Hampshire reactable

The Hampshire Reactable project hopes to create a campus model of the electronic instrument developed by a team of Europeans. If you have not heard of a Reactable, you can click the following link to see the table in action:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h-RhyopUmc

Fred Thulson and Ryland Hall hope to work in collaboration with others to make a simple, usable model of this incredible instrument for the Hampshire community.

Software:

In order to build a Reactable, several components are needed. The only free software the Reactable team has made available is Reactivision, a program that uses a video camera to track the location and orientation of objects on the table.

The actual musical instrument (what each object represents and the way it interacts with other objects) will have to be programmed in max/msp, which can receive the x value, y value, and rotation of objects seen by Reactivision.

The image projected is not absolutely necessary, but it helps the performer keep track of what each object is doing. This could be done fairly easily in Processing.

Hardware:

in order to build a Reactable, the most expensive items we need are: a sheet of Plexiglas, an infrared-capable high end video camera, and a small projector

a significant amount of thought will have to go into the design and construction of the final table, with durability and functionality being the top priorities.

The Hampshire Reactable team hope to create a simple prototype with rented equipment before asking the college for financial support.

If you are interested in working on any aspect of the Reactable project, please contact Ryland Hall rch06, or Fred Thulson, fpt06.