"Maker Tales” is an ongoing series on knowable, where we highlight outstanding Makers and their projects.
Maker Takes: Open Mirror. – 2.4.2014, by kryobot
Hi Juan Pablo! Great to have you here with us. Please, tell us a little bit more about your background.
My name is Juan Pablo and I work for Habit(s) Studio - a design firm from Milan, Italy. I am part of a team of industrial designers and engineers there. As a studio, we’ve been working quite a lot for ‘regular’ business clients but right now we are shifting our attention more and more to the Open-Source sector. We are designing and building a lot of DIY, Open-Source products in our own FabLab at the moment.
And you have a very cool project on knowable at the moment: Open Mirror - a music playing, Arduino powered, gesture controlled mirror! Can you tell us a bit about that? What was the idea behind it?
OpenMirror started basically with some experiments concerning gestural interfaces. Thanks to Arduino we had the opportunity to develop a such an interface relatively quickly. The results of that experimentation were pretty good - so we kept going. This lead us to the idea to use that interface in a stereo for the bathroom, that you can control without making it wet and ruining the electronics. That’s how OpenMirror came to life, basically.
If you want to control the music in your bathroom, just walk up to the mirror and use gestures to change what’s playing. You can for example just swipe beneath the mirror to change the song that’s playing or keep you hand steady in order to adjust the volume.
How do you see this project evolve in the future?
We’ve been working on this project for quite some time now. It has been going through a lot of iterations and changes. But we are pretty happy with it as it is right now. This is the version we are releasing - both, as a product and an Open-Source project on our homepage and here on knowable.
That is really interesting – what is your motivation for going Open-Source?
We are fascinated by the idea that there are other modes of producing things. Open-Source offers us a way to design and release completely new and different products. We don’t need to go ‘big scale’ and use industrial fabrication, but instead we can choose to do low volume fabrication runs and offer customizable products. It also allows us to experiment with different price points: You can get the fully assembled OpenMirror in our store, but you’ll also be able to get the self-assemble kit for a lower price. Or you just download the schematics and build it on your own - completely free. I think this is a great way to allow for diversity and customizability in your products: People who want to have an individual product can simply build it on their own.
So, are you planning to incorporate ideas from you customers?
Yes, we are certainly willing to do that. But it’s actually a bit early to say now - but I think we are watching what the community is doing very closely. I believe that this is the beauty of Open Source: The company and community are growing together.
Thank you very much for your time and the interview
"Maker Tales” is an ongoing series on knowable, where we highlight outstanding Makers and their projects. This time we spoke with Ryu Yamamoto and Leonardo Amico, the makers of the awesome „Stone Pad“ – knowable’s latest „Project of the Week“
Great to have you both here! To start things off, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Ryu Yamamoto: I'm a product designer born in 1986, in Tokyo, Japan. I'm interested in exploring the relationship between people, the environment they live in and their daily life. I think that product design should be more strongly connected with technology. This may come from my Japanese background: We have a lot of big electronic companies where great care is given to the design. I really think that the interaction between a designer and an engineer can provide richer answers and insights. I would like to create new objects that emerge from this fusion of two different backgrounds. I'd like to add new values to the design process; adding knowledge that does not only belong to an esthetics-only world.
What about you, Leaonardo? What is your background?
Leonardo Amico: I'm a researcher at the University of Padua, where I design and develop interactive software for education. The rest of my day is spent hacking and coding for my own projects. Lately I've been interested in integrating technology in simple ordinary products. This is also the direction of some projects I'm currently developing together with Ryu and others. Small appliances and house objects are witnesses of people’s daily lifes. They provide some sort of gateway to their private sphere - this really fascinates me. Also, all the interest now generated around the Internet of Things is creating so many resources in terms of technology and community that makes everything easier and a lot more fun.
How did you get started as Designers?
