Author Archives: gbernal

δ(μN) Dynamic Friction Polymer

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Friction is resistance for objects in motion, and is a material property for every object in our world.  We propose a new material that is capable of changing it’s coefficient of friction as needed to achieve a specific goal; a Dynamic Friction Polymer.  DFP inherits parameters and rules from Finite Elements Software allowing it to change it’s properties and optimize it’s behavior accordingly.

We envision DFP having a use in hardware at home, the tire manufacturing industry, or even the flooring industry. We envision DFP functioning by measuring the weight of the object and it’s position on the material.  If DFP finds an increase in weight, it increases the friction; if it finds movement in the object, it decreases the friction while taking into consideration the speed of the movement and the original weight of the object – the faster the movement is, and the heavier the object is, the more friction is reduced.

final_project_presentation1

Dynamic Friction Polyemr-reportV1

http---makeagif.com--media-12-11-2013-Sn8sB9 (1) http---makeagif.com--media-12-11-2013-rKJY0F

Team:

Xu wang: Concept Development, Fabrication

Wanli Cheng: Concept Development, Fabrication

Guillermo Bernal:Concept Development, Visualizations.

 

Project 1: Hatlas

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Navigating a city, unfamiliar or not, can be a difficult experience. Between folded paper maps, gps navigation systems, and existing street rules, getting from Point A to Point B can be stressful and time-consuming (inconvenient?). Especially for a cyclist. 3G GPS and paper maps are designed for pedestrians, GPS units such as Garmin are designed for motor vehicles where you can easily view and interact with a screen. Cyclists however, do not have this luxury. Navigating while riding a bike causes many problems. (stopping to look at phone/map, trying to ride while looking at phone, etc in video). Hatlas is a device that combines exteroceptive sensory interaction with GPS navigation. It is a technology that rethinks the map, and helps cyclists navigate the city safely. It connects GPS signals from your smartphone,sending the data to the helmet before starting the journey. The itinerary is inputted to the helmet, allowing you to access directions hands-free while cycling. There are 8 output devices built into the helmet that subtly vibrate when a turn is approaching, giving the cyclist enough time signal and follow the route. The motors inside the helmet directionally correspond with the GPS directions and create a transition of vibration sensors that allow cyclists to easily navigate their itinerary without having to stop and check their phone or try to ride and look at the directions with one hand. Each route can also be logged into the helmet, and transferred back to your smartphone and saved as a regular destination. These destinations could also be shared with other cyclists, that way everyone knows how to get to the same destination from different locations, creating a community and social platform between cyclists to enhance safety and communication.

 

Presentation:Hatlas

Presentation Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjCg6V0JAhA

Prototype Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gih8Xblx-Jc

 

Screen Shot 2013-10-19 at 6.41.13 PM Screen Shot 2013-10-19 at 6.40.46 PM IMG_0528 Proto_Helmets-01

 

 

Project Zero: Sharing Haptic knowledge

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Haptic knowledge is something very hard to pass along without years and years of training. What if a master craftsmen and pupils had a series of tools to share and understand this type of knowledge? The idea here is to create a series of sensors that output a signal while a person is doing some sort of craft, and that information would be displayed using Augmented Reality.  The pupil now will observe a visualization of effort, speed or stress. Later, the student could try to reproduce the actions that his master craftsmen has done while wearing the sensors and overlay his/her information on top of his master craftsman instructor’s visualization in order to evaluate his/her efficiency.

Project-zero_V1

master craftsmen at their best

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLS7–ZLCoI

Guillermo Bernal

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guille_bernal

gbernal[at]mit[dot]edu

http://cargocollective.com/studiobernal

MIT SA+P, Design and Computation

Hello World!!, My name is Guillermo and I’m a student in the design and computation group in the Architecture Department.

Expertise

★★★☆ Art
★★★★Architecture
★★★★ Craft/Fabrication
★★★★ Design
★★★☆ DIY Electronics
★★★☆ Electrical Eng.
★☆☆☆ Mech. Eng.
★★★☆ Programming/CS

Experience

My background and interests include strong leanings towards the responsive environment, DIY fabrication and programming. Since I started at MIT, I have focused my studies in the relation between the physical world and the digital. Prior MIT, I joined Evan Douglis Studio and RPI, where I specialized in advance digital fabrication and algorithmic design.

Why

My interests run the gamut…which means I’m always trying to bring together different disciplines with the hope, that it will generate novel outputs.