclosure! I put all of the bolts and threads in and added the panel handles. The circuit faceplate needed some finagling to make it fit and the front top panel had to have 2 holes redrilled, but everything came together right on time … as in 30 mins before the opening! We added the final touches of stencil and corner protectors and rolled it out at 6:10pm.

We made a short presentation wearing construction vests and demonstrated the machine. Throughout the gallery opening people were coming by and trying it for themselves. There was some confusion coming from the 3 circuits connected together and we had a weird AM radio problem. Yes, when connecting clamps to the top hanging signs AM radio started playing! After watching people interacting with the machine, Reid and I decided to turn off 2 of the circuits and wire all of the cables to the remaining one so as to make the response uniform across all of the cables and to avoid confusion.

We worked with curators to put together our gallery space. Metal traffic signs were hung to provide built in metal object to clip the system to and we even found a metal barricade and ladder on the street.

I cut out all holes for the electrical box, speakers, and the front/rear access panels as well as pre-drilled for the mounting hardware. With all of this done, I used Eyebeam's nail gun to tack on the plywood sides and top. Taeyoon helped me with the spray gun and let us use some of his paint. I painted the box silver-grey and the panels light blue. I then put in all the pre-wiring needed before mounting the battery and amp.

Reid picked up a metal drill bit so we could drill a large hole in each clamp to thread the cable through. Lee and I attached a clamp and plug to each end of the 6 conductor cables.

I redesigned the cartridge slots and added 1/16” of room all around. Some new layers needed to be cut as well as the front and back assembly. Here are all the parts:

Reid and Taeyoon cut all the new parts out. There was some difficulty since the laser cutter was cutter some pieces deeper then others so some exacto knife work was needed.

Lee Anne and Patrick finished up the poster so it could be printed.

Patrick made a stencil for his mobile tesing unit logo using the laser cutter and an acrylic sheet.

I spend the whole afternoon buying parts at Home Depot, Radioshack, and Canal St shops. We wanted to make the cartridges out of acrylic since Eyebeam's automated laser cutter likes to melt plastic but the $300 price tag for a 2'x4' 1/2” sheet was waaay to high. I decided to use 1/4” MDF instead since we can just glue 2 layers together to get 1/2”.

The cart frame is done. Lee and I sanded it and cut the sides and panels out of 3/4” plywood. Reid and I primed them with flat “Eyebeam white” which was also being applied to the haning wall partitions. We were all raring to keep going but Friedrich wanted to leave early, so we were kicked out around 12pm. Some of us went drinking until around 4am. Work hard, play hard.

Reid and Lee built the circuits onto prototyping board and tested each one individually.

I made the cartridge and cartridge slot design in Inkscape. Each cart is a 3 layer sandwich with room inside the middle layer to fit the circuit and wiring. Reid and Patrick worked with Taeyoon to cut out the parts with the laser cutter. We discovered that my design for the slot did not take into account the needed slop room in the slots, so the carts fit *exactly* … as in need to banged in with a hammer. We will fix this tomorrow.

Lee Anne and Patrick started work on our poster for the exhibition. Lee Anne designed a great instructive graphic so people know how to use the system in the gallery context.

I used the vector drawing program, Inkscape, to design the cart using real world dimensions. This took most of the day.

With a cart design ready, Reid and I started cutting 2×4's in the evening. I finished up the frame about 2am.

Reid designed a number of circuits for the cartridges:

He prototyped these 3 on breadboards:

• a simple resistance controlled oscillator with a switch between 3 capacitance values to change the pitch range
  • a low range that requires 2+ people to get a higher pitch
  • a medium range for 1 - 2 people
  • a high range for one person, lots of squeaking

• a gated capacitance controlled oscillator with:
  • a pitch potentiometer
  • a tremelo speed potentiometer
  • switch to turn tremelo on and off

• a gated resistance controlled oscillator with:
  • a tremelo speed photocell
  • a tremelo speed potentiometer
  • a 3 way switch to change between tremelo controls or to turn tremelo off

Lee Anne and Patrick put together interaction scenarios.

