Sketch Chair is probably the most complete application I´ve  seen so far compared with some other similar tools featured here, created by Greg Saul an industrial design graduate  Sketch Chair is a very complete interface that allow users quickly design furniture by simply drawing some lines, one of the most remarkable things I see is the implementation of a physics library normally used for video games, to test the stability of the pieces and also make some basic ergonomic studies.

If you want to try out the application and see more content and images please visit Greg Saul’s website.
Description (from the site)

“Sketch Chair” is a exploration in using computation and rapid manufacturing techniques to allow users to design and build their own products or in this case their own chairs.

The Sketch Chair software allows a novice users to take part in the entire process of designing and building their own chairs. Chairs are designed using a simple 2D sketch-based interface and design validation tools. Thereafter chairs are fabricated from sheet materials cut by a laser cutter, CNC milling machine or papercutters.

A collaboration with JST ERATO Design UI Project in Tokyo.

tools used:
- Processing (Eclipse)
- jBullet Physics

SketchChair from Greg Saul on Vimeo.

Another interesting project for your consideration to support, SOFTlab is producing an installation at the bridgegallery in the lower east side of Manhattan. For a month, starting August 26th,CHROMAtex.me will fill a small part of the world with one of our favorite things: COLOR! , please visit their kickstarter project they have a very cool reward system.

CHROMAtex.me from SOFTlab on Vimeo.

Starting NOW, a team at SOFTlab is preparing the documents to get the project going. Here are a few facts that make this installation worth the attention and involvement:
1. It will be made of around 5,000 panels.
2. Each panel will have a unique color that when assembled will combine to make an amazing gradient.
3. The whole structure will be held together using binder clips!

In order to make this project happen, they need to complete the final design, print color on + or – 3,960’ of super high gloss photo paper, laser cut the paper into their specific geometry, clip the pieces together, and install the final piece. There’s a lot to do and a short amount of time to do it!

If you can help them offset some of the costs they will reward you with pieces from the original installation! Every cent you give will go towards materials such as paper, ink, fasteners, lights, etc.

Along with their Kickstarter campaign and the production of the installation, these guys will track where the  support is coming from. After you donate,you must leave a message containing your name, where you are located, and a picture to be uploaded on a Google Map found here www.chromatex.me

You can also see how many panels have been given names at www.chromatex.me! Pass the word along and help this guys tag the entire installation with supporters!

A new season of awesome events of design & digital culture took  place during this months, always amazing to see how artists and designers push the boundaries of  technology to create new stuff  as an example of this we have the opening titles sequences  of the events  which are always amazing.

OFF 2010 , Paris Opening Titles

This year OFFF´s Opening Titles were in charge of  The Mill NY ,who  took the opportunity to debut their new  integrated design and animation team. The languid journey they take us on through the forty-five titles for this years OFFF conference and also displays the immense animation potential of   this new division of the Mill.

About the piece

Jeff Stevens(Director): The original, over arching concept was strength vs beauty and the affinity that each has for the other. At the same time, I wanted to create something that was abstract yet ‘seemingly’ natural. So, creating an environment that was underwater mixed with air began to take shape. Texture was important to me, so when Kim began illustrating, the contours and rawness of materials started to create a landscape and pattern for all of our characters. The best part was that nothing needed to be real. We could have suggested more reality but I think the blend of species, environment, and biomechanics perfectly summed up that affinity I was looking for.

OFFF Paris 2010 Titles from OFFF on Vimeo.

MAD MXX , Madrid Opening Titles

MAD MXX an event that gathers the  best designers and creative minds,to share their ideas with more than 2000 people.This years edition opening titles were commissioned to Physalia Studio which made use of  a 3d scaning scanning technology for creating the   visual effects of the oppening sequence, which were popularized in Radiohead’s House of Cards video and open source code.

Don´t forget to watch the making of  video at the bottom , It´s always nice to watch the creative process of this kind of works which helps a lot to understand how they were created. If you are interested in creating a similar project I will strongly suggest you to visit Create Digital Motion blog you´ll find more information and resources to make your own 3d scanning scenes.

MAD MMX – Opening Title Sequence from Physalia Studio on Vimeo.

MAD MMX – Opening Title Sequence. Making Of from Physalia Studio on Vimeo.

What would it be like to reach into a screen and manipulate virtual objects as in real world, that is something that Jinha Lee an interaction designer and computer scientist working at MIT Media Lab has been working on.

Beyond, a novel collapsible input device for direct 3D manipulation. When pressed against a screen, Beyond collapses in the physical world and extends into the digital space of the screen, such that users can have an illusion that they are inserting the tool into the virtual space. Beyond allows users to directly interact with 3D media, avoiding inconsistencies of input and output without having to wear special glasses. Users can select, draw, and sculpt in 3D virtual space and seam- lessly transition between 2D and 3D manipulation. We de- scribe detailed interaction techniques, implementation and application scenarios focused on geometric design and pro- totyping.

