Pitch fork: a novel tactile digital musical instrument
Pitch Fork is a prototype of an alternate, actuated digital musical instrument (DMI). It uses 5 infra-red and 4 piezoelectric sensors to control an additive synthesis engine. Iron bars are used as the physical point of contact in interaction with the aim of using this materials natural acoustic properties as a control signal for aspects of the digitally produced sound. This choice of material was also chosen to affect player experience. Sensor readings are relayed to a Macbook via an Arduino Mega. Mappings and audio output signal is carried out with Pure Data Extended.
Musical interface technology: multimodal control of multidimensional parameter spaces for electroacoustic music performance
This dissertation studies the art and technology of performing music with digital computers. The primary aim of this research is to construct a theoretical framework that enlightens the approach to designing, implementing, evaluating, and iteratively refining new families of digital musical instruments for the real-time expressive control of digital signal processing algorithms. The core of this framework, the Musical Interface Technology Design Space, MITDS, is revealed in chapter four. It is specifically focused on the design of tools that facilitate enhanced performance techniques through the use of multimodal human-computer interfaces in conjunction with algorithmic generation and processing of sound. Musical interface technology is a broad field that encompasses both technological and artistic areas, such as sensor electronics, human-computer interaction, digital signal processing, and software engineering, alongside music performance, composition, and theory. It also involves disciplines such as psychology, ergonomics, physiology, and human cognition and behavior. The first section (chapters 1-2) of this dissertation covers the history of technological developments in the field of computer music, with attention to the human-computer interfaces and what effects they have had on music composition and performance. The second section (chapters 3-4) develops the foundation of a theoretical framework for developing new digital instruments, focusing on both philosophical and pragmatic concepts within musical, technological, and humanistic areas that can be used to guide and inform future directions for research in the field. The third section (chapter 5) incorporates the author's own digital musical instruments, describes their implementations and performance techniques in detail, and uses them as examples to clarify and understand the theoretical framework previously introduced. Finally, the conclusion includes a brief review of the research and developments of new musical interface technologies, the exploration of new performance techniques they bring about, and the teachings and lessons learned during this evolutionary journey into a modern perspective on one of mankind's oldest forms of art - music.
Changes in Quartz During Heating and the Possible Effects on Si Production
In Si and FeSi production, the main Si source is SiO2, in the form of quartz. Reactions with SiO2 generate SiO gas that further reacts with SiC to Si. During heating, quartz will transform to other SiO2 modifications with cristobalite as the stable high-temperature phase. Transformation to cristobalite is a slow process. Its rate has been investigated for several industrial quartz sources and has been shown to vary considerably among the different quartz types. Other differences in behavior during heating between these quartz sources, such as softening temperature and volume expansion, have also been studied. The quartz-cristobalite ratio will affect the rate of reactions involving SiO2. The industrial consequences and other implications of the observed difference between quartz types are discussed. Initial studies of industrial quartz were published by Ringdalen et al. In the current work, a new experimental method has been developed, and an investigation of several new quartz sources has confirmed the earlier observed large variation between different sources. The repeatability of the data has been studied and the effect of gas atmosphere investigated. The results from the earlier work are included as a basis for the discussion.