R. Y. : I originally studied architecture at the University in Tokyo. But after university I become more interested in the design of smaller objects. So I started to work as a product designer at Fabrica, a research and communication center sponsored by Benetton. I’m trying to make new objects that I’d be happy to have and use myself. My goal is to create an environment full of things I designed. Objects, interior and even buildings.
L. A. : My background is in Electronic Engineering, and strangely enough this is a strongly theoretical affaire in Italy. It involves a lot of mathematics – but really little hands-on practice. During my time at university I've been in an electronics lab once in 5 years! I think that it was my strong interest in music and sound which drove me to actually making things. From playing guitar to music programming to building oscillators and hacking radios and turntables until finally getting everything together.
I also had a one year scholarship in Fabrica – and that was also really important for me! Fabrica is like a small network of like minded people from any sort of creative background put together in a beautiful building. It's like taking the best of virtual communities, with the difference that you’ve got to actually meet the members in person everyday. Ideas flow all the time and collaborations grows naturally there.
Yes, that sounds like a great place. Is that also where you two got together to create the Stone Pad? Can you tell us a bit more about how it came to life?
R.Y.: Jhon William Castaño Montoya, a musician at Fabrica, was making an album inspired from german mineralogist Friedrich Mohs. He came to us with the idea of making some physical object related to its music. A musical instrument made out of stones seemed like a natural choice. This percussion instrument would mimic the diversity of minerals in the Mohs scale by linking each of them to a specific sound, allowing the musician to perform his music by using stones as if they were piano keys. The instrument’s wooden structure is arranged in a spiral, a recurring shape in nature, suggesting harmonic growth. It builds up from the ground, from a foundation filled with rocks. Like stone flowers, some blossom toward the sky on wooden stems.
L.A.: During the realization of the Stone Pad we went through lots of sketches, a paper prototype, a more functional prototype, then the actual wooden structure and the electronics for it. I also had to learn the hard way that stone is not the most simple material to work with. An initial version was using piezos for sensing the stones being hit, but that wasn't any reliable for the musicians to play it live. After another round of tests we figured out a solution using ink-based force sensors, small hinges, and adhesive felt. Pretty neat actually!
So I guess you build all you project at Fabrica, then. Are you part of any “offline” hackerspace besides that?
L.A.: When I was in Fabrica I had a lot of space and tools for making things. But I’ve just moved to Padova a couple of days ago, and at the moment my workspace is my bedroom. But there’s a Fablab in the city, which I’m planning to visit soon.
R.Y.: We have some small workshop facilities at Fabrica. But some of our objects are also produced by local artisans.
Are you working on other projects at the moment?
L.A.: I'm actually working for BIO50, the Design Biennale of Ljubljana that will take place next September. I've been selected with other people for preparing an exhibition around the theme “Hacking Households”. Apart from that, me and Ryu are about to finish our second project together. It’s a simple domestic object that deals with memory. But it’ll be finished so soon that there’s no point in ruining the surprise! Hardware and software will be released Open Source, so by then all its guts and bits will be available to anyone.
R.Y.: Apart from the project Leonardo was talking about, I’m also working on the Hot & Cold exhibition, which is a collaboration with Fabrica and Daikin for the upcoming Milano Salone del Mobile 2014 in April. This is a series of multi-sensory installations, inviting visitors to participate in an immersive laboratory of hot and cold experiences.
A lot of things going on then! Really looking forward to your next project! One last question: Where can people find you online?
Maker Tales" is an ongoing series on knowable, where we highlight outstanding Makers and their projects. This time we spoke with José Ernesto Rodríguez, the maker of the great „Hat Controller“ – knowable’s latest „Project of the Week“
1) Hi José! It’s great to have you here. Please, tell us a little bit about yourself!
My friends actually call me Tito. It's the abbreviation for Ernesto. I am a 22 year old Berlin based designer with Nicaraguan roots. I grew up bilingual in Hamburg, Berlin and Mexico City. I'm currently studying Interface Design at the FHP (University of Applied Sciences Potsdam). My Twitter bio says quite well what I'm trying to do: Harmonizing physical & digital worlds.
