Another Week of Making
This week I had already finished working on my dissertation draft as much as i could by Tuesday so I picked up making again. I continued refining the LEGO + piezo sensor prototype. After getting the basic interaction to work last week, I spent more time testing how stable the pressure readings were and how much gesture the system could actually pick up. I kept adjusting the placement of the sensor under the paper and tried different ways of distributing the weight through the LEGO pieces. It slowly started feeling more consistent, and I began to understand how small physical changes, like shifting a block or pressing more gently, affected both the sound and the visuals. It made the interaction feel a bit more “alive” instead of something that only responds to big, obvious movements. I had my fruends try to build their own versions on it so see the sound as well and if they find it immersive, they did but since there is a lack of different kind of music it tends to sound like a crosswalk sound. That is something that can be fixed though later if I continue with it so I was not too worried about it!
At the same time, I began working on the second prototype that involves the vibration motor. This one didn’t reach the point of producing the full interaction yet, but I spent a lot of time figuring out the practical side of things, what needs external power, which pins actually support the motor, how to prevent back-current, and how to keep the wiring from becoming messy. I also tested the coin motor separately just to understand its behaviour: how strong the vibration is, how quickly it responds, and how it will eventually sync with the sounds I want to trigger. It felt like one of those weeks where the learning happens underneath the surface , lots of setup, lots of understanding how things need to connect, even if the final output isn’t visible yet.
Overview Presentation
With submissions so close, I also started working on my presentation slides. For the slides, I decided to keep things simple because
most of the detailed content and images are already going into my Catalogue of Making and my CPJ. I didn’t want the slides to feel overloaded or
like a second version of the same material. The main part I believed the slides needed to do was guide the narrative and give a clean overview
of what I explored, why I explored it, and how the prototypes gradually shaped my direction.
I focused more on clarity rather by choosing a few key images, short descriptions, and letting the prototypes speak for themselves.
I wanted the slides to function almost like a map that shows the flow of thinking without getting in the way.
Working on the slides also made me realise how much the project has shifted over the past few weeks. Seeing everything laid out side by side made the connections clearer, and it gave me a better sense of
what I want to highlight during the actual presentation.
Overall, Week 14 helped me steady both prototypes. One of them is starting to behave more expressively, and the other is finally taking shape in terms of structure and wiring. It feels like I’ve cleared the technical confusion that was holding me back, and now I’m in a better position to actually build the combined sonic–haptic response next.