Beyond – Collapsible Input Device for Direct 3D Manipulation beyond the Screen from Jinha Lee on Vimeo.

Quayola is a visual artist based in London. His work simultaneously focuses on multiple forms exploring the space between video, audio, photography, installation, live performance and print.

Description (from site)
The Natures project consist in a series of multi-screen installation pieces and a live audio-visual performance in collaboration with musicianMira Calix and cellist Oliver Coates. Natures explores the dialogue between “the natural” and “the artificial”, creating a world where these two elements coexist harmoniously. Interpreting plants’ organic behaviours, computer-generated elements become part of the natural world and vice versa.

Natures #3B from Quayola on Vimeo.

Natures #2A from Quayola on Vimeo.

Apparently as their thesis year has come to an end some of the members of the group will be looking to undertake personal projects while others continue with the project by founding a company with all the potentials developed during his years of thesis, let’s hope they continue to particpate together collaboratively since they are a great team.

DESCRIPTION (from the site)
Radiance covers a standalone brick fireplace in a mid century ranch home in Broad Ripple, Indiana. The clients rarely used their existing wood-burning fireplace and wanted to change its function. We proposed an ambient lighting piece that still hosts traditional qualities of the hearth. As an artist and an architect, the clients’ liberal and eclectic design aesthetic allowed for a great degree of freedom and risk-taking during development. They considered this project as commissioned artwork rather than a client-based architectural intervention, adding to their collection in the home. Radiance is intended to exploit the qualities of the hearth by re-centering the focus of the home and providing an ambient environmental effect.

DESIGN:
Radiance was inspired by various shelf mushrooms, based on their form, organizational structure, and component geometry. The mushroom has a distinguishing set of gills that alternate in lengths from the stem’s center point. The lengths of these gills forms a repetitive pattern intended to cover the largest surface area under each mushroom cap. This pattern has been abstracted into our system to arrange each pod, defined as a radial set of 16 plastic components with an LED placed directly behind each. The wiring for the LEDs is embedded within the surface of milled MDF, further expressing the pod’s organizational system. A Passive Infrared Sensor is located at the centroid of each pod, acting as the trigger for the parts around it.

INTERACTION:
There are two pulses that occur after triggering a pod’s sensor. A primary ‘pulse’, that fades to full intensity and quickly fades off, followed by a secondary ‘pulse’ which fades on quickly but dims slowly over nearly a minute. This pattern can be interrupted as new users trigger a pulse creating the dynamic lighting affect seen in our video.

Similar to the lighting effects of fire, Radiance creates dynamic changes in intensities across it surface. This makes the piece enticing to watch and because the pulses fade in and out so smoothly the lighting is not overbearing. There is a distinct difference in the lighting qualities throughout the day and into the night as the piece becomes more and more the central component bringing warmth and light into the home.

Radiance from PROJECTiONE on Vimeo.

Collaborative cloud  has the objective of getting people in contact with the concept of open fabrication,  besides the DIY initiative and local fabrication , collaborative  cloud offers the idea off  sharing design , tools and concepts.

Please take a look at the application they have designed for submit your design is very fun and easy to use.

Description (from LAN site)
Collaborative Cloud is an installation which investigates distributed and decentralized design and fabrication. The interfaceallows you to design and give information to a piece of the cloud, thus anyone can participate in the project’s growth over the next 8 months. The physical construction will take place at the Disseny Hub Barcelona (DHUB) in an exhibition titled: LABORATORI DE FABRICACIÓ:Nous escenaris del disseny i la producció tridimensional.
The Collaborative Cloud is a project created by the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (iaac.net), organized by the DHUB, and designed by Luis E. Fraguada (LAN), Victor Viña, Areti Markopoulou, and YOU!

The project was designed using processing for the interface, and GH / Rhnoscript for geometry and population. Once a user submits a design, the interface outputs a data file as well as a PDF of the piece ready for fabrication. As the database grows, these files are matched with a potential position on the cloud.

Augmented Shadow is a project created by Joon Moon a programmer, designer who is exploring the realm of interaction, generative code and motion design on a basis of visual communication design. He is currently studying at MFA Design & Technology, Parsons, NY, USA were he submitted this project for his thesis you can check out more nice projects at the Parsons MFADT Thesis 2010.

Augmented Shadow_document from Joon Y Moon on Vimeo.