2) Alright, Tito it is, then. How did you get started as a Maker/Designer?
These two photos sum it up pretty well:
Due to my artistic informed German family I developed an early interest in drawing, form-giving and other arts. Especially my grandparents – who are sculptors and painters – are an important source of inspiration. So I knew quite early that I wanted to be a designer. That's why I decided to start my graphic design studies at the Lette-Verein in Berlin right away, instead of going for an Abitur (a german high-school degree) first. Best decision ever!
On this picture I'm the one in the middle with the turquoise shirt. I sit between all my aunts and cousins. Growing up I felt just like any other nicaraguan kid. I’m so grateful of being able to visit them almost every year. I guess this mix of cultures, LEGO’s and my father being an electrical engineer has encouraged me to become a Maker.
3) Can you tell us a bit more about how the Hat Controller came to life?
It was actually a homework assignment for the university course "Physical Interaction Design" supervised by Reto Wettach. After giving us a basic introduction into electronics everybody received a keyboard. We then took it apart and had to come up with a cool hack until the next week. The first few day's were quite disappointing for all of us, because every idea we had already existed. Then I remembered playing "Achtung die Kurve" with friends during our breaks on my laptop (Just like in Snake you control your line by pressing left or right. But unlike Snake, the line you draw never disappears. The goal is not to bump into your own or any other line. You can actually play a remake here). I remember that everybody, even the hardcore gamers, were tilting their bodies when pressing the left/right button. So why not control your snake directly with your own body? The next day I went to the FabLab and only a few minutes later I had my first prototype: two tilt sensors and the breadboard taped to my headphones. But then, I spend the rest of the weekend soldering...
4) Where do you build your projects? Are you part of any “offline” hackerspace?
At home of course and at the FabLab Berlin. They are truly great people!
5) Are you working on other projects at the moment?
Inspired by a project of two italian friends, I also developed this prototype during my course with Reto. I was annoyed of missing my bus or using my smartphone to check the departure time. The Superclock always shows you to the next departure time of your subway, bus or train.
I just moved into my new apartment near U-Bahnhof Weinmeisterstraße. So in my case the dark disc represents the U-8 going south, heading to Boddinstraße. The bright disc stands for Wittenau, the U-8 going north. It's also possible to physically interact with the clock. Let's say you are having breakfast and don’t want to leave right now but in 25 minutes, simply rotate the disc by 150° and let go. The disc will then automatically rotate to the next departure time and set an alarm.
I'll make sure keep you all posted on how this project develops!
6) Haha, that’s a great idea! Well, thanks a lot for these insights! One last question, though: Where can people find you online?
At the moment you can find me on Twitter, Behance, Dribbble, Tumblr and on my own homepage!
"Maker Tales" is an ongoing series on knowable, where we highlight outstanding and interesting Makers and their projects. This time we spoke with Coralie Gourguechon, one of the co-makers of the beautiful „Craft Camera“ – knowable’s current „Project of the Week“
Hello Coralie! Nice to have you here with us. Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
My name is Coralie. I am a product designer form Toulouse, France. I recently finished my studies in the Institute of Fine Arts of Toulouse.
You have a very interesting project on knowable - a DIY camera! Can you tell us a bit more about how this idea came to life?
Well, my aim was to build my own digital camera. The ideas was actually born out of frustration four years ago: I was traveling when both my laptop and my camera broke. I tried to repair it - but it was nearly impossible! I was really frustrated since I didn’t wanted to throw basically brand new products away. Just take the camera for example: It turned out that it was simply a sand corn blocking the zoom. It was nothing, really - but no one was able or willing to repair it!
– Craft Camera
I thought that this is not correct - and I really believe that we should have the option to easily repair our electronic products. With that experience in mind, I decided to build my own digital camera.
Yes, it is really a shame that there seems to be no easy way to repair modern day electronics. So, did you get other people involved in the product and issue, too?
