Sensing Ideas - Alex Alspaugh and Jack Sinclair

Of the three directions, which one have you chosen? Please restate it, in case you need to be more specific, or it has changed.

Out of our three situations (getting ready for bed / waking up in the morning, feeling lonely when you live alone, and sitting on a public bench), we have chosen to pursue the question of, "What if a public bench could interpret a moment?". This question could apply to many different situations (e.g.: sitting alone at a viewpoint, or sitting with a friend at a museum), and could react to each differently, varying the output. We chose this concept due to the how open-ended the output can be and the many ways the one, or rather a bench can interpret a moment.

What signals will you be sensing in order to detect your situation? What medium (light, vibration, sound, heat, radio waves, etc) does this signal move through?

To aid in our goal of a public bench being able to interpret a moment we have decided to use time and weather to help define the situation and place the bench is in to give context to the moment. To activate the bench we want to detect when a person is sitting on the bench for an amount of time using pressure or proximity sensors.

Please make a suggestion of 2-3 possible sensors for each signal you wish to detect. Try your best to link to actual sensors online.

Time

1. Arduino Time Library

Weather

1. Sparkfun Weather:Bit
2. Temperature Sensor Breakout Board
3. DHT11 Basic Temperature-Humidity Sensor

Person Sitting

1. Piezo Vibration Sensor
2. Square Force-Sensitive Resistor
3. Ultrasonic Sensor