Cubecube by bryancera

Last crawled date: 3 years ago

CUBECUBE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJREy4lCCQA
Cubecube is a tangible, tactile interface for CAD (computer-aided drafting.) As open source design platforms continue to emerge, there is an opportunity to explore new possibilities in how we create. The Cubecube project aims to investigate the question: If there were a platform for using your hands to build three-dimensional computer models, what might it look like?
Cubecube is open source. Source code for firmware and software, along with hardware designs and schematics, are available for free download on the internet. The current prototype is built completely around open-source creative platforms: its hardware is designed in Fritzing and connects with an Arduino Nano; its firmware is written in Arduino; its software is written in Processing. Full build instructions have been published on Instructables.com, which include step-by-step instructions with photos, a bill of materials, necessary files, and useful links to anyone interested in participating in this project.
The system behind Cubecube is simple. Its building blocks each contain a tiny resistor, and as they are stacked in parallel over a voltage divider, a change in voltage can be read by a microcontroller. Four analog multiplexers break the Nano’s inputs out into 64 discrete channels. Each channel, arranged into an 8x8 grid, reads a changing voltage determined by the number of cubes in the stack. The current prototype supports up to 640 cubes.
The Cubecube firmware and software, written by Kavinath Laud, was built in Arduino and Processing. The Cubecube Processing app utilizes Marius Watz’s Modelbuilder libraries to facilitate export of STL (stereo lithography) format files. This makes it easy to interface directly with any 3-D printer system, and allows a user to extend Cubecube’s functionality with third party CAD environments.
The back-end of Cubecube is versatile. While designed as a CAD interface, it can be modified for any number of hardware-interface projects or experiments. Because it is designed with accessibility in mind, Cubecube can easily be hacked, iterated, appropriated or otherwise re-purposed. The open source framework it was built around gives anyone the tools to make Cubecube their own.
Cubecube makes creating 3-D computer models as simple as building with blocks. The simplicity of its front-end allows for anyone who can grasp and stack objects the ability to engage with digital fabrication methodologies, and the accessibility of its back-end provides a starting point for further experimentation in the realm of tactile CAD interfaces. Cubecube offers a different way of thinking about computer-aided design, and provides a strange but familiar platform for creating.