FLOATING MATERIALITY
2015.01 -- 2015.05 / Semester 2, MA: Design Informatics
小组作品 (4 人) -- 小组负责人
Floating Materiality （浮动的物质）是一个和苏格兰国家博物馆合作的项目，同时它也是主题“Design With Data”的课程项目，项目持续了五个月，项目目标是处理并设计苏格兰博物馆中涵盖的大量信息和数据。
该项目的最终成品是一个可以根据博物馆数据库变化的浮动雕塑。
其中个人职责为：项目负责；设计方案提出；项目研究主要研究；项目对外沟通；Presenation主讲；影片拍摄剪辑；照片拍摄编辑；项目实体制作；项目技术定义（2人，两人共同定义项目技术方案，另一人负责技术实现）
FINAL OUTPUT
浮动雕塑
Dimensions of Artefact: length 1m, width 0.5m, height 2m.
演示视频
One intro video and two working videos.
展示报告
More detailed information about the artefact.
Sorry :( 网站暂时不支持插入国内视频网站视频，获取YouTube链接有困难欢迎点击国内视频链接 (点吧点吧)
爱奇艺 http://www.iqiyi.com/w_19rs401r6x.html
优酷 http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XOTUxMzI0MzE2.html?from=y1.7-1.2
1/ THEORY
我们致力于研究实体数据 (Tangible Data)和虚拟数据 (Intangible Data)的关系，物质 (Material) 和非物质 (Immaterial)的关系。
在石器时代，当人类在世界上创造第一个物品的时候，当时所有的信息都是基于实体的 (Material)：人们使用不同的材质做杯子，水盆以及一切当时生活所需的物品。而着眼于今天，物联网 (IoT)，可穿戴设备正在开始逐渐占据我们的生活，所有的信息都开始转移到各种各样的电子设备中，信息变得越来越虚拟 (Material)，实体的信息变得越来越少。而我们设计Floating Materiality的原因就是，希望能够把一些虚拟信息回归到它们原始的物理形式，或者给它们赋予一定的物理载体，让信息本身变得更有吸引力。
2/ IDEA
What We Made
我们尝试把苏格兰国家博物馆数据库 (NMS)中的抽象数据都转化成我们设计的工艺品Floating Materiality中。Floating Materiality就是依据博物馆的数据库中的数据来浮动的。博物馆数据库中的每个物品都会有不同的浮动方式。
我们把不同大小的钢丝正方体当做信息载体。当这些正方体在根据博物馆的数据而浮动的时候，会创造出一些重叠和奇特的视觉特效。我们将更多的重点放在了数据中物体与物体的差异上，换言之，Floating Materiality表现的主要是物体和物体间的变化，而并非物体本身。
材质/材料是物品的基本属性。但是在很多情况下，受众往往会被物体其他更有吸引力的属性（如颜色，形状和大小）所吸引，而忘记物体的材质本身。我们尝试将苏格兰国家博物馆中所有物体的材质属性提取出来，并且对这些材质属性放大，让人们对物品的属性有新的理解。
Floating Materiality完整演示视频（以博物馆中的8个物体为例）
Why We Made
设计Floating Materiality最大的原因就是为了寻找一种新型的、或者说回溯原始的信息表达方式。博物馆数据库中隐藏着很多宝贵的信息，它们因为具有一定的机密性所以不对受众开放，但是实际考量是，即使开放了数据库给受众，受众也并不会被这种枯燥而冗杂的数据所吸引，然而这些数据本身是非常有价值性的，例如博物馆展品的出土年份，入馆日期，展品材质，展品大小等等。因为我们选择把这些有用的但是却枯燥的数据以一种新颖的、更加富有创造性的形势呈现出来，让受众在欣赏工艺品带来的美的同时也能感受到数据库的变化和庞大，让枯燥无味的博物馆数据以一种新的形式展现在受众面前。
Floating Materiality的制作过程相当复杂而辛苦。它大致包括以下这些过程：剪切钢丝网（将钢丝网剪成可以组成正方体的大小不同的正方形）--- 钢丝网平整（用磨具和锤子将卷曲的钢丝片锤平，以便之后做正方体的衔接）--- 钢丝网折叠 （正方体的6面中，现将一长条的钢丝片折叠成正方体的侧面，最后再将上下两面焊接）--- 焊接（把钢丝片焊接成正方体）--- 连接 （将焊接好的正方体做连接）---制作支架（将铜管切断后焊接做成正方体的指甲）---悬挂（将正方体连接着马达和Arduino悬挂到支架上）。
这件展品是完全由我们手工制作的，展品的原材料基本都取用于一大卷钢丝网和3根3米的铜管。
How We Made
3/ DATA
Floating Materiality的数据源是苏格兰博家博物馆的电子数据库，它里面包含的数据有博物馆展品的索引码、出土时间、入馆时间、展品民称、展品大小、展品材质和其他更多关于展品的细节信息等。
3.1 Data Source 数据源
3.2 Data Filtering 数据过滤/数据筛选
数据过滤主要是将数据库中容易混淆和不具代表性的数据过滤掉，留下有特征的、有代表性的数据用作Floating Materiality的数据支撑。多余的数据将会给受众在观看Floating Materiality的时候的信息提取带来多余的影响。我们将博物馆中不具有物品材质属性的数据过滤掉。
3.3 Data Transformation 数据转化
我们用Arduino控制四个马达，而四个马达 (Servo)通过拉力来控制Floating Materiality中的四组钢丝正方体。
参数与马达的对应关系如下:
马达速度——展品的出土时间
马达位移距离——展品材质的摩擦系数
马达停止次数——展品材质的硬度数值
马达移动方向（4个）——展品材质的表面纹路
3.3.1 Moving Distance of Servos 马达移动距离--- Coefficient of Friction (COF) 展品材质的摩擦系数
展品的材质越粗糙，马达和正方体的移动距离越长。
Friction factors of each object are corresponded to the moving distances of the servos. The frication factor we choose is the static friction of the materials against steel (because the cubes are made from steel).
