Project Summary

Sensation of Sound is our proposed exhibit for the Discovery Museum. It is composed of a microphone and a plate that matches the volume of whatever sound is input with an equally strong vibration. This exhibit intends to demonstrate the connection between sound and vibration by using auditory and tactile feedback and letting kids explore how volume affects the strength of the vibration.

Current Exhibit (Bucket Radio) Analysis

• Discovery Museum's goals for this exhibit: Showing how sound is felt & transferred/amplified by different surfaces
• Play type (ex. open-ended, collaborative, etc): Open-ended
• Engagement methods: Auditory stimulation, tactile stimulation
• Layers of complexity: Understanding the reason for differences in sound and feeling
• Main design features: The vibrating peg and the bowls that can be placed over it
• What works: Placing the different materials on the peg does make a variety of sounds
• What doesn't: The mechanic of placing the items on the pegs wasn't intuitive, and the resulting noises were irritating to most people

Precedents

Chladni Singing

Spectrum

Bucket Radio

Precedents

Chladni Singing

Spectrum

Bucket Radio

An exhibit featuring sand on a metal plate that forms chladni patterns at the sound of your voice, located in the Exploratorium in San Francisco, Calfornia.

An interactive installation in Montréal that demonstrates the trajectories of sound using light.

The exhibit in the Discovery Museum we were tasked with re-designing; it shows how sound carries through different materials.

Learning Goal

Teaching the correlation of sound and vibration

Design Element/s

Color scheme

Tactile feedback

Customization of experience

Play Type

Solitary/Open-ended

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Initial Prototype

This prototype used a layer of rubber over a speaker to create chladni patterns. There were two versions of this prototype with some slight differences; one used a roll of duct tape to create the outer structure, and one was 3D printed. The main issue with this prototype was the noise the speaker made, being aggressively loud and high-pitched.

Iteration #1

Resonant Plate

This prototype was a higher-fidelity version of the first one, with an acrylic plate as the diaphragm rather than a balloon. This prototype was a challenge to work with due to the salt making a mess and the plate not being resonant enough.

By the time we tested in the museum, we'd replaced the red acrylic with a small yellow cover and the roll of duct tape, because it created the most clear patterns.

User testing at Discovery Museum

• It was very clear that salt wasn't a sustainable path to pursue without a lot more effort into a covering system
• Kids instinctively wanted to touch the diaphragm, not the connected knob and button.

Method of testing

Outcomes

We hung back and observed kids and parents interacting with the "exhibit" from within earshot.

Limitations

The sound was grating, and parents didn't seem convinced that this object was meant as an exhibit.

Iteration #2

At this point we'd decided against using salt (or similar), and had decided to lean into the fact that kids at the Design Museum test were very interested in touching the diaphragm. In this prototype, the idea is that the subject talks into the microphone with their hand on the plate, and it vibrates at a similar intensity to their voice.

Graphic Design Development

User testing at NuVu

• They did seem to understand; the plate is to put your hand on, the microphone is for talking into.
• Parents were not reluctant this time, though also they knew this was designed for their kids, which was less clear at the museum.

Method of testing

Outcomes

Watch the children and parents, take notes, and ensure they have an intuitive sense of what the parts do and how they connect.

Limitations

The project had broken just before testing.

Use Diagram

Blueprints - 3D Model

6.36 mm

115 mm

1560 mm

20.3 mm

120°

637.3 mm

650 mm

112.3 mm

125 mm

Blueprints - Orthographic Drawings

TOP

BOTTOM

FRONT

BACK

RIGHT

LEFT

Reflections & Next Steps

If we were to continue this project, we would...

• Ensure everything is fully functional
• Use stencils and otherwise more refined methods to paint the box

Questions we have:



• How could the design be improved?
• If you were the target age (2-7), would this concept interest you?