Gizmodo Australia » maker faire 2009

Giant Robotic Hand Controlled By Mimicking Your Hand Motions

Adam Frucci — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:50:00 +0000

This gigantic robotic hand is controlled by what’s called a Waldo: a small glove that has the big hand mimic whatever its doing. It’s awesome and kind of scary, as you can see by the video BotJunkie grabbed of it.

[BotJunkie]

Interactivation: When Music Makers and Tesla Coils Collide

Adrian Covert — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 02:45:00 +0000

On display at Maker Faire 2009, Interactivation is a whimsical, slightly non-sensical cross between a six-way collaborative music machine and a Tesla coil, producing improvised sounds and scientific trickery from the same machine.

Interactivation was created by a group called Lightning Temple, who want to use sound vibrations to promote holistic healing or something like that. Great. But it’s the tech I’m more interested in.

The music component of Interactivation works by running each of the six stations through a sequencing program on a laptop. Each station has an array arcade-y buttons connected to a circuit board that triggers audio samples and/or loops, which wash over each other in a lovely mess of sonic slop. To keep everything sounding cohesive, the loops fire in time with the selected time signature, so all the samples are in rhythm.

The Tesla Coil wasn’t up and running during the day, so it’s uncertain to what extent it functions. But I’m not sure I’d want to be noodling with sitar loops anywhere near Interactivation when it is working. [Lightning Temple]

Puppy Monorail Makes Me Fear for Mankind’s Future

Adrian Covert — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 02:15:00 +0000

Of all the ridiculous things one can see at the Maker Faire, the Puppy Mover Monorail might take the cake.

The scary thing about the Puppy Monorail is that it has managed to evolve over the years. The project started out as a modest 3 car train, but now has expanded to a WHOPPING five cars (FIVE!!!). Still, until I see some real puppies moving 10 feet down that squiggly track, I’m not sold. Also, one of the train cars should really be a milk bowl. [Puppy Mover Monorail]

Wall-E Has Nothing on Mech Virus

Adrian Covert — Sun, 31 May 2009 00:45:00 +0000

Sure, Wall-E is all cute and adorable, but does he spew melted floppy disks? No. This is why I, in my humble opinion, think that Mech Virus is way cooler than Wall-E could ever hope to be.

The actual tech behind Mech Virus, on display at Maker Faire 2009, is pretty simple, it’s just a motor and a power supply that allows Mech Virus to waddle and spit out a Norton Anti-Virus CD every 30 seconds or so. The actual motherboard components don’t work at all, making Mech Virus more about appearance, and less about action. But still I love it. [Maker Faire 2009]

Neuron Chamber Offers a Glimpse at What Alien Brains Might Look Like

Adrian Covert — Sun, 31 May 2009 00:15:46 +0000

Okay fine, maybe this is more of an artistic representation that’s taken a few liberties, but still, the Neuron Chamber on display at Maker Faire 2009 is a pretty cool looking piece of extraterrestrial art.

Creator Alan Rorie says that the concept behind the Neuron Chamber is that there are alien brains inside the chamber that are under observation, and we’re watching the cerebral process at work. In this case, it’s an reaction moving from the Soma down the Axon of the neuron.

In actual terms, this is an arc puller causing an atmospheric reaction that looks like a flame moving down the rail. Rorie likens the design to a horizontal Jacob’s Ladder. Throw in some steampunky elements for good measure and you get a pretty neat art exhibit. [Almost Scientific]