george koller on sat 20 nov 99
gail sheffield wrote:
> Mr. Koller:
>
> I never did quite understand your software/machine setup for
decorating
> tiles, but it interests me. Can you explain it in non-technical (both
for
> the machine and computer aspects) terms? And whether the price/cost
you
> have suggested will fall in the future? Thanks.
>
> Gail Sheffield
> Covington, LA
Gail,
This is the 2nd part of my 2 part communication outlining
what our new software version actually does. The first
part left interested clayarters in a dirigible over Lambau
field with Gail having just surrounded exactly 4,406,400
pieces of 1" square paper with pipe cleaners (just wait to
dad gets home). In this, the 2nd installment, you were
promised to meet my "Autonomous Urchin Paper Eaters"
friend.
Here, again, is the list of stages from "Image to Clay Surface":
A. Real Scene (Ancient Mosaic, a stone fence....)
B Photograph or or Abstract Image
C Digital Scan of any of B, (Or skip A&B and use
that Digital Camera your going to get for Christmas)
D. Vectorizing Program (I.E. StreamLine by Adobe)
E. My Software
F. g_Code
G. A Machine that runs g_Code (somewhat like an engraver)
H. Tiles
When Gail finished "vectorizing" Lambau, she was at D. This
is what my program will read. In the time it took Gail to run
to the sideline, our silicon friend could "upload" and
sort out those 8 million points she typed in for us. But, we also
task the computer to do all kinds of things, during this upload, like
spreading image precisely over so many tiles from left to right,
and from bottom to top. So there are a modest number of things
which come from dialog box with pull down item lists and
etc. Nothing that would stump an eight year old.
Gail can walk proudly, SHE vectorized the image, NOT the computer
and it is HER TOOL TO CONTROL all along the way. Adobe
Illustrator will give an artist COMPLETE CONTROL to zoom-in,
merge, move, recolor, etc until she is completely happy. Also
please remember that if "building up" the image rather than
translating it is what you want to do (Paul Lewing?) then this is also
100 percent possible (I.E. using a "electronic sketch pad").
Computers, while I'm on the subject, can't "generate" anything!
They can't even generate a true random number. They are slaves.
Fast, but stupid, and they are nothing but another tool.
Now we need to do something tricky. We need to teach a saucer
sized Smart "urchin" to do certain types of operations on each of
those pipe cleaner surrounded polygons. Can you visualize this?
The average polygon