The School of Engineering Technology (SoET) was approached to design a laser harp system to a current piece of artwork in county Cavan, Ireland. After speaking to our SoET sponsor, Professor James Condron, our team was able to learn more about the artist and his intended plans for the harp sculpture. Ultimately, the artist wants to add a laser light system that allows individuals to imitate playing a stringed harp by simply breaking a light beam with their finger. This will require our team to develop all of the necessary electrical schematics, circuits, and components; additionally, the group will also have to create a similar copy of the harp here at Purdue to fully integrate all of the project’s parts together.
Throughout the school year, our team will need to conduct research, conceptualize designs, build prototypes and perform testing to provide a successful solution to the artist. We eventually came to a design that would fit perfect for the artist’s needs. There will be sixteen laser diodes that will shine directly onto sixteen photoresistors, one laser diode for one photoresistor. The system will also have an LED indication system that will allow for focusing of the laser diodes, as well as an indication of when a string break has occurred. When this happens, a signal will be sent to an analog to digital convertor. For our specific project, we are using an Arduino 2560. The Arduino will then send a logic signal to a Raspberry Pi where it will read what string or strings were broken and play the corresponding notes. The testing and prototyping will take up the bulk of the team’s time and time management will be key in completing this project. When the project is finished, it will be shipped to Ireland where, with proper instructions and documentation created by our team, the artist can add our solution to the harp if he chooses. By the end of this project, the team is optimistic on building a final product that will allow the harp sculpture to be fully functional as an instrument.