hueMX, 2024 (prototype)

Interactive color mixer knot

Red, blue and yellow silicone tubing, wood, cardboard, 3D-printed PLA, motor, circuit board, distance sensor, electrical tape, silicone glue, electronics

aprx. 6" x 6" x 3"

hueMX is a prototype of a color mixing device. The hypothesis was that a prime-colored silicone cord stretched over 3 pulleys into a trefoil knot and pushed thru by a motor would create a color mixing effect. To achieve that a circuit board running a code written in Python would allow the motor to spin in 2 directions thus mixing the colors in different combinations based on clockwise/ counter-clockwise movement.

However, I came across a few problems protyping the concept.

The design challenges of making the cord move through the knot were the first obstacles.

Materials conciderations of belts, ropes and cords; pulleys and other parts.

I had to stagger the height of the pulleys to alleviate the friction in the knot overlaps. I was going to use 1 motor first at one of the tips but realized that I will be lobsided and would not work. So, I was going to use 3 motors. Then I experimented with a glass shot glass and rotating it from the middle of the design produced equal and smooth rotational force, so the center of the deign became the perfect spot for the motor to dive the concept. That came with further challenges. The 3D printed head I designed in lieu of glass did not have traction, so I covered it in electrical tape to increase traction with the silicone cord.

Then came the issues with the motor. First, the DC motor I used was not strong enough to pull the cord with 5 volts supplied by the circuit board. I then switched to the stepper motor, which worked better, but was too slow to prove the concept of color mixing. The third attempt was to provide the first motor with more power by connecting it to external 12V 1A power supply. Unfortunately, the power supply did not work. I also got a drill motor to try, but realized that it needed 12V 12A, but the motor controller could only handle 2A maximum, so I could not test it with the circuit board.

The final attempt to prove the concept was to run the knot through with the drill with the 3D-printed head attached with electric tape for traction. It worked the best of all other attempts but proved the concept a failure. First, the cord would skip the rotations and would not stay on the pulleys, coming off one or the other, especially on a higher speed. I tried to cut the cord shorter to create more tension, but it would still happen. Granted, the points of affliction were the connections between color cords, but even without them, it was clear that the cord would have had hard time spinning and staying on the track. I had to help it rotate by moving the drill around with my hand, which would not be possible in an actual device.

Overall, it was a positive experience and though I wish it had worked out, I learned from what did and didn't work, so I can use it for the next iteration of hueMX 2.0.