A performance persona and wearable computer system.
Spring 2006 Term Project
robotcowboy is a system worn by the performer that transforms them into a walking icon of our computer age in order to augment a computer music performance and act as a mobile platform for digital art exhibition.
robotcowboy represents my work to present an engaging live presentation using both traditional and electronic instruments, as well as heavy visual elements. Coming from a more traditional performance/musical background, I am challenged with replacing the physicality of live performers with that of a computer. My laptop does not dance, sing, or run about on stage, yet it can be just as loud as real performers, leading to a discontinuity between the sound and the live action. The laptop itself is an inherent barrier between audience and performer, with the former focused on the screen and the latter wondering if he/she is checking email. It is an attempt to break this discontinuity by literally combining man and machine, performer and universal instrument, both visually and thematically.
The aesthetics of this project stem from a concept I had used before in performances of my previous band 7inchWave. It is the persona of a computer performer come to life – a robot representing the computer that has replaced my fellow musicians combined with own my physicality and human energy.
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The implementation is based on found and obsolete hardware: an old iMac and a used lcd monitor. The iMac was skinned (see picture below) and the shell installed with the flatpanel display and hardware. The iMac’s speakers were retained with a small power amp and a cctv camera was installed in the upper right corner of the shell. The video feed is viewed through lcd goggles and a wireless mic is integrated for vocal performance. The helmet itself is a used riding helmet (black felt!), with a solid plastic shell and chin strap, that is bolted into place. The entire shell is packed with custom-fit foam layers to position all of the electrical component boards.
A Xybernaut MA-IV wearable computer setup with a custom Debian Linux kernel runs the display and communicates with my host laptop. The SDL display program shows portraits and accepts commands from the wrist keypad. A wireless ad-hoc network between the mobile computer and laptop allows communication via Open Sound Control (OSC).
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I learned a great deal from this project:
- Linux kernel configuration and compilation (It is much faster to compile for the slow Xybernaut on my laptop)
- Designing a large software project single-handedly is an immense task and takes attention away from what is important (see below)
- Smaller, well developed steps are better then trying to make gigantic leaps (see below)
- Developing a strong concept and plan is half the battle
I am not a computer scientist, but have a background in computer engineering which is hardware and lower-level programming. I am not an object-oriented master, nor do I enjoy large software projects. For some reason, I attempted to develop a large, object-oriented software project single-handedly for the robotcowboy project. Cross-platform compatibility was also set as a goal, which forced me into many details I did not want to focus on. The entire system was to be written from scratch: a network module, a control module, and a display module.
I spent nearly a week straight working on the code before I realized I had completely lost focus of what I wanted to achieve. Programming practice in sockets, threading, and classes was not the object, but it became the new focus. I was stuck in the details instead of developing the whole: a program to control one computer from another and to relay MIDI and OSC messages. I threw the coding project away and focused on readily available open source solutions. Basically, I realized I cannot do it all myself and to value the knowledge and time spent by experienced programmers on useful libraries.
Conceptually, the project was not as refined as it should have been. If I had a solid goal of what I wanted to accomplish, I believe I would have approached the project differently. With an engineers training, I do not have as much experience working conceptually and these problems have brought this to light. I wanted to build the helmet because it “would be awesome”. I did not consider what I wanted to say, it’s relevance to past and current art, and what part of myself it was addressing.
Mainly, I had forgotten the goal of the project was to play music and put on a good show.
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robotcowboy v2
Back to basics for the Fall 2006 semester.
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A small film of the helmets trial run. (Our first show can be found in the media section)
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Pictures during the development of the robotcowboy helmet. (More pictures can be found in the visual photo gallery).
Here’s proof that the iMac survived its skinning.
A guest trying on the apparatus.
Trial run of the helmet.