The rougher the surface, the higher the friction factor and the longer the moving distances.
In other word, If an object have a relatively longer moving distance, it means this object have rougher surface.
3.3.2 Moving Directions of Servos 马达移动方向控制 --- Surface Texture 展品表面纹路
四组正方体的移动方向由展品的材质的表面纹路来决定。如果是十字交叉纹路（如银），将会两组正方体往上，两组正方体往下。
The moving directions of servo are controlled by the surface texture of the objects. All materials have different kinds of texture and the selected materials in the database were categorized into 4 textures. According to the different texture, we designed different moving patterns for the cubes. The movements of each object has 4 steps, go up/down, back to original point, go down/up, back to original point.
For example, silk has criss-cross texture, which is the third pattern in our category. So the moving directions for the cubes are two go up and two go down, which is similar to the criss cross.
3.3.3 Stop Times of Servos 马达中途停止次数 --- Hardness 展品材质的硬度
展品的材质越硬，马达中途的停止次数越多；材质越光滑，马达中途停止次数越少。
Hardness value of different materials is used to control the stop times of each servo. We categorized all the materials in database into 3 categories: no stop, stop four times and stop eight times (why four times and eight times: the movement of each object would have four steps, go up/down twice and back to original point; Therefore the stop times should begin on a multiple of 4.
For example, silk is defined to never stop since it is soft material. However for the plastic is defined to stop four times since it is harder than silk.
3.3.4 Speed of Servos 马达速度 --- Date (year) 展品出土年份
展品的制造时间越新，马达转的越快，钢丝正方体们动得越快，象征高速发展的今天。
Motor speed is controlled by the date of the object (the object was last located at a particular location).
The date of the object is closer to today, the faster the motor speed would be.
The circle below shows different motor speeds. All the numbers are the value in microseconds to the servo. Red point is start point; Black number represents motor rotates clockwise in one second, and the blue number represents the motor rotate anticlockwise in one second.
The slowest speed of servo is from start point to 1555 (black) in one second; the fastest speed is from the start point to 1650 (black) in one second.
3.3.5 Algorithm 算法
算法是用来计算马达的转动角度、马达转动时长和马达转动速度之间的关系的。
The algorithm blow is used to decide the time duration for moving.
Friction factors multiple 100 = time duration multiply circumference multiply fraction
Fraction (which is decided by the speed): for example, if we use the 1650 (motor turn 225 degree clockwise), the friction is ¾.
3.3.6 Comparison Examples 对比案例
我们设置了两组数据作为对比，以方便更加容易理解Floating Materiality的运动方式。
第一组对比的博物馆展品出土于同样的年份，但是它们有不同的材质：1933年的银制展品和1933年的塑料制展品。它们在Floating Materiality中的体现是：它们有相同的移动速度，但是有不同的移动距离；第二组的是相同的材质的物品但是出土于不同的年份：1933年的塑料制展品和1999年的塑料制展品。它们将会有一样的移动距离但是不一样的移动速度。
Comparison Video
“ In particular, we believe that a useful data sculpture requires a strong design rationale underlying its perceived physical qualities, including: embodiment, metaphorical distance, multi-modality, interaction, affordance and physicality. ”
----Moere, Andrew Vande, and Stephanie Patel.
"The physical visualization of information: Designing data sculptures in an educational context."
4/ EVULATION
Metaphorical distance: Cubes is the metaphor we choose to represent the object in the database, it quite abstract to let people directly links the cubes with the object in the database, but since the diversity of the objects, it’s not easy to find a “perfect fit” metaphor to represent all the object in the database.
Interaction: We lack some interactive functions in our artefacts, it would be better if we add some interactions into it. Such as developing a website for the database, and let people to choose the object which they are interested in and let the sculpture to move according to the object they chose.
Affordance: The data can be distinguished from the moving of artefact, it’s perceivable but not obvious. We are not intended to design it into a object monitor, we still want itself to be an artwork and has its moving continuity in it.
Servo Limitation 马达限制因素
Every servo is different, not all servos can perfectly turn the degrees we want but near values (e.g.If the program sets at 180 degrees, 4 servos could turn to different values: 179 degrees or 181 degrees). There is little difference between them, but the gap becomes huge when the moving time increase.
Since the cubes are quite heavy, the motors would go down even we don’t program it to do, as long as there is a force to push it (no matter how big the force is).
Also, for the same movement, the time used to go up is much more than the time used to go down. (e.g. the wheel turns a circle will cost 6.6s to go up while going down will only need 3s).
