Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and Disney Research found they could transform dull walls into smart walls at relatively low cost — about $20 per square meter — using simple tools and techniques, such as a paint roller.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Conductive Paint Transforms Walls Into Sensors, Interactive Surfaces
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and Disney Research found they could transform dull walls into smart walls at relatively low cost — about $20 per square meter — using simple tools and techniques, such as a paint roller.
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This product sounds really interesting, but I don’t know if I see much of a place for it in theater. Since the paint currently works best in a diamond shape which is such a specific design choice that I can’t imagine many designers being happy with it. Also, Rosco Off Broadway paint is about $35 for 300 square feet, so for now it is outside the price range of many theaters. However I can see why Disney is interested in this product. This could allow them to make their theme parks even more interactive by giving guests transmitters to walk around with. I do think it’s interesting that they chose to use standard equipment such as paint rollers and painters tape. If Disney is planning on using this paint in their theme parks, I would not have thought that standard installation techniques would have been needed. Overall, I’m excited to see how Disney uses this product.
This is so interesting. I’m a little surprised we haven't figured this out earlier that we can put conductive paint on a wall and hook it up to electronics to make it a smart wall. What these students have done is really awesome that it can tell when electronics and lights are on and if you’re wearing a tracker, where you are. I wish they did a closeup of the finished wall to see how much of a stand off there is since they do two layers in paint in the diamond grid using painters tape and then the electrodes. Could you put something against the wall, or must it stay clear? I like where they are going with the different ways the wall can be used to detect- and notify people when things are happening in another room like the water is boiled or adjust light levels when there are no people in the room or if the TV is on. I’m interested to see where they take this technology.
I am interested in how this could be used in a design aspect. Not so much as how it could be integrated into a design, but more as to how it could help with the actual process of designing. If you can imagine hooking this thing up to a computer, the computer up to a projector and suddenly you have a wall sized touch screen computer. Obviously it won’t be the most accurate touch screen right now, but as this type of stuff develops it could become a very interesting idea. I’m thinking something along the lines of the computers in Minority Report. I think that this is super cool even if it isn’t exactly practical yet. I am sure that Media could find some awesome way to integrate this into a play. I’m curious if the paint only works in the one color, or if it is possible to mix so you could paint a wall to see like it is all one color but have patches of this electrode paint. I’m curious to see where this goes.
I definitely see potential uses for this in theatre. We have begun to use some types of motion tracking technology to make the scenic or costume elements change with an actor's position in space. I was also really surprised by the affordability of this product. I was expecting some figure probably unattainable for the average person, but I'm glad it might actually be able to be used by lower budget places. The one question I have is how much the software or other equipment costs and how easy it is to use or attain. If it is something that requires an in depth knowledge of computer science or coding, then it might be harder to integrate into other disciplines. I was also happy to see that they mentioned the energy consumption, something that the theatre industry has been examining over the last few years as everyone is trying to go more "green."
This technology is very exciting to me. I didn’t think about the function of walls that much besides separating two spaces until this year when I was tasked with designing, painting, and constructing them. I do think this interactive paint technology has a place in theatre-- however if it ever made it into a show, a lot of different factors would have to be taken into account. Sensory walls could be interacted with by the actors in a performance, but it would be especially interesting to have the audience interact with them during the actual play. I could also feasibly see interactive wall paint being utilized in something like a haunted house, where the participants are very up-close and intimate with the space around them. This new technology could also be a part of an audio-visual art installation, where the lights and projections could be controlled with how the audiences touches the walls and have sound cues linked to it.
Okay as much as I fear the robot apocalypse, I am so excited for this to become universal. It seems like something from a movie. It really is so weird that walls are everywhere but we have not come up with a use for them other than a divider. I think these researchers have recognized that user application and price are why so many technology start ups do not take off so it is important that they used materials that were cheap and easily applicable. I do wonder what the dangers are in coating our walls with nickel paint and running electricity through them since most people are mildly allergic to nickel. I also wonder how easily these walls can be repaired. It seems as if I might have to repaint a whole wall if an electrode goes out. Also, are the lines of electrodes extruding from the wall? I couldn't tell from the video but how does that affect the product's aesthetic appeal? This is obviously at a preliminary stage of development but I am excited to see where these CMU students go.
This is so cool oh my god. This is something that I want to see used today... quiet literally I wish I could have used this in my arcade project today. Walls and paint have very special and unique places in theatre they are often the biggest thing to give us a sense of place and time in where we are and what the context of the show around us is able to do. The ability to change and to shift that focus is really interesting and provides the audience with a different setting. This can be done with lighting and with media but they have fall backs on certain things like through and pixelation and heat. The biggest thing to me about this article is that this could be done in such a small space and with such a close interaction with the viewer the change could be so much more significant and more of a wow moment the first time you see it.
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