The Surprise set-up: Cables are hooked up in advance

• Requires larger space/discreet testing environment so subjects are not scared away
• Need to identify specific locations
• Subway cars

Request volunteers: Set up cables and invite passersby to have their “audible capacity” tested

• Need clipboards, flyers, etc.
• Framework to get things started
• Plant participants in the audience
• Locations
  • Union Square
  • Astor Place
  • Madison Square Park
  • South Street Sea Port

Request volunteers: Alternate version

• Set up cables and invite passersby to test and rate the audible capacity of different objects
• Fill out questionnaire while/after they are conducting the test
• Describe quality of noise, satisfaction/enjoyment, etc.

Approach subjects already in contact with conductive surfaces

• We tell them we need to test the audible capacity of the __ they are touching/sitting on/leaning against/touching/etc.
• Locations
• Central Park Carousel

Busker “performance” on subway (set up metal grate like piano keyboard with hat for tips)

Patrick: Here are three versions of a logo I created for the “City of New York Public Infrastructure Task Force - Mobile Test Unit.” I made them pretty basic and blocky so we can easily use them as stencils, but we could make a more detailed version as well for print materials. Email thoughts/feedback to the group listserv.

Here is a “stencilized” version of the logo. The text around the outside was getting a little crowded, so I had to remove 'Public,' which was probably redundant anyway.

Different versions of the touch circuitry will be embedded into large “computer style” cards for easy modularity.

I built a mock up of the cartridge idea to see it's feasibility. The test models are 10”x15” and stick 5” out of the slot. I wired 4 simple metal contacts inside the slot. Each cartridge can be color coded to denote it's function and can be hot swapped on the fly. The circuits themselves can probably be encased in epoxy within a hole in the cart itself. We will probably use Eyebeam's laser cutter to fabricate the slot docking parts to make sure the cartridges always touch all the conductors.

I bought a car battery and battery post connectors. The amp works fine off of the battery and now we can be truely mobile.

We have been struggling to come up with a solid narrative. Why we are engaging in this public sound act? After much discussion and insights from various people, I think the best solution is one of the simplest … we are “testing” metal in public space. As officials testers from the city, say the “Mobile Testing Unit” of the “New York City Department of Infrastructure”, we will wheel our device around and engage in a sonic test.

I think this is a good balance between believability and practicality.

Reid and I went to Home Depot and Radioshack to see what hardware is available. Surprisingly, the 23rd st Home Depot has a decent amount of useful stuff in it.

Ok, so we are building a mobile sound machine yes, but we haven't really thought out much beyond that. I know how to built it, but I did not have much beyond a simple box concept. Tae-yoon gave us some good ideas and topics to think about such as the aesthetic design → and interaction of the cart. As of now, Reid and I put together a modular “cartridge” design where the different circuits are mounted on over-sized component boards and slid into the machine where they are activated. I will make a mock-up tomorrow and try the idea out.

Tae-yoon also suggested focusing the goal away from fun and adding more of a narrative towards the “Department of Public Sound”. We will change that to something like the “Department of Urban Noise”, etc and check metal/people's conductivity to reintroduce them to the “sonic conductivenes” of the environment.

As a public action we need to think about interactivity and participation. How do regular people approach and participate? How do we engage their curiosity?

I managed to get the car amp working using a computer power supply. Ooooh it has blue lights.

I began the day by trying to build a simple touch sensitive switch based off of a 555 timer circuit since the Qprox QT118H ICs are not easy to come by on short notice. The advantages to this circuit, if it works, are that we can use it to control a relay to turn the Atari Punk Console circuit on and off and that there are lots of 555 chips at Eyebeam. The disadvantages are that it only gives us on/off control without a useful range and that I couldn't get it to work, again.

Then … Reid solved the touch circuit problem.

