musicalplayground

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The ‘Super Mario Bros.’ Theme Song on Marimba by percussionist Aaron DeWayne.

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Here is the video for this project! Enjoy!

[musicalplayground]

Final Photographs

Welcome to the final photographs of my model! Below, you will find the fully staged images of the model in its completed state, as well as an overhead view describing the ground zones and what each structure is.

Thank you for sticking with me! The next post will include my completed guide video, so please check that out once it's up!

All of the above pictures are various angles of the final model. Below, you will find two top-views: one labeling the structures, one labeling the ground zones.

The sound effects that each area triggers are as follows:

Swings: Harp (piped in through speaker) Walls: Cello and Bass All Rope Structures: Bells (there will be small bells actually attached to each structure, allowing for an ambient “wind chime” effect in wind, calling people to experiment) Rock Wall: Marimba  (piped in through speaker) Slide: Violin (descending trilled scale)  (piped in through speaker) Bridge: Xylophone (each plank makes its own sound as if you were stepping on the xylophone keys)  (piped in through speaker) Monkey Bars: Flute  (piped in through speaker) Climbing Bars: Wind over hollow tube (as if you were blowing over bottles filled with various amounts of water)  (piped in through speaker) Cylinders: Brass (pitch and instrument depends on size and height of tube. Smallest=trumpet, small-medium=trombone, medium-large=french horn, large=tuba)  (piped in through speaker)

The sound effect each zone triggers are as follows:

Zone 1: Snare drums Zone 2: Bongos Zone 3: Cymbal Zone 4: Bass Drums

Introduction Post Guide  FAQ References

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Iteration 3

Now is the time to build! Over the course of approximately 15 hours, I turned the diagrams I showed you before into a small model. Please bear in mind that I'm not an architect, so unfortunately my model is not to the correct scale that it should be, but it is close within certain sections. Below you will find pictures of the model in various stages of completion. In the next post I will provide the final pictures of the model in its completely finished stage!

Enjoy!

This is the basic blueprint that I made approximately “to scale” for me to work off of in the building process.

These pictures show my progress as I built the rope climbing structure.

This was taken after I finished the rope structure and tube, as I was starting to build the first fort.

This was taken after I had finished building both forts as well as the bridge, monkey bars, and net underneath them. At this point, I was just beginning to build the cllimbing bar structure.

This was taken after I finished the climbing structure.

This was taken swings and walls were installed.

These were taken at the completion of the model, after the cylinders were installed as well.

You’ll notice that this design differs slightly from the original blueprints I posted. This is because the model worked out differently spatially than I had expected, so I had to modify the placement of things to adjust for those changes. This changes the zoning for the ground pressure plates as well. A final map of that will be posted in the next update.

Thanks!

Introduction Post Guide  FAQ References

[musicalplayground]

Iteration 2

This is the second iteration of my diagram. At this point in time, I’m still deciding how I’m going to model this project for presentation. On the one hand, I could create a physical model of the park. However interesting it would be, I would lose the camera interactivity that I would have if I created a 3d model. Similarly, this could potentially become damaged in transit to the final presentation. Alternatively, creating a 3d model would be more versatile and less fragile. I could easily zoom in and out of certain aspects of the design, as well as easily make changes to different structures without having to potentially destroy a physical model. This, however, will lose the impact of a physical presentation, and it would be far more difficult to present in the correct time as I would not be able to present the 3d model on the hardware I have; I would instead have to take pictures and present the pictures instead. We’ll see how it goes once I’ve finished designing the internal structures of each object.

This is a rough rendering in photoshop what an overhead view would look like. In red, you can see labels as to what each object is.

In this image, the black lines are the basic shapes of the overall objects. The green represents items that are below the black “top” objects, such as protective netting and extra interactive bars for expanded play. The yellow dots are places where the black structures connects with the ground in some way, be it directly or with a pole/strut as the connection. Beneath each of the forts, there is a network of bars that can be climbed on and around.

This image depicts the “ground zones,” which is to say the different areas the ground is divided into for musical purposes. There are pressure plates spread throughout the cushioned ground that, when stepped on, produce one of several percussion sounds. Zone one produces elongated snare sounds, zone two produces low bass drum sounds, zone three produces cymbal crashes, and zone four produces bongo sounds. Each of these zones and sound types have several iterations of its type of sound that can be produced, each tied to its own set of pressure sensors. There will be speakers spread throughout the structures that produce each area and structure’s sounds.

Introduction Post Guide  FAQ References

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Iteration 1

For lack of a better title, this is the first selection of advancements to this project! What that means is that this is my “first draft,” if you will, for the final project, which means that this will be a rough outline of what I’m hoping to design.

To start off, this project is going to be larger than the original. Much larger. Instead of having just a rope structure and a pressure ground, those will be smaller features of a larger playground. This larger playground will feature many aspects of standard playgrounds with some more “raw” elements mixed in, such as climbing bars and walls. The goal is to create an interesting and dynamic space that can be used for a variety of purposes, allowing the user to stretch their creativity along with their muscles.

This sketch represents a basic template for what is to come. It outlines possible sounds for different aspects of the playground itself, depending on the area that is being interacted with.

Stay tuned for more!

Introduction Post Guide  FAQ References 

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Original Paper

Below the cut, you will find my original documentation on the first iteration of the project, including the references originally used. If you’re interested in more detail about the original project, please look here!

Introduction Post Guide FAQ References

Musical Playground

The experience we designed is rooted in the elements of air and earth. Using sound and physical activity as the “draws,” we designed a climbing structure that encourages participants to move around the platform and the structure to create music with their movement using pressure plates of various kinds, our structure will make different sounds the higher up a person climbs, as well as make different sounds depending on where they move around the base. As the person ascends the tower, they will be able to experience multiple bell tones (InspectorJ). Around the base, there will be a variety of marimba tones (nickgar). Each of these sounds has a “base” tone that is pure from the recording, as well as 5 alternatives that have been pitched up and down in units of one semi-tone.

Climbing structure at Mesa Riverview Park as seen in East Valley Mom Guide’s article “Mesa’s Riverview Park: A Great Park for a Kid’s Birthday Party”

Using the climbing structure at Mesa Riverview as inspiration, our structure will be a system of ropes that connect to pull-type pressure plates with sensors set to a specific threshold. When the pressure on the rope exceeds a certain threshold, it will trigger a sound to play through the speakers within the central structure. There will be sensors throughout the structure at each level, and each will trigger a slightly different sound. This will create an interesting experience for users as they climb higher on the structure, encouraging them to move higher and play on the structure to create an interesting composition of sounds based upon their movement. This activity represents the “air” aspect of this project; users will be encouraged to move about in an air space higher than they normally exist and experience the wind and the world from a different perspective. The same principle will hold true for the “earth” aspect of this experience. There will be pressure plates in different areas of the ground as well that will trigger different sounds and encourage participants to move around in ways they may not have before.

This project is also partially inspired by the concept of musical stairs, which now exist in many locations across the country. The stairs are designed to encourage physical activity by making climbing stairs an interesting and unusual activity. One study performed by DePauw University student Meagan Combs showed that stairs that made noise when users walked on them experienced more usage than stairs that were silent. In the same vein, TheFunTheory.com found that by adding piano music and visuals to a staircase in Stockholm, Sweden, 66% more people used the stairs than before the change. This same principle can be applied in this case to engage the users in participating in the climbing structure we will be creating.

While this project is centered around interactivity with the earth and the air, it is also aimed at inspiring the user to think about activity. It is widely known that, in the United States, obesity is an increasing problem. Not only did the prevalence of obesity double across the world from 1980 to 2008 (Imes 2014), but the Center for Disease Control and Prevention even stated that in 2011 and 2012, 69% of adults twenty years or older in America were considered overweight or obese.

While this project would serve its purpose in the short run, there is no telling how well it would fair in the long run. Each of the studies cited prior exist over spans of less than a month, and thus we do not know how much of the increased usage can be attributed to novelty. This is our primary concern in the execution of this project. Secondarily, while evidence suggests increased usage for objects that are audibly engaging, there is little to no research on how well the principle applies to this nature of activity (which is to say, optional activity).

Later on, this project can be expanded to include a wider variety of sounds and activities. While we have only created one climbing structure and two sound types, it would be easy to adapt this idea to an entire playground and a symphony of sounds. Additionally, this idea could be applied not only to playground activities, but more mundane activities as well, such as the sidewalks around the park.

References

Combs, Meagan, "Musical Stairs: Encouraging Physical Activity through Persuasive Technology" (2015). Student research. Paper 24. https://scholarship.depauw.edu/studentresearch/24/

East Valley Mom Guide. “Mesa’s Riverview Park: A Great Park for a Kid’s Birthday Party.” East Valley Mom Guide, N.D., eastvalleymomguide.com/mesas-riverview-park-great-park-kids-birthday-party/.

Imes, C., & Burke, L. (2014). The Obesity Epidemic: The USA as a Cautionary Tale for the Rest of the World. Current Epidemiology Report, (1), 82-88. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4066984/

InspectorJ. Hand Bells, F, Single.wav, InspectorJ. Freesound, freesound.org/people/InspectorJ/sounds/339816/.

“National Center for Health Statistics.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3 May 2017, www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/obesity-overweight.htm.

Nickgar. Marimba3.wav, Nickgar. Freesound, freesound.org/people/nickgar/sounds/120541/.

Rolighetsteorin, “Piano Stairs - TheFunTheory.com - Rolighetsteorin.se.” YouTube, 7 Oct. 2009, youtu.be/2lXh2n0aPyw.

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Background/Similar Work

As I had mentioned before, the idea of an adult playground has been done before. This is easily seen in the initial example of Mesa Riverview Park, but it is also similarly seen in places like St. Louis, Missouri’s City Museum, which features large play structures within a museum setting.

http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/06/city-museum/

This location is unique because it incorporates all of the features of a museum (history, learning, etc.) into an interesting and playful environment. And, Like Mesa Riverview, this location is designed for people of all ages to participate in its enjoyment.

These play structures, however, are far from perfect, thus this project. Mesa Riverview is open and inviting, but playing on the structures (to me) is a short fulfillment. You simply climb to the top of the structure, and then descend the structure. There is definitely more to do if you have the creativity and experience, but it’s not dynamic or engaging. While the City Museum fulfills a more creative aspect, it’s still a museum that requires paid entry. It is not a location that is easy to access on a regular basis because of this, so it does not continue long-term returns.

There are multiple ways that this can be combated, one of which is through the addition of more stimuli (in this case, sound). This can be seen through several studies, most notably in the popular project in Sweden that turned a set of stairs in the subway into a piano. In the video they posted to Youtube, it is easy to see that the stairs received far more use after being converted into a keyboard.

Similarly, Meagan Combs from DePauw University performed a similar study within her university. In her experiment, Combs discovered that her set of stairs were used far more frequently when they made music (either guitar strums or piano notes) than when they were silent.

Introduction Post Guide FAQ References

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Original Concept

So this project was based upon a much smaller iteration of it, which was a single play structure. This structure was based on the climbing web at Mesa Riverview park, visible here:

https://eastvalleymomguide.com/mesas-riverview-park-great-park-kids-birthday-party/

The theme that we worked with was generalized “elements,” which we ended up stretching a little to encompass interaction with the sky and earth through musical activity. By climbing high into the sky, you create music as you interact with and explore it more than you would normally. Similarly, interaction with the earth comes in the form of pressure plates in the ground that create music based on where you walk.

The original concept that we developed was that the same sort of structure as the one at Riverview, but with pressure sensors at various locations on the central pole itself. The way this would work is that when someone put pressure on the cable connected to a sensor, a bell tone would play through a speaker in the pole as well. The tone would change based on the level the person was playing at on the structure, creating a dynamic experience that encouraged continued play and exploration.

You’ll notice that the original concept discussed above did not include the pressure plates in the ground. That portion of the project developed later, as we decided to expand the scope a bit. We decided to use the same premise as the tower itself with a different set of sounds to encourage play on the ground as well.

All of this wraps together in a big bundle of musical play. Using pressure plates and various sounds, we created an environment that would encourage activity and interaction with the world, but only on a small scale. 

More to come later!

Introduction Post Guide FAQ References

[musicalplayground]

Hello World!

Hello! My name is Micaela Gardner, and this is the blog for a project that I’m working on for one of my university courses. Over this blog, I will be posting updates depicting my design process for this project, including (but not limited to) pictures, sounds, text, and videos. If you have any questions, please see the information below.

Thanks!

Introduction Post Guide FAQ References