MAJ: Looking Outwards #6

PIR Motion Sensor

The PIR Motion Sensor, as its name suggests, is able to sense motion. According to Adafruit’s description, this sensor is typically used to tell if a human has moved into or out of the sensor’s range. I think it would be interesting to create a room with an object in the middle having elements that are triggered by multiple PIR Motion Sensors. As one approaches the object, the lighting would change, and as they got closer to the object, ominous music would begin to play. Such a setup could make something as harmless as a bowl seem threatening.

TTL Serial Camera

The TTL Serial Camera is both a snapshot and a video camera, capable of capturing images at resolutions up to 640×480. I’d love to hook this up to a robot or display that uses face tracking to identify when someone is looking at the object (display/robot), and have the object move around wildly when not observed. Essentially, one has to spy on the object to be able to observe its true nature. As the TTL Serial Camera can also be used as a motion detector, one could make the previously mentioned object act wildly only when it senses that no one is watching and nothing is moving.

While the PIR Motion Sensor and the TTL Serial Camera are capable of similar feats when it comes to sensing motion, it seems that the PIR Motion Sensor would be best for something binary, such as if someone has entered or exited a threshold, while the TTL Serial Camera might be better for something with a relatively infinite amount of possibilities, such as where someone is and how close they are relative to the camera.

(I acknowledge I have no experience implementing these devices, thus my assumptions regarding their capabilities may be incorrect.)