Triangles
Triangles is a construction kit that consists of flat Triangles, each of which has both a physical and a digital identity. When the pieces are connected, their configuration is relayed to a host computer. The user can use the kit to simultaneously create physical arrangements (including both two-dimensional tiles and three-dimensional structures) and digital representations that correspond to the tangible structure. Triangles was originally created by Matt Gorbet and Maggie Orth in 1996.
Each physical triangle has magnetic, electrically-conducting connectors on each side. When they connect with each other, a communication circuit is formed and with each Triangle conveying its identity and relative position to the host computer. Changes in the Triangles’ physical configuration trigger pre-programmed digital events to enable direct manipulation of the topological structure of information.
Triangles uses the triangle’s abstract form to let users express and manipulate information. This abstract quality frees the content-creator from meaning-laden shapes in the physical world to enable the free ascription of digital meanings. While the pencil is a tangible tool for creating unconstrained representations in a single medium, Triangles is a unique authoring system that lets users create and manipulate multimedia structures through physical actions.
Collaborating artists: Matt Gorbet, Maggie Orth, Ali Mazalek, Emily Cooper, James Hsiao and Professor Hiroshi Ishii
I/0 bulb – Urp
Urp is a tangible urban-planning workbench based on the “I/O Bulb” concept originally developed by Dr. John Underkoffler in 1998. The “I/O bulb” creates high resolution, bi-directional light flows. It collects photons from physical surfaces, and uses knowledge about a particular domain, such as urban planning, to interpret the light patterns. It then responds with digitally-controlled light output, which is projected back onto the physical space.
In Urp, physical architectural models are placed on a table illuminated with “I/O bulbs” and shadows are cast according to a computer simulation. By adjusting the clock, it is possible to track the shadow movements and sun reflections. In addition, air currents around the buildings are rendered visible and a wind gauge can be used to measure the wind speed at any point. Using “I/O bulbs” to project real-time computer simulations onto physical models makes it possible to understand and directly manipulate digitally rendered urban spaces in a world that is contiguous with one’s own body.
Collaborating artists: John Underkoffler, Daniel Chak, James Patten, Jason Alonso, Benjamin Fielding-Piper and Professor Hiroshi Ishii
Get in Touch
September 1-6, 2001
10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Ars Electronica Center