Reid put together the Schmitt oscillator circuit in the same way as I had done on Day 7, yet he experimented with a greater range of capacitors. It did not occur to me to try a much smaller cap since the skin resistance is much higher. Remebering the equation, f = 1/T → f = 1/RC, it should have been clear. He dropped in a 4.7nF capacitor and lo and behold his ~1-2M ohm skin resistance yielded a frequency in the audio range, requiring only two touch pads to complete the circuit. It sounds great and is very responsive!

Upon dropping in a 1-10M ohm resistor we found we can control the circuit through body capacitance to ground, thus only needing 1 touch pad! It crackles, hisses, and squeaks at a higher pitch then the resistance controlled circuit.

Here are the advantages to this design:

• requires minimal touch pads, 1 or 2 (beats the cracklebox for our requirements)
• requires minimal components
• is not active unless touched!

It is basically a poor man's Cracklebox!

While messing around, we played with various interactions using the touch resistance controlled oscillator. Here we are mock fighting where each blow is marked by sound.

I (Dan) went to the Nathan's World Championship Hot Dog Eating Contest, then cooked sausages and drank beer at Eyebeam. Reid went to the WFMU Sonic Youth and The Feelies show at Battery Park. Yes he had tickets, the bastard.

With the electrical components on order, we didn't feel like there was much to do but wait. Tae-yoon wisely prodded us to stop assuming our device interaction and do some simple prototyping/testing. This was a very good idea as we discovered some things we wouldn't have known until it was too late!

Reid packaged the Atari Punk Console breadboard circuit and speakers into an adorable cardboard box creation named after WALL-E: NOISE-E.

NOISE-E has 3 alligator clip leads to activate metal as conductive touch objects. Reid went out and tested NOISE-E in Eyebeam and on streets of Chelsea.

• some metal is grounded (water pipes) and will not work in the circuit
• larger surfaces and longer distances generally require more current
• we need a circuit that turns off when it is not being touched

I decided to test my Cracklebox with alligator clip leads on various conductive surfaces.

• generally, the cracklebox requires at least 3-4 good connections on one person for a good sound response
• adding resistors/capacitors between the contacts dosen't really show much effect, at least I couldn't get any

This leads me to think that it may be unsuited to our application as we need as few contacts as possible to trigger sound. One touch pad would be ideal, but 2 would be fine.

Reid brought in a copy of a great book by circuit-bender Nicholas Collins, "Handmade Electronic Music". There is a super-simple square wave oscillator circuit based on a Schmitt Trigger IC which only requires a resistor and capacitor. It is a basic feedback oscillator where freq = 1/T → f = 1/RC. I built one with a photo resistor and also tried adding touch wires and changing component values, but nothing seemed to work. This circuit sounds good, but may not work as a touch controlled noise maker.

Here's a schematic and a simple photo theremin using a photo resistor in the circuit.

I spent a great deal of time today trying to figure out what to buy, mainly because of the number of small boxes to mount. In the end, I think that it is not feasible to complete 2 separate ideas in the next week and a half, so I'm focusing on the performative “boombox” cracklebox idea … we kind of already bought part of it anyway.

In order to continue to use the Department of Sound as a ruse, the “boomox” should become more of a test device that we, as technicians, use to check the conductivity of the cities surfaces. We can wheel it about and check surfaces in different areas as well as make noise. We will create brochures to handout detailing our work and perhaps stickers designating this an “electrically musical surface”.

After some reading, I (Dan) think we really need an actual car battery to run this behemoth amplifier so we are looking for used batts online. I found a simple trickle charger on ebay for $20 put in the digikey order which is for the following circuits: 2 crackleboxes, 1 atari punk console, and 1 hacked toy drum machine. It basically gives us enough instruments for a band. The 2 crackle boxes should wail pretty well when interconnected through metal surfaces.

First shot at the NY Dept of Sound logo. It's a pretty direct rip-off of the NY Fire Dept logo. In that sense it's believable, but kind of lame looking.

