Chameleon Guitar

Can traditional values be embedded into a digital object?

In this research we implement a special guitar that combines physical acoustic properties with virtual capabilities. A wooden resonator - a unique, replaceable piece of wood that gives the guitar a unique acoustic sound, will embody the acoustical values. The acoustic signal created by this wooden heart will be digitally processed in a virtual sound box in order to create flexible sound design.

Credits:

Nan-Wei Gong (help in electronics), Melodie Kao (help in fabrication), Jasmine Florentine (help in concept design)

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Nick Barber's video on the project (IDG News Service):

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Today’s tools and instruments, whether musical or graphical, fall into two very distinct classes, each with its own benefits and drawbacks. Traditional physical instruments offer a richness and uniqueness of qualities that result from the unique properties of the physical materials used to make them. The hand crafted, construction qualities are also very important for those tools. In contrast electronic and computer based instruments lack this richness and uniqueness; they produce very predictable and generic results, but offer the advantage of flexibility: they can be many instruments in one. We propose a new approach to designing and building instruments, which attempts to combine the best of both. The approach is characterized by a sampling of the instrument's physical matter and its properties and complemented by a physically simulated, virtual shape. This approach to building digital objects maintains some of the rich qualities and variation found in real instruments (the result of natural materials combined with craft) with the flexibility and open-endedness of digital ones.

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Paula Aguilera's video on the project, early stage (LabCAST, Media Lab):

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Press:

David Chandler, MIT News Office, February 3, 2009

Nick Barber, IDG News Service, New York Times, February 11, 2009

Matt Hickey, Crave, Cnet News, February 4, 2009

Tom Simonite, Short Sharp Science, February 4, 2009

Eliot Van Buskirk, WIRED, February 6, 2009

R. Colin Johnson, EE Times, February 10, 2009 .

Cornucopia: Digital Gastronomy

Cornucopia is a concept design for a personal food factory that brings the versatility of the digital world to the realm of cooking. In essence, it is a three dimensional printer for food, which works by storing, precisely mixing, depositing and cooking layers of ingredients.

Cornucopia's cooking process starts with an array of food canisters, which refrigerate and store a user's favorite ingredients. These are piped into a mixer and extruder head that can accurately deposit elaborate combinations of food. While the deposition takes place, the food is heated or cooled by Cornucopia's chamber or the heating and cooling tubes located on the printing head. This fabrication process not only allows for the creation of flavors and textures that would be completely unimaginable through other cooking techniques, but it also allows the user to have ultimate control over the origin, quality, nutritional value and taste of every meal.

Life in a Comic

Can static paint be programmable? Can a watercolor comic change? We explore these options by using thermochromic ink and through the design of watercolor and paper paint that visually change and tell a story (adding time domain to comics frames). Using nichrome wire and a controller we adjust the temperature of the paper, and by this we control the time a new information appearers.

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reAcoustic eGuitar

reAcoustic eGuitar enables guitar players to customize their own sound by assembling different sound cells instead of a single large sound box.

each string will have it’s own bridge, each bridge will be connected to a different cell. changing the cell size, material or structure will allow sound design innovations, re-designing acoustic musical instrument according to the abilities and characteristics of rapid prototype materials. open source and shared files environment can lead to a reality in which a player can download or design his own sound cells and add them (as a patch) to his instrument.

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Does the 3D printed chamber creates any sound?

Press:

Sean Fallon, Gizmodo, January 17, 2008

Andrew Dobrow, Gearfuse, January 16, 2008

The tech Bros, January 16th, 2008

SolidSmack, October 31, 2008

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