Dynamic scenography - Researches and tests

Hi, on this page I will update the progress of my final project. The idea is to explain the development of my projects with all of the informations, success and failures not to make a tutorial about how to make a "laser projector".

My project is about to create a dynamic scenography for live concert, exhibition or what else can be sublimated by it. If you want to know more about the origin and my motivation for this project I invite you to go on this page : my idea for my final project .

At first my idea was to create something like this :

GIf_laser

Playing with lasers and mirrors the idea was to create and mark spaces and subspaces without the addition of material. I wanted to be able to re-draw the strong perspective lines of a spaces and be able to move it in order to arouse emotion ain accordance with a specific situation.

Naturally, I wanted to also be able to create surfaces with my lasers by making high sweeping frequency as you can with common laser projectors. Then I have made some researches about servo-motors and step-by-step motors in order to be able to move my mirrors. But quicly I saw a problem, this both technology are not fast enough. After some discussion I can thanks you Neil Gershenfeld and Tristan Briant, because they told me about galvanometers.

A galvanometer is an electromechanical instrument used for detecting and indicating an electric current. A galvanometer works as an actuator, by producing a rotary deflection (of a "pointer"), in response to electric current flowing through a coil in a constant magnetic field, Wikipedia.

galvanometers

Basicaly, this is a galvanometer. In my case the idea is to replace the pointer by a mirror, after that I want to put two mirrors on two galvanometers with two perpendicular axes of rotation. The goal is to come at something like this :

2 galvanometers

With a configuration like this I will be able to project 2D figures by refracting the laser on both mirrors. But if my lasers are evolving in a space with smoke or any other solid volatile material, we will be able to see the laser through the air. And then see surfaces.

lasers

Now let's start the experiences !!

Ok for now the first step is to found some galvanometers. Galvanometers as it name said, are used into the world of almost every meter-devices. Fortunately I have the luck that my Fablab is in a scientific university, and there is a best place to fund galvanometers that a 50 years old scientific university ? I don't think so... After a discussion with my local instructor Adel Kheniche he take me at the office of the responsible of the electronic practical works Jean-charles. Thanks to him, he take me in the reserve with all of the old electronical devices that are no longer used...