We wanted to create an interactive, digital Cornell box using sensors to trigger different results in Unity. We were inspired by artist Neil Mendoza and his Disruptive Devices that combined physical sensors where outputs are displayed in Unity.
Hamster running on a wheel to charge a phone.
Based on this idea of hamsters running in a wheel to generate electricity, we wanted to create a narrative where this instance was flipped: where human input generated power for appliances found in a hamster's home.
Hamsters in a miniature home.
We thought about creating a life-sized hamster wheel or perhaps a treadmill; however, when it came to implementation, bigger sensors didn't seem as feasible.
We narrowed our sensors down in focusing on the idea of exerting energy, few directions including:
Human-sized hamster wheel.
Hamster in a miniature human office.
We decided to use cranks/gear mechanism to show how energy is inputed via LED light strips as the results would be displayed as digital outputs. As displayed in the image below, we chose 4 specific animations that a hamster would engage in:
Illustration of how the project will look: a screen using an iPad presents a home made from Unity with a hamster moving around the space. Four gears are attached to each appliance within the room: TV, phonograph, coffee machine, and a main light.