Hello there people,
I am an architecture student from Greece, currently on my thesis project, where, I want to create a kinetic spacegrid/canopy. You can see CG pictures of it here now|here (Experimental kinetic space grid simulation)
and an hd video here Experimental kinetic space grid simulation (processing - grasshopper) - YouTube
My intention is to make this interactive using something like kinect, to read people inside it, and produce reactions by the grid.
I want to do something like that, a grid the nodes of which can move in XYZ directions in space, and I have to make working a model of it.
For a hypothetical 1:1 realization I was thinking of hydraulic linear actuators. For my project, I have to build a model, probably around 1:20 scale, so I am thinking of linear actuators, or "home made actuators" build to resemble the large hydraulic ones. ( a double cylinder, with a spring inside it, and a threat connecting the spring to a stepper motor to control the force compressing it.)
I don't need this thing to be able to bear huge loads. I am in some distress, because I don't know from where to start, and what to buy.
Given that I would need at least a dozen, maybe a couple dozens, the cost of buying these, actuators or steppers goes up high.
So my question is,
-what kind of machinery would you propose for this project (steppers, actuators or something else)
-if you know where I can find cheap ones (actuators retail for something like 100$ each, not including the driver) - given also that I am in Europe, (of course I am interested in something that can be controlled by arduino)
-if you know of motor drivers that can control as much of the above as possible (I couldn't find motor drivers that control more than 3 components, so this wat I end up with 4-8 expensive drivers to do the job, which I think is not very practical)
thats all,
thanks in advance
constantinos