Project
| # | Title | Team Members | TA | Documents | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | Hip Hop Express Window Equalizer |
Anushrav Vatsa Colin Sandstrom Ioan Draganov |
Jonathan Hoff | design_document2.pdf design_document3.pdf design_document4.pdf final_paper2.pdf proposal2.pdf proposal1.pdf |
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| This project was pitched by Dr. Patterson and involves collaborating with Architecture and School of Music students on outfitting the Double Dutch Boom Bus. **Problem:** Dr. Patterson is trying to repurpose a school bus to serve as a mobile musical laboratory where kids can learn about creating music through an interactive experience, and he needs help outfitting the bus with appropriate technology to make that happen. **Solution Overview:** We want to enhance the Boom Bus experience by integrating the windows as a part of the audio mixing process by using them to control an audio mixer. We will fit the windows with optical sensors, which will be hooked up to a microprocessor that can apply effects to audio. The windows sliding up and down will provide a visualization of how a mixer works and can demonstrate a crucial part of the music making process. This project will try to address the most important aspect of Dr. Patterson’s presentation and that is pull more people, especially the younger generation into the music experience. We believe the best way to do that is to let the audience be a part of musical experience themselves. **Uniqueness:** Plenty of equalizers and mixers have been created before using both hardware and software solutions. Our project is unique in that rather than directly using a knob or slider to control the equalizer and sound effects, we will use proximity sensors to control the effects’ strength. In addition, our mixing will be done through a microprocessor, making our unit more condensed as opposed to using software on a personal computer, phone, or similar. **Components:** Window-Mounted Sensors: School buses have vertical sliding windows that don’t quite open all the way, so we will attach IR sensors in the gap at the bottom of the windows to measure how open they are without interfering with their function as windows. Centralized Receiver: We will make a PCB to discretize the signals from the sensors and route them to a microprocessor. Microprocessor: The microprocessor will take in the signals from the PCB and generate a filter, which will then be applied to the sound input from an AUX or RCA cable and then outputted to an AUX or RCA cable connected to the amplifier for the sound system. **Criteria for success:** A successful demonstration would involve sliding the windows of the bus up and down while our device is connected and turned on, and being able to hear the difference in musical qualities, such as differing volume for certain pitches or effects such as distortion, reverb, or tremolo. |
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