Noodle Padoodle
Hardware
By
@olivia_w
- 20 Devlogs
- 30 Total hours
Electric version of Guzheng :-)
24m 51s logged
Log#20
I polished my github repository :)
2h 34m 53s logged
Log#19
I designed, cut and re-assmbled the frame.
57m 53s logged
Log#18
I polished my Guzheng and my github repository so that it’s ready for shipping. I added BOM.csv and this wiring guide.
I also cut the Aluminum profiles with a handsaw but I didn’t record the time here. It took me roughly an hour. This way it would be more portable!
2h 22m 2s logged
Log#17
I AM DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Because I ran into unresolved bugs for like nine of my 17 strings, I decided to only use eight of them which are working fine.
I also made the code baseline-adaptive so that I don’t have to tune it manually everytime! Now it’s robust and sounds perfect! Hear it in my video!
All these days of hardwork paid off
I never imagined that I could finish such a huge project on my own. Though it’s not perfect for now, I’m still sooooo happy and I’ve grown a LOT during the process. Nothing is impossible and ALWAYS BELIEVE IN YOUR POTENTIALS :)
45m 1s logged
Log#16
I cut out the silence before the sounds in the samples and exported as wav format :)
1h 6m 1s logged
Log#15
I connected all the wires to the breadboard and ESP32 :) It was a LOT of wires but it was very therapeutic actually
Do not stay up till 2am!! The next morning you will feel like a floating ghost
1h 17m logged
Log #14
I accidentally closed all the tabs while recording so it should be two hours in total…
I finished assembling all the strings – 17 of them, because the rest are lost :(
I found a shortcut which is using the end of the string that has a stick attached to it to fix the string onto the load cells. It was a LOT of taping and tying knots. LOL I skipped gym today but this was a pretty good exercise
I had to re-tie a lot of times to make sure the strings are tight enough. At this point, I’ll just have to complete the project no matter what cuz I’m already here and why not
2h 1m 1s logged
long#13
I ADDED THE PITCH FEATURE for my one-string demo!!! YAYYYY
Now the pitch can change as well
My next step would be assembling all the rest of the strings!!
4h 9m 35s logged
Log#12
It WORKED!!!!! OMGGGGGG
My one-string version code worked! Now it can detect whether I plucked the string or pressed the string, and play the sound at the corresponding volume when I pluck it.
I first wrote pseudocode and then used AI’s help to turn it into python code. Then I tuned the parameters manually. And it finally worked on the instrument!!!
My wires once fell apart and I had to reconnect them :( But it’s all worth it
The delay is still a bit high and the pitch function is not fixed yet. I believe I’ll sort those out tomorrow and ship my project by then! Huge progress today already!
1h 0m 38s logged
Log #11
I assembled two strings onto the frame for testing and coding.
At first I was very happy that the first string was done, but then I found out that I had tied it to the wrong side. I wanted to give up but then I untied it and then tied it again. A little setback will not keep me from moving forward :)
Next time I’ll definitely use screws to fix the load cells. Tape is NOT A SHORTCUT though it seemed like one to me :((((((
My dorm is officially a lab now hahahahaha
2h 40m 5s logged
log#10
I received my packages and started building. Today I assembled the Aluminum frame and soldered 16 load cells. Amazon only shipped me three load cells kits instead of four, so I will ask them to ship me one more which is going to take a few more days :(
Soldering needs lots of patience especially when I accidentally soldered two plates together. And I had to use a lot of strength to hold the Aluminum profiles while I assemble them. It would be so much easier if I worked with teammates!
2h 43m 2s logged
log#9
I thought about the flow of my code and started drafting the code which processes the signals and play the according sounds. In the next few days (before my materials arrive on Monday), I will test the code on one string. Got lots to do but the path is getting clearer and clearer :)
1h 28m logged
Log#8
I drew the final design for the Aluminum frame. I thought I might just discard the pulleys and eye bolts for now. I hope my data would still be clean if I tighten my strings enough!
I also updated the final cost of my project on github :) I also made a little demo video
26m logged
log#7
I tied a Guzheng string to my loadcell set up and plucked the string for test. The graph was pretty chaotic. Sometimes the force went up when I pluck it, sometimes it went down. I think I need to fix my string to somewhere and also place a bridge in the middle to stablize my data
53m 2s logged
Log#6
I connected my ESP32 to HX711 and my laptop. At first the Arduino IDE could not find the port, so I searched online and found out that I needed to download another app, and also I forgot to connect the power wires for my HX711 lol
Those are great lessons and I learned a lot in the process of fixing problems. At the end when the sensor’s data started displaying on the screen, I was sooooooo happy!!
31m 1s logged
Log#5
I put the play sound command into a function so it’s more compact. I was also trying to install pyo to manipulate the sounds but it failed to install the wheel. Now my VScode has crashed out :(
1h 11m 46s logged
Log#4
I edited the sound recorded from the Guzheng via Audacity and then wrote python codes to play it. I used the pygame library and it was successful!
I ran into trouble cloning my repository and committing changes though, so I looked up the hackclub guides and solved the issue! Big thanks!
1h 7m logged
I found a tutorial on wiring the load cells, HX711 and ESP32 and saved screenshots in my repository. I also calculated and modeled the size of the Aluminum frame.
The hard part was that I need the height of the middle bar plus the height of my U-shaped pulleys to be slightly higher than the height of my load cells, so that the pulleys can support my strings and would be able to play on both sides of the bar.
54m 28s logged
Log#2
I created a github repository and wrote a preliminary version of the README.md file (yayyy!)
At first I was confused that the enter key does not break the lines, so I browsed through github docs and learned that I have to use the markdown language.
It was really fun learning about how to format text in github, especially creating a table for my materials and cost :)
1h 16m logged
Log#1 Navigating Fusion
I downloaded the app and tried to make a 3D model of the Aluminum frame and L-shaped brackets. I had a hard time navigating the app :(
