Building an instrument

Building your own instruments is a lot of fun, and very rewarding.  It is also a lot of work and an excellent learning experience.

I'm building a custom controller for myself as part of my 250b (HCI) project.  The vision behind the project is to have a very solid and sturdy (think heavy) interface for delicate expressive interaction.  The input is achieved with pressure and position sensitive strips mounted to the surface.  These sensors will be covered with dense foam to increase the amount of physical travel.  The motivation is to explore the effects of such materials as a form of haptic feedback for the performer.  The device will also be equipped with a rotary encoder, six LEDs, and four buttons.  In the future, it will be expanded with another pressure sensor (double the length of the others) and analog outputs for use with voltage controlled gear such as modular synthesizers.  Here are some images of the work in progress.

Modifying an FSR strip

early experiments

First prototype

Second prototype, after getting handy with a router

Piece of Padauk to be used in final rendition

And here's Tom, the fine gentleman who patiently explained all I needed to know about buying hardwood and led me to that beauty of a block (and at a great price)