Concept (from website)
Augmented Shadow is a design experiment producing an artificial shadow effect through the use of tangible objects, blocks, on a displayable tabletop interface. Its goal is to offer a new type of user-experience. The project plays on the fact that shadows present distorted silhouettes depending on the light. Augmented Shadows take the distortion effect into the realm of fantasy. Shadows display below the objects according to the physics of the real world. However, the shadows themselves transform the objects into houses, occupied by shadow creatures. By moving the blocks around the table the user sets off series of reactions within this new fantasy ecosystem.

This experiment brings augmented reality to the tabletop by way of a tangible interface. The shadow effect is an ‘interface metaphor.’ Second, the unexpected user experience results from manipulating the users’ visual perceptions, expectations, and imagination to inspire re-perception and new understanding. Therefore, users can play with the shadows lying on the boundary between the real, virtual, and fantasy.

(via @chrisoshea )

Among his collection of works I found two I liked the most the first one is called Daily Stack ,  I really need to get one of these organizing my work flow has become a bit difficult with so many distractions and activities to do and this seems to be a fun and effective way to solve this situation.

Daily Stack is a playful tool that helps you become more aware of your daily work-flow and time management. By creating a physical representation of your tasks, Daily Stack speaks subtly to your conscience and helps you manage your time through unobtrusive ambient feedback.
It consists of a base device and a collection of wooden bricks in different shapes and colours. The bricks represent different kinds of tasks and time-intervals. By adding a brick to the base you commit yourself to the task and time span that the selected brick represents. Daily Stack communicates with an desktop widget on your computer that enables you to keep track of your time and tasks in progress. It also enables you to browse through your past and and compare your days in a colourful informative pattern.

Daily Stack from Anders Højmose on Vimeo.

The other project would be Pong that Beat wich is a project made in collaboration with Sebastian Thielke and Jonas Maanson ,it is an interactive Pong table that when you play , the camera register where the ball is when it hits the table, and a new sound is added to that location. While playing the step sequencer is continuously running. In that way you create a beat while playing. If you drop the ball on the floor, you are game over.

PongThatBeat! from Sebastian Thielke on Vimeo.

I have been playing around with processing for a  year now and I thought it would be nice to post some of the best libraries I have  used for my experimental projects , for those who don´t know processing is a programming environment for designing generative graphics , animation, games and complex interactive applications. Processing comes already  integrated with several libraries  that extend the power  of  processing beyond working simply  with graphics and images , However, the ever-growing community  of processing has created libraries that allow you to use audio, video, and connect processing with other technologies and devices which allow the creation of practically anything you can imagine.

Here´s a list of the best libraries I have tried out and that you definitevately have to take a look at , I also would  like to thank everyone who takes the time to create this libraries that makes the life of people like me so much easier and fun.

Traer Physics : A simple particle system physics engine for processing. I’ve designed this to be application / domain agnostic. All this is supposed to do is let you make particles, apply forces and calculate the positions of particles over time in real-time. Anything else you need to handle yourself.

JMyron: Myron is the cross-platform, cross-language, open source, video capture and computer vision plugin. One core C++ object gets cross-compiled as a handful of high level language “wrapper” libraries. The wrapper for Java and Processing is called JMyron. The wrapper for Macromedia Director is called WebCamXtra. The aim of the project is to keep computer vision free and easy for the new media education and arts community.

PeasyCam: PeasyCam provides a dead-simple mouse-driven camera for Processing.

ControlP5: ControlP5 is a GUI and controller library for processing that can be used in authoring, application, and applet mode. controllers are easily added to a processing sketch, can be arranged in separate control windows, and can be organized in tabs or group.

Anar: A cadKIT™ for Processing (v1.0) for Object Oriented Geometry. Based on (anar+) parametric modeling scheme is a KIT of libraries.

Toxiclibs: An independent, open source library collection for computational design tasks with Java & Processing developed by Karsten “toxi” Schmidt (thus far). The classes are purposefully kept fairly generic in order to maximize re-use in different contexts ranging from generative design, animation, interaction/interface design, data visualization to architecture and digital fabrication, use as teaching tool and more.

NextText: A port of the library for the Processing development environment. Keeping in mind the goals of  Processing, the library includes greatly simplified syntax and allows the creation of interesting sketches with very few lines of code.   And for programmers who want to push the envelope further, all functionality of the Java version of the library is maintained, so it is still possible to create intricate and more complex applications.

Hemesh: An imple­men­ta­tion of a half-edge datas­truc­ture for manip­u­lat­ing 3D meshes in Pro­cess­ing.

P5Sunflow: An easy way to make your Processing sketches look sexy as hell. Well, only three-dimensional ones, but whatever. Sunflow is a ray tracer written in Java. It’s pretty awesome.

I f you know of  another cool library please let me know on the comments below so we can add it to the list.