Exhibition

This Wednesday is the time of the online exhibition. We booked a library room with a projector as the display location in advance. We entered the site for one hour in advance to debug the project to ensure that everything worked properly. It was our advance inspection that found some unstable connections and made corresponding adjustments. The following pictures are the photos in the exhibition.

The entire exhibition lasted for three hours, during which we accepted the review of the classmates and the teaching team. We also communicated with other groups through discord during this period. On the whole, the online demo was smooth, and the idea was well communicated.

Live video demonstration

Overall reflection

Overall, I am satisfied with the final result of our group. Despite being affected by the epidemic, learning and life have become less convenient than usual, our team still completed the project as much as possible and carried out the final improvement before the final exhibition, and in the final online exhibition, the students and teachers who watched our products in our live broadcast room also gave positive comments. I will complete my reflection on the following aspects.

'Actual' to'Ideal'

Our team develops the project in the form of teamwork. Although we have realized the main functions, the actual product still deviates from the expected effect. Most of the deviations are mainly due to technical reasons, as well as the emergence of uncontrollable factors caused by the impact of the epidemic. Through three main iterations, we have designed a device that allows users to better interact with daily sounds, and also completed the realization of the main functions. Reviewing the overall design ideas, our products still have the following defects:

In our original plan, the dropper was used as a radio device. It is wire-free, and users can take it to record their favorite sounds anywhere. Although we have connected an extension cord, it can be used in a limited range, but it still cannot provide users with a more intelligent experience. Similarly, due to the installation of many sensors, there are still many wires connected to the rest of the project. Although we tried many ways to hide the wires, it was still unavoidable that the nakedness caused the visual unsightly. How to beautify products to a greater extent, as well as intelligent products will be the goal and improvement direction of future research.
Unity has not successfully connected with Arduino and python. In the original plan, we planned to create visual effects for the sound playback, but unfortunately, we have no way to connect it with python and Arduino. Although the generated visual effects are very cool, at present, it is only possible to display the visual effects by manually inputting the path. Overcoming this technical barrier is also the direction of future efforts.
I did not find a suitable sensor to make the sound deletion function. In our original plan, there was the concept of a trash can. As soon as the instrument is dumped over the trash can, the sound will be deleted. At present, this part does not think of a suitable technical implementation method but uses other methods to achieve the deletion effect of music.
The product does not completely get rid of the computer and achieves a highly intelligent effect. In our original plan to use the raspberry pi to replace the computer, and because of time constraints and limited materials on hand, we still use the computer to complete the relevant functions.

Relevance to course

The course theme is mainly about novel physical interactions. Our products are highly consistent with the course theme. Unlike traditional interaction methods (such as keyboard and mouse interaction), our products simulate the operation of the chemical laboratory, providing users with a variety of novel interaction forms such as squeezing, touching, dumping, shaking, etc. In order to give users a better operating experience.

Relevance to studio

Studio theme refers to an interesting, highly playable, innovative feature that can produce music for daily life. Our products meet the above requirements.

First, the combination of music synthesis and chemistry experiments is a very new concept. The user also showed his curiosity when he saw the device. The design idea is very attractive.

Second, our project is very close to life. In an ideal situation, people can take a dropper to collect various sounds in daily life, and take them home to interact with daily sounds. The place where the sound is mixed can also be more commonplace in daily life such as homes, companies, etc. The visual effects and auditory effects produced by playing sounds can play a good role in soothing emotions.

Third, the product is highly playable and interactive, and also gives users a high degree of freedom. Users can not only record any sound they like but also mix their favorite music clips. When using the device, the user can not only interact with the device but also enjoy a collaborative experience with friends.

Reflect on Human value

As an interactive device for daily sound processing, the "Sound lab" can make music more into people's lives. Users can alleviate the tension and anxiety of life through the interaction with daily sounds. The product is simple to operate and has a high degree of freedom. Users can "mix" their own DIY music according to their favorite, which adds a lot of fun to the daily boring life. From the feedback of user tests, they believe that the device can greatly reduce the stress of life, and they are more attentive to the voice of life.

Relect on User experience

In the stage of final product display, users can quickly know the concept of our project through the introduction, and can quickly get started. They think that the method of using a combination of visual effects and sound is very novel, and it is very unique to use daily sound as an entry point. Users think that in this way, everyone will pay more attention to the surrounding life and also play a good role in relieving stress. In addition, users can complete the mixing operation without instructions. They also appreciated the different visual effects we designed. I can think of our products as suitable for user experience.

Thanks

Due to the impact of the epidemic, this semester is not easy. Thanks to the teaching team for our entire project.

This is my last journal. If I graduate successfully, the completion of this project will also draw a perfect end to my student career. Although there are doubts, uncertainties, and stagnation in the completion process, thank you for my team members and everyone, we finally completed our original idea!