I actually started the Craft Camera as a university project and wanted to use it for my final examen. But just one month before I should have finished the design and product, I noticed how tricky the electronics of this project really were. Fortunately I was able to convince an engineer - Stéphane Delbruel (who was working for Snootlab, a company that is developing Open Hardware products) to help me with it. And shortly after that a friend of mine - Laura Messaglio - who is a graphic designer got involved, too. She wanted to make look a little bit nicer and I think she did a fantastic job!
– The case is made out of cardboard - it doesn't get any simpler
Apart form that collaboration - do you also work in a FabLab or Makerspace?
Yes, sometimes I am going to TetaLab in Toulouse. That is actually the place where I discovered the whole Open Source movement and learned about Makers and Hackers. I honestly didn't knew about the movement when I started the Craft Camera project. But it was really fascinating to see that there are so many people dealing with the same questions and topics as I am.
So after that, did you decide to open source your project?
Yes! We put all the schematics and templates online. Also the links to the shops where you can buy the parts. I actually think that we should also put together a video tutorial of how you can build the camera. This would make it easier for beginners to get started with their own camera. But even without that, you can basically go and build your Craft Camera right now with the schematics and instructions we have online.
– Assembly process
How do you see this project evolve in the future?
I am not sure - it’s a good question. I am wondering that myself, actually. The good thing is, now that the camera is open source the project can live on its own.
There are still some problems that I want to fix, though. Right now the whole camera is a bit expensive. So maybe we could make a custom Arduino shield to lower the price.
The other thing is, that I’d love to make it easier for beginners to construct the camera. As I said: A video tutorial would certainly help.
– Image taken with the CraftCamera
So are you working on other projects as well?
Yes, I am currently developing paper electronics! The idea is to screen print the circuits on a paper. You can think of it as a new kind of cartography: It’s basically a map that helps people build their own electronic products. This idea came to my mind after building the Craft Camera. Unfortunately the Craft Camera is still a “a box with electronic inside”. With this new project I’m hoping to make the whole process of building your own electronic products a bit more transparent.
Well, I am really curious how this will turn out! Thanks you for your time and the interview!
In this interview series, knowable.org highlights inspiring makers and their creative projects. This time we had a little chat with Sven Kräuter, Maker of the Arduino "Rat Pack Remote Control".
1) Tell us, what is your name and what do you do for a living?
Thanks for having me. My name is Sven Kräuter and I work in various fields to earn my living. I am consulting start ups and established companies concerning agile & lean processes, design & build maker artifacts, offer maker / inspiration workshops and I'm a full stack rails developer.
I usually sum this up with "Agent of Change" and the sweet spot of my offerings are the ocassions where two or more sectors intersect, e.g. an agile transformation where I use a maker workshop to open peoples' minds or a tech project where I start to shape the process on the job.
2) So how did you become a Maker?
3) Did you have any mentors? What role did your eduction play for your journey as a Maker?
As mentioned above I think my parents and my surrounding shaped me a lot. I remember the C64 that I had as the first access to computers and programming, my first 386 PC made it necessary to hack hardware a little since I didn't had the budget to buy new one. I remember how baffled I was when I realized I could earn my living with my software skills - back then it was a more or less obscure hobby.
My education in the german public school system and my studies of computer science did not really help too much. It was more like passing tests than really having the time to dive into the subjects. Of course there where rare ocassions like this one math lecture where I used to develop an image compression algorithm from, but most of time cross-lecture projects weren't seen to valuable.
Nowadays I try to turn learning into a better by the workshops I offer. It's about lowering the entry hurdle and making people learn something useful. I love the moments where things start getting "out of control" in terms of the learning agenda and the participants start to develop a true hacker spirit - e.g. the whole group starts playing with the piezos of their Fritzing Kits instead of building the light sensor controlled artifact that's on the agenda. I really love these moments of creative exploration that tend to happen.