Patrick and I went to Canal street and found a car amplifier and speakers for the mobile sound device on wheels aka “big boombox”. Spent $125. Lee dropped off some fun goodies, including conductive paint pens, and will give Patrick some 12V batteries and charger.

Reid, Patrick, and I messed about with the intricacies of the 555 timer-based atari punk console circuit. It now lives and buzzes on the work table.

The project will proceed under the moniker of the fictional “New York Public Department of Sound” and consist of two main components:

1. a performative sound device on wheels
2. small, mountable noisy boxes

Here's a concept picture of the “boombox” …

NYDPS (NY Dept of Pub Sound) logos and official brochures will be created for public actions.

Everyone took a break and some watched the European soccer championship game. Germany lost to Spain.

Brainstorming!

What tactics should we use?

• performative
• street art/guerilla installation
• mix → surprise/energizing objects

Where to mount devices

Where's the metal part deux

Plenty of metal at Chelsea Waterside Park …

2 things learned on the subway ride home last night …

• Paint!
  1. lots of metal is covered in paint which is not conductive
  2. but there are worn patches here and there
• subway indifference
  1. we played with a cracklebox on the subway and NOBODY carrrreed
  2. sound and involuntary interactivity really require careful consideration of the surrounding context

Real versus fake … how about we become a fictional public department

1. Dep of Urban Noise/Sound
2. Dep of Public Sound
3. Bureau of City Sound
4. NYC Bureau of Public Sound
5. Create credentials, ID cards, pamphlets to show while installing/performing

Things to test

1. can a painted object still be used as a theremin antenna?
2. can large objects be used as antennas for body capacitance

Locations to observe peoples' natural behaviors/activities which can be leveraged as input/trigger for audio feedback

• Subway cars (poles, handrails)
• Subway stations (14th Street ACE/L Station with little metal sculptures/figures)
• Pedestrian paths with light posts or other structures at regular intervals
• Dog runs
• Battery Park
• Union Square
• Central Park (specific locations?)
• South Street Seaport
• Talk to Tae-Yoon re: tourist sites around the city (e.g. - South Street Seaport)

Online resources for conductive paint, etc

• stewmac.com: Conudctive Shielding Paint
• stewmac.com: Conductive Copper Paint
• jcwhitney.com: Defrost Repair Kit
• toys4cars.co.uk: Heated Car Rear Screen Electro Connector Repair Kit

Brainstorming!

Where's the metal?

• railings/bannisters/fences
• construction scaffolding
• trash cans
• street/utility poles
• playground equipment
• chairs/counters
• intercom buttons/door buzzers
• bridges
• fire/electrical conduit
• water fountains
• subway turnstiles/handrails

What form to take?

• device carried on a person
  1. personal space
  2. controlled by wearer
  3. performance oriented
• device mounted
  1. public space
  2. can be narrative
  3. encourages public participation

Who is the target audience?

• commuters/NY regulars
  1. tough sell / practiced indifference
  2. requires context to get their attention
  3. example: cracklebox on subway largely ignored
• tourists
  1. expect “crazy” NY things to happen
  2. open to interaction with newfound annoyances
• kids
  1. ready for any playful situation

How to build?

• all electronics/circuitry vs digi/ucontroller vs computer
• custom-built vs hack/circuit-bend

Test circuits to try during the next week

• 555 based theremin
• 555 atari punk
• weird sound generator

Ideas thus far

• boombox squad band
  1. boomboxes with circuits built in
  2. large cables (octopus-style) used to connect to metal surfaces
  3. one boombox could be used for drums, etc
  4. simple sound-based light circuits too
• attaching simple circuit boxes to objects
  1. hidden in utility boxes
  2. contain small speakers and cheap, disposable circuits
  3. talking light poles
  4. joggers theremin

Tina and I played with my Cracklebox on the subway at the L train station, 8th Ave & 14th St