Project title: Changing Seasons Serenity Night Light
Created by: Kelly Xu
Project description:
The Changing Seasons Serenity Night Light is inspired by the city lights turning on one by one at night. I feel like the process has a calming effect and I wanted to bring that into a home with a sensitive object that I can create. The Night Light has three modes of brightness depending on the amount of light that is sensed in the room corresponding with daytime, evening, and nighttime. The Night Light also responds to temperature; when it’s hot in the room, the trees stay green to display summer, when it gets a little colder, the red and orange lights on the trees turn on to symbolize autumn, and when it gets even colder, the red and orange lights turn off and the blue lights on the Christmas tree turn on to symbolize winter. The object is intended to be an ambient, serene Night Light that has calming effects and makes falling asleep more interesting. The tiny model is also the start of something bigger – it demonstrates how this technology can be used in a larger environment.
Discussion of Calm Technology Principles:
As I was developing the concept for my project, I constantly had the principles of calm design in mind. I truly wanted to create something that could exist seamlessly with the environment while enacting positive change like the “Warde” flower lamp project installed in Vallero Square. My focus for the purpose of this project was on the following four Calm Technology Principles:
- Technology should require the smallest possible amount of attention:
The Changing Seasons Serenity Night Light requires a minimum amount of attention, with no need to physically interact with it. The Night Light is designed to exist as a part of the environment as to not take the user out of their current task. It simply provides light and comfort in the background.
- Technology should inform and create calm:
With the cabin and backyard design, the project is meant to be calm and healing. By mimicking nature with the lights, the project is meant to help users become more in tune with nature while not needing to waste effort or time on it.
- Technology should make use of the periphery:
The Night Light makes use of the periphery as it will interact with the environment by itself; responding to changes in light and temperature.
- Technology can communicate but doesn’t need to speak:
The lights on the project can communicate brightness and temperature information through a simple series of lights. The communication method is the same as that observed in nature: when it gets cold, the leaves on trees turn red and orange and when it is winter, snow falls on trees and many Christmas trees’ lights turn on. The project’s lights mimic nature in this way to communicate information without the need to explain or provide instructions.
Experience Video:
https://clipchamp.com/watch/B3uuoEsSNKO
How It Works Video:
https://clipchamp.com/watch/66VqpZVT23t
Video transcript:
“The Changing Seasons Serenity Night Light is inspired by the city lights turning on one by one at night. Now, as I was working on the project, I noticed that the more lights I attached to the breadboard, the dimmer the LEDs became. The way I tackled this problem was that I split the project into two separate parts each using its own breadboard and code. This does mean that both sets of instructions cannot exist at the same time without having more equipment. For the purpose of this project, I will be showing how the two parts work separately, but the effect is intended to occur alongside one another, and I like to view both parts as part of a whole project.
The first part of my project is essentially a Night Light. Inside the cabin made of popsicle sticks is two sets of LED lights made up of 4 yellow lights and 4 white lights. By using the photoresistor, which is attached to the breadboard behind the house, the piece collects information regarding the brightness of the room and changes the brightness of the lights in the cabin accordingly. There are three different modes of brightness corresponding to daytime, evening, and nighttime.
The second part of my project uses the temperature and humidity sensor which is included on the Arduino Nano 33 BLE. Depending on the temperature in the room, different information will be sent to the LEDs that are attached to the trees beside the house. There are 6 blue lights and 7-8 orange/red lights. When it’s hot in the room, the trees stay green to display summer, when it gets a little colder, the red and orange lights on the trees turn on to symbolize autumn, and when it gets even colder, the red and orange lights turn off and the blue lights on the Christmas tree turn on to symbolize winter.”
Final project images:
The Development Process:
- I started by developing a simplified version (code and circuit) of my project:
2. Then, I created the little cabin which would house the LED lights using popsicle sticks:
3. Next, I created the backyard and trees using green fabric and foam:
4. Finally, I put together the complicated version of the circuit and attached the LEDs to the inside of the house and on the trees using wire.
Link to the Arduino code hosted on Github:
https://github.com/Achxuu/Experiment-2—Sensitive-Objects
Circuit diagram:
Circuit 1: This circuit is for changing the light depending on the brightness.
Circuit 2: This circuit is for turning on different sets of lights depending on the temperature.
*Note: The Arduino I used is the Arduino Nano 33 BLE (not available on TinkerCAD)
References:
Music from video is “Tomorrow” from https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music/2
Team, The Arduino. “Reading Temperature & Humidity on Nano 33 BLE Sense: Arduino Documentation.” Arduino Documentation | Arduino Documentation, https://docs.arduino.cc/tutorials/nano-33-ble-sense/humidity_and_temperature_sensor.