So to answer the question: no mentors in a classic way, but quite a lot of people that I work or play with that inspire me. In some cases minds and projects resonate a lot - these ocassions are where I learn and share the most.
4) Alright, tell me more about your project on knowable.org. How did you come up with the idea? How did you get started to make the "Rat Pack Remote Control"?
It started after seeing a talk on Arduino on the European Ruby conference in 2011. Being both interesting but rather basic I thought: if people are interested in blinking lights - how stoked will they be if they see that I use Ruby to turn everyday objects into the "internet of things"?
So I prepared a workshop for just that: Take Arduino hardware, Ruby software and Heroku cloud hosting to build IOT-meshes for free! Although the proposal was rejected from the conference organizers I started to use the things I prepared as the base for an advanced Arduino workshop.
It's called "Rat Pack" because of the frameworks I used: Frank Sinatra, Gene Martin & Sammy Davis jr. were known as the "Rat Pack". So I declared the combination of the Sinatra web framework, italian rooted Arduino & the lean Ruby language as the "Internet of Things' Rat Pack".
It's basically a remote control that uses the internet to switch an led on and off. It's the basic building block that enables you to connect objects online and transform them into social objects.
5) Where do you build your projects? Are you part of any "offline" hackerspace?
We are currently closing down a venture where we bootstrapped a maker / crafter coworking space. With myself being a lean startup practicioner we pivoted according to the value people saw in our products and services. Turned out both the web platform we built and the hacker space we wanted to establish were of lesser interest compared to the workshops we held, the talks we gave and the artifacts we built. This is what one half of us focusses on right now.
We aren't part of a fixed hacker or coworking space. Being connected to various people mostly in Hamburg and Berlin it sometimes feels like we form a cloud of makers, crafters and hackers. For both past time projects and contracting work I usually see if I can motivate the matching peers to cooperate. This is basically my vision of the future of work: less location based coworking, more topic and skill based project groups that build swarms depending on the specific needs.
6) How important is collaboration for you to develop and build your projects?
I usually start with spontaneous prototyping by myself. Then I show this prototype to potential coworkes and let potential users play around with it. The outcomes are a feedback loop and most of the time a small group of practitioner and supporters. At least for the more interesting projects. For software I can bootstrap very efficient and share code for global collaboration on Github. For hardware bootstrapping with Arduino and the likes it is quite efficient too.
Local collaboration works pretty well - what's missing is something like a hardware Github. I use Github to share the Fritzing sketches for the Rat Pack project. It's possible to version the binary sketches there but it's still a platform biased towards software.
7) What is your motivation to share this project with the knowable.org community?
Glad you ask - as I just mentioned I see the necessity of a hardware or let's say artifact based collaboration platform. Knowable currently offers a great sharing experience for step-by-step instructions. I also appreciate the social knowledge transfer aspects but to be honest I see more potential in the artifact collaboration path itself. How awesome would it be to have a "Fork Project" button just like the one on Github?
8) In general, what inspires you to go out and make stuff?
I'm quite curious. I tend to start looking into a lot of things and topics. For example after being a computer scientist who focussed his diploma on software and project management, hardware became kind of a blind spot. At least compared to my process and software skills. Arduino seemed like the perfect entry to get in touch with hardware a little. Connecting these artifacts to distributed cloud systems was quite natural. There we go, Social Objects aka the Internet of Things. This is just one example but basically it's always the same joyful story.
9) If you could give one piece of advice to another Maker, what would you say?
Everybody is capable of being a maker. Woody Alles said the secret to success is "Showing up.". The secret of being a maker is just start making. Be it wood work, patchwork, electronics or whatever inspires you. I always say "from hardware to knitwear" - anything goes. Don't be affraid of breaking things. Just make sure that you do not waste the failure. See what you can learn from the mistakes and find actions to do better next time.
10) One last question: Where can I find you on the www? Any blog, twitter or facebook page?
You can find my blog / website and I'm on facebook too. Find me on Twitter and Github.
