Cameron

Journal entries imported from the previous iteration of wisrd.org

CAMERON

February 6, 2018
We have recently started a historical virtual reality project in Unreal Engine by Epic Games. The purpose of this project is to display the capabilities of virtual reality in education, as well as provide an immersive experience for virtual reality users. We have also found ways to incorporate and apply mathematics while working on this project. The blueprint scripts that are used to program in Unreal Engine are similar to algebraic functions, and the realistic sound that we applied includes logarithmic functions. I have also worked with sound waves and sound cues in order to apply them to the map. In order to generate realistic ambient sound, a sound must be put in a blueprint script and told to loop indefinitely. A specific sound is given the ability to loop indefinitely when the audio file is put in a blueprint and connected to a looping attribute, then to the output. We have also started working on realistic attributes within NPC characters such as dialogue and free-roaming movement. The NPC characters will provide historic insight and context for the historical period that we are conveying through dialogue.

As for today, I continued research on the dialogue system and widget blueprints, which are used in the creation of a user interface, and updated my journal with previous tasks that we have completed or working on.

October 10, 2017

We have had some troubles with uploading the app to the google play store, due to the inclusion of the Wildwood logo in our app. Google Play believes that we have violated the terms of service because we don’t have the rights to the Wildwood logo. On that note, we have cropped the newly designed WISRD logo to only display the circular logo, resized it to different dimensions, and uploaded to the Google Play console. We are now waiting to see if our app is accepted or rejected.

October 9, 2017
Updates

We have extensively improved and made progress on the virtual cancer cell since my last update. We have been able to add details such as textures, lighting, and even music.
Process

Inside the Cancer Cell

We built the cancer cell by initially adding a large hollow cylinder as a reference for the outline of the walls of the vein. We then created a flattened sphere, added a red vein texture and duplicated it multiple times. After this process, we took the duplicated spheres and covered the walls with them.

The red blood cells and main cancer cell were modeled in Google Sketchup and Autodesk Fusion 360, and the white blood cells were modeled in Unity.

As for the lighting, we used point lights, which send out light in all directions equally from a point of space, acting as our overall source of light. However, we used spotlights for more detailed objects such as the red blood cells, the white blood cells, and the cancer cell itself.

Download Now Available
We have now uploaded our project to the Google Play Store. Our project is compatible with Google Cardboard and Android Devices.

Updates coming soon.

August 31, 2017

Summer Work

This summer, I took a Unity class with Will B, Remy W, and Kai S. With the knowledge that we gained, we were able to virtualize our school gallery space. We initially virtualized our gallery space to experiment with virtual reality, and prove that these technologies can be used throughout school. The virtual gallery space consists of pictures of the art in virtual space, so the person putting on the show can view his or her art in the virtual space before they determine where they want the art to be. Another way of using this technology is that the actual viewer of the show can see it in virtual space to get another perspective and experience. The virtualized space contains aspects such as pop-up text, pop-up movies, and audio consisting of the explanation of the art piece. All these interactive features are the result of “trigger box colliders.” Trigger box colliders identify a collision with another object within a certain space, and perform an output action as a result. For example, the pop-up text in our gallery is due to a trigger box collider. When it detects the person in virtual space colliding with the area which was set, it uses it as a queue and the action that is the result of it is the text popping up in front of the person. The distance required to trigger the text popping up can be changed by simply increasing or decreasing the size of the box.
Links
Virtualization

Will
Remy
Kai

August 28, 2017

Overview/Plans for this year

This year in WISRD, my primary focus is on the Virtual/Augmented Reality project. So far this year, the VR/AR team is looking to recruit new students to assist on the various projects such as the Virtualization of a Cancer Cell, the project that I am currently the most focused on. As for my contributions to the virtualization process, I am looking to apply my knowledge that I gained over the summer about the program Unity to assist in the design process of the program. My overall goal this year in WISRD is to become less dependent on others to complete certain tasks of a project. This year, I will make steps to improve this dependency by striving to do extra work on projects, and make a greater effort to gain more knowledge on the subject being researched.

Updates concerning the Virtualization of a Cancer Cell project coming shortly.

March 21, 2017

The wind tunnel is now mounted up on the wall. We are also beginning the process of printing cups for an anemometer that will run inside the tunnel to measure the wind speed of the fans.

February 3, 2017

Today, with the help of Jacob we have measured and cut two blocks of wood to elevate two of the four motors. The reason that we are elevating only elevating two motors is because to proceed with the layering method, which prevents the propellors from colliding, we need to make the propellors spin at different heights.
January 31, 2017

Future Plans and Goals 

In the near future, we will fasten the frame and mount the wind tunnel to the wall in order to increase the convenience of working on the circuitry. We plan to mount the wind tunnel above the window.

Using an anemometer, we will also find the maximum wind speed for the 3D printed propellers to see if they are capable of running high speeds.

January 25, 2017

Today we have finally started printing the propellors:

January 6, 2017

We have made the decision to 3D print our propellors and will begin the design aspect today. We plan on taking a previous template for a turbine and refining it so it fits our particular type of motor.

January 3, 2017 

Today we are working on ordering the final parts of the frame, which will be used to finish the physical aspect of the model. As far as the rest of the project, we are soon going to be working with Cayenne and setting up LCD panels to display an exact measurement of the resistance acting upon the currents supplying power to the motors.

December 16, 2016

Today, Kai and I have set up and wired the motors to frame. We have ran and tested the motors and they are working well, and we are currently using a potentiometer to control the speed of them. Our next step is to make sure that the frame is secure and fasten the motors to it. We have temporarily rested the frame on the wind tunnel.

December 14, 2016
Kai and I have started attaching the motors to the frame and cutting wires accordingly.

December 9, 2016

Update-Kai and I have created a prototype design for the circuitry and a finalized the code for the motors.

12-6-16

So far with the wind tunnel project Kai and I are in progress building the frame for the four motors and fans. Kai created a rough design of how we think the frame should look like, and we are currently gathering supplies for the final product. The frame will be designed to split into four separate regions that will each have separate fans and motors on them, and the overall frame will be made out of plywood.

3D Model of a Basic Frame Design (Side View)

3D Model of a Basic Design for the Frame (Top View)

As for the programming aspect we are experimenting with a website called circuits.io, which allows us to test our programming for the fans and motors and get more familiar with the subject. We are also reading a book called Motors for Makers, which is teaching us more about motor mechanics.

11-11-16

So far this year I have worked on projects such as learning HTML, and working with the Arduino circuit board with Kai. Arduino is an open-source electronics platform that allows you to program an input to produce a certain output. Using the Arduino software, Kai and I are currently designing and building wind turbines for a wind tunnel that another group is building. We are constructing the turbines with spare motors and drone propellors, and programming an on/off switch for the turbine with a software called Cayenne, which allows us to control the turbines from wireless devices such as phones and computers. This project is contributing mainly to the WISRD aerodynamics lab because we are collaborating with other people to create one big project that will allow us to conduct further research on this particular subject.

8-31-16

Being a new member of WISRD, I am curious to learn and discover new things and have a better understanding for the projects WISRD conducts so I can be a help to the institute. Here are some of the learning outcomes I wish to achieve:

-I would like to learn HTML, to have a good understanding of computer programming so I can learn other languages of code and help with projects.

-I want to do some work on the 3D printer and figure out how it works, as well as learn how to master programs like Tinkercad.

-I would also like to help conduct a project and learn more about astronomy.

Here are some of the things that I have started doing:

I have helped salvage parts from old keyboards, computers, and mice