“SHISHA” - Originating from the centuries-old Rajasthani folktales, ballads and folk songs, Puppeteering is one of the oldest art forms. It is the perfect way to blend the art of storytelling with messages. The puppet shows mirror the needs and beliefs of the society. It mirrors the fantasies of all who control it. Similarly, Shisha will be the mirror of your thoughts. Her actions are yours to make. Her decisions are yours to take. So let the story unfold with every move and shake.
Project “Sisha” was done during the physical computing module, our brief was to make an interactive installation. This project uses a Kinect sensor to track human gestures and replicate it to a puppet controlled by an Arduino, servo motor, and contraption.
ABOUT PROJECT
MY AIM
Places where "Sisha" can be installed
Reviving
tradition
Incorporating
Technology
Installation
Interactive
Shopping mall
Airport
Metro station
Process
Reviving the traditional art form of puppetry by making it interactive with the user or the viewer. Traditionally puppets are being controlled by the puppeteer and the audience sits back and enjoys the shows. With the help of technology, my thought was of giving this wonderful age-old art form a modern twist by making it interactive for the users. The interactive nature of the puppet gives the users a chance to explore the world of puppetry by themselves making it an experience that will last even after they’ve left the kiosk.
construct
Kinect
Arduino
Servo motor
Mini breadboard
how does it work?
Human
Kiosks installed
in public places
A person needs to stand in front of the kiosk till the Kinect detects their skeletal, and then start moving their hands(the upper body) for the puppet to mirror their actions
TECHNICALLY HOW IT WORKS
Step 1
Step 2
Done in processing
Sketch
Final contraption assembled with all the components
Kinect scans the human body and creates a skeletal. Processing collects the raw data from the kinect with respect to the output screen size and the skeletal data
right shoulder: 32
elbow: 171
left shoulder: 32
elbow: 175
Calculates angle of elbow
and shoulder
(to make the value absolute)
Converts into single digit numerical data 0,1,2,3 (Otherwise the arduino will be overwhelmed with data)
Arduino controls the servo motors rotation based on the conditional statement with the numerical value 0,1,2,3
Each arduino is connected to two servo motors. and with the received data from the arduino, the two servo motor rotates to control one arm of the puppet
Finally the servos are attched to a custome made contraptionto controll one arm of the puppet.
The servos run the rack and pinion and the spool to translate rotational motion to linear motion.
Contraption design
Above: 3D model
Below: Prototype (Laser cut and 3D printed)
Finally setting up shisha
Exhibition
Ps. I had a lot of fun making the puppet
National Institute of Design, Bangalore