If I had a credo or something it would be Make, Share and Connect. So I'm looking forward to hearing and reading from new people. Just "Show up" to quote Woody Allen one last time.
In this new interview series, knowable.org highlights inspiring makers and their creative projects. This time we had a little chat with Laura Bauer, Maker of the [cutest gadget cases available](http://beta.knowable.org/session/en_/wrld/project/view/id/77/)!  **Why don't you introduce yourself to our readers? What is your name and what do you do for a living?** Hello, my name is Laura, also known as Mrs.de-elfjes. As Laura, I am trainig to become a teacher for German and Social Studies in beautiful Bavaria. As Mrs.de-elfjes, I love to sew all kinds of accessories. **How did you get started with sewing?** As a child I loved knitting, crafting and sewing dresses for my dolls by hand. When I saw “The Devil wears Prada“, I fell in love with Patricia Field‘s amazing bag. Of course it was way over my budget, so I searched the internet for a replacement and actually found a sewing tutorial that included the pattern. This is how I found my first German sewing blog and what really got me started. That did it. Since then I'm just diving deeper and deeper into that amazing community and source of inspiration! **Did you have any mentors who supported you on your way to becoming a maker?** I would not say that I have mentors in the literal sense of the word. I guess however my parents and my friends and their support have always had a great deal of influence in my work as a “maker“. They have always supported me, even when me and my brother had occupied our living room for days in an attempt to wrap stuff like Christo did with the Reichstag. At school - or, at least at the school I went to - creativity was never given much room. Art class even at an advanced level always was rather taught in an abstract ways and focused on memorizing art history for example. So that's definitely not where my inspiration and motivation came from. **Yeah, that is really similar to my school experience. But tell me more about your project on knowable.org. What inspired you to make that felt case?** I‘ve been cramming for my final exam and in order to work on my excerpts I have been dragging my laptop and e-reader to and from the library all the time. Carrying those precious gadgets around without any kind of cover or protection is not a good idea. So I set out to create a simple and useful way to protect my gadgets from scratching. I like working with felt and synthetic leather and I also wanted to use very durable materials. My first idea had been to recycle Tetra Paks, but regrettfully, I had to reconsider after a couple of experiments. **Haha, well, damn those stubborn Tetra Paks! Do you work from home or do you belong to any kind of Hackerspace?**  My sewing machine lives between kitchen and bedroom – that‘s the only space I could find in our small apartment. Right now I work on my own but I would love to be part of some kind of community or network, though. Working together in one space exchanging ideas sounds great. Well, you never know what the future may hold. **So, how important is collaboration in general for your projects?** Well, most of my projects I develop and design on my own. When they are finished I share them with the readers of my blog: Their feedback is very important to me! **What is your motivation to share this project with the knowable.org community?**
I tried to create a project that could appeal to men and women equally. I would love to see gender stereotypes shift in the area of DIY.
I think knowable.org is an amazing idea, since it‘s a library of ideas for both women and men. I think it‘s really too bad that sewing is so strongly dominated by women and men rarly use a sewing machine creatively. This is the reason, I tried to create a project that could appeal to men and women equally. I would love to see gender stereotypes shift in the area of DIY. And I think the work you are doing at knowable.org is great. Offering men and women from less advantaged regions of the world the opportunity to access this library in a simple way is a fantastic idea! **What inspires you to go out and make stuff?** Lots of things! Most of the time, I realize I need something - like for example a cover for my e-reader - and then I usually think, why buy when I can make something myself? **If you could give one piece of advice to another Maker, what would you say?** Just make it! Don‘t overthink it! **One last question: Where can I find you on the www? Any blog, twitter or facebook page?** You can find me at [mrs-de-elfjes.blogspot.de](http://mrs-de-elfjes.blogspot.de) and [on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mrs-de-elfjes/191649370906122)!  If you feel inspired, [check out how you can make your own felt case on knowable.org](http://beta.knowable.org/session/en_/wrld/project/view/id/77/)!
