Like I mentioned in the previous journal entry about nuanced feedforward, we experimented with lights as a feedforward (though that didn’t really workout as we figured after testing that it resembled feedback more than feedforward as a function). We utilized a red and green light, the red LED flashes when no action is being performed by the choker, signaling a paused state. While the servo moves, the light turns green until it gets paused again and turns red. This has only been implemented on the Arduino board, we have not attached this to our main prototype’s body. But we will experiment with that the next time we meet.
In addition to ideating more about feedforward, we did a general upgrade with our prototype from last week. I had found a scrappy belt from home that affords adjustment and thought it would be a perfect solution to us wanting to make the choker easily adjustable. We decided to try it out by implementing the servo (similar mechanism with wooden board) as well as a plastic guider (this time decreasing it to just one because we figured we don’t need so many to initiate the same force).
With the adjustable belt, we were able to test it at multiple places on our body: including the neck, upper abdomen, upper thighs, wrists, and upper arm. They both exerted about the same amount of force but each revealed slightly different nuances. I’ll explain this more below.
This is how it looks as of now, as you can see, a much more simplistic design but equally as powerful when it comes to choke force.
Reflect, Articulate the Experience:
- Still stuck with manifesting nuanced feedforward.
- We thought the lights would potentially contribute to nuanced feedforward but it ended up being more of a feedback that follows the motion of the servo.
- Maybe play more with the light see if we can make it more feedforward-y (but how?)
- New upgraded choker, the force felt a little more subtle with the decrease of plastic guiders, but you can definitely still feel the “choking” sensation. How to improve this?
- Removed a few parts, made it a little more simplistic but the deed is still being done
- Adding the adjusting element was valuable because we were able to test it on different parts of our body (thighs, wrist, upper arm, under the chest, neck), all provided different nuances, with the neck it was the most suffocating but when it was on the abdomen we felt like we had to suck in to prevent the mechanism from ripping apart and that created a stronger effect for “choking”
Journal with me! 