nixfiles:you are here:burning man 2004 plan

Installing You are Here on the playa


NEW 3d images of the arches

you are here home page.
descriptions written for the bm art installation form.
youarehere mailing list on topica

the big picture

Two large arches, aligned to the compass points, cross to form an open dome 20 feet in diameter. At night, red el-wire outlines the shape of the dome. Hanging from the arches is a flat-panel computer display. The display acts like a magic window: whichever way it is pointing, it shows an x-ray view of the earth and stars. If a participant holds the monitor up to the sky, they see the stars, constellations, and planets - even during the day. Looking out at the horizon, the outlines of the ranges surrounding the black rock desert are visible, as are the outlines of black rock city's streets and the location of the man. Looking down, you see the undersides of the continents of the southern hemisphere, and the southern constellations beyond that. At night you can look down and see the sun on the other side of the earth.

hanging display

The display and orientation sensor hang from the N-S coupling at the center of the dome.

The suspension is from a single point to allow easy rotation through the azimuth. Part of the suspension is a bungee or other elastic cord to allow shorter people to pull the screen down, and to assist taller people in raising the screen up. Slack is provided in the power, video, and sensor cables.

The bracket attaches to the display and sensor using the VESA mounting holes on the back of the monitor.

The spacer bar reduces the total length of the suspension, increasing the maximum height of the display.

task list

(note that this doesn't include code changes, which i am keeping in a separate text file).

SUPPORT ARCHES
arch spans
the arch spans are made from four 90 degree arcs of rectangular aluminum tubing.
the radius of the north and south pieces is 9 feet, giving a length of 14.1 ft.
the radius of the east and west arcs is 9 feet plus one tubing width to accomodate the N-S arch plus the width of the fitting between the two arches.
there may be uncurved parts at the ends of each arc to facilitate coupling. won't look quite as nice but whatever.
tubing will be something like 1" x 2" or 1.5" x 3", and 0.125" thickness.
from onlinemetals.com:
180" aluminum rect tube 1" x 2" x 0.125" $81 about 0.8 lb/ft 0.9% elongation at 9ft diameter
180" aluminum rect tube 1.5" x 3" x 0.125" $88 about 1.2 lb/ft 1.4% elongation at 9ft diameter
possible sources: box shop has tube bender - what capacity?
arch couplings several arch fittings are required.
night lighting red is used in an attempt to preserve night vision.
the arches are traced out with red el wire
there is a red led at the "north pole"
maybe illuminate the ground with deep red leds?
BENCH AND SHADE
shade the south end of the dome should have shadecloth on it. the shadecloth could conceivably cover the entire "southern hemisphere" of the dome, from the equatorial arch down to the ground. this would provide a shady area during the day.
putting in some curved pvc ribs to keep the spherical shape would look nicer.
ideally this would be removable for a clearer view at night.
box / bench at the south end of the dome, shielded by the shadecloth, there should be a box for supplies. ideally this would also be a padded bench big enough to lie down on.
even more ideally, the outside edge of the bench would be cut to a crescent shape that fits in the shape of the whole sphere.
better yet, the bench would lock securely enough to store equipment in there (sometimes?) when unattended.
computer box need a dustproof enclosure for a small-form-factor (shoebox-shape) computer. this is probably a plywood box, with a large air filter on one end and an exhaust fan on the other.
DISPLAY
display suspension the display should be suspended so that it is at eye level 5'8" (?). part of the suspension should be elastic so that it can be pulled down further, and so that it will be easier to lift higher
new display? want a new display:
orientation sensor mount the sensor is attached to the back of the display with machine screws matching the standard VESA 75mm x 75mm monitor mount. the screws also pass through the bracket which suspends the screen from above.
cords the following cords go to the display: - 120VAC power - cat5 serial + 12VDC power for orientation sensor - VGA cable
display frame it would be good to have a frame that fits around the display that would:
empty frame when the installation is unattended, the monitor and computer will be elsewhere (or possibly locked under the bench). hang an empty-frame where the display would be normally.
joystick control a joystick on the monitor would allow you to change your altitude, which is very compelling.
this requires mounting the joystick on the monitor somehow, and getting the signal back to the computer.
GENERATOR
generator 1000 watt quiet honda generator
generator fuel
30 liters = 50 hours at full throttle
20 gal = 75 liters = 120 hours at full throttle.
generator baffle simple wooden box, open on bottom and on one side. possible additional sound insulation. simple flashing light marker for nighttime.
MISCELLANEOUS TASKS
local geographical data got an illustrator file of the city from rod garrett and did some half-assed georeferencing on it. here's the result:
need to work on reading the 3d model of the man created by andy johnstone for his playa flight simulator.
structure setup rehearsal set up the support structure, screen, and computer somewhere dark. invite people.
the perseid shower is 8/11-12.
transportation i'm planning to rent a pickup truck with a rack on top for transportation to the playa.
on-playa, art cars will be needed when transporting the computer/screen/generator to and from the site.
on the playa visit the artery at center camp to find placement.
not sure how many people are required to set it up yet.
supplies some supplies that should always be present for the docent: