The intersection of art and technology has opened up new avenues for creative expression, enabling artists to incorporate interactive and dynamic elements into their works. Arduino, a versatile and user-friendly microcontroller platform, has become a popular tool for artists looking to blend technology with their artistic endeavors. This article will explore how Arduino can be used to create an interactive art installation, highlighting its importance and providing a step-by-step guide to building a project.

Projeto: In this project, we will create an interactive light sculpture that responds to the viewer's proximity. The sculpture will consist of an array of LEDs that change color and intensity based on the distance of a person from the artwork. The objectives of this project are to demonstrate how technology can enhance artistic expression and to provide a practical example of using Arduino for interactive art installations.

Lista de componentes:

• Arduino Uno (1)
• Ultrasonic Distance Sensor (HC-SR04) (1)
• RGB LEDs (10)
• Resistors (220 ohms) (10)
• Breadboard (1)
• Jumper wires (various)
• USB cable (1)

Exemplos: Below is the Arduino code for the interactive light sculpture. The code uses an ultrasonic sensor to measure the distance of the viewer and adjusts the color and brightness of the LEDs accordingly.

// Include necessary libraries
#include <Adafruit_NeoPixel.h>

// Define pin for the ultrasonic sensor
const int trigPin = 9;
const int echoPin = 10;

// Define pin for the RGB LEDs
#define LED_PIN 6
#define NUM_LEDS 10

// Create an instance of the Adafruit_NeoPixel class
Adafruit_NeoPixel strip = Adafruit_NeoPixel(NUM_LEDS, LED_PIN, NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800);

void setup() {
  // Initialize serial communication
  Serial.begin(9600);

  // Initialize ultrasonic sensor pins
  pinMode(trigPin, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(echoPin, INPUT);

  // Initialize the LED strip
  strip.begin();
  strip.show(); // Initialize all pixels to 'off'
}

void loop() {
  // Measure distance using the ultrasonic sensor
  long duration, distance;
  digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
  delayMicroseconds(2);
  digitalWrite(trigPin, HIGH);
  delayMicroseconds(10);
  digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
  duration = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);
  distance = (duration / 2) / 29.1;

  // Map distance to LED brightness and color
  int brightness = map(distance, 0, 100, 255, 0);
  int red = map(distance, 0, 100, 255, 0);
  int green = map(distance, 0, 100, 0, 255);
  int blue = map(distance, 0, 100, 0, 0);

  // Set LED colors
  for (int i = 0; i < NUM_LEDS; i++) {
    strip.setPixelColor(i, strip.Color(red, green, blue));
  }
  strip.setBrightness(brightness);
  strip.show();

  // Print distance to the serial monitor
  Serial.print("Distance: ");
  Serial.print(distance);
  Serial.println(" cm");

  // Delay before the next loop
  delay(100);
}

In this code:

• We include the Adafruit NeoPixel library to control the RGB LEDs.
• We define pins for the ultrasonic sensor and the RGB LEDs.
• In the setup function, we initialize serial communication, sensor pins, and the LED strip.
• In the loop function, we measure the distance using the ultrasonic sensor and map the distance to LED brightness and color.
• The strip.setPixelColor function sets the color of each LED based on the mapped values.
• The strip.show function updates the LEDs to display the new colors and brightness.

This project demonstrates a simple yet powerful way to integrate technology into art, creating an interactive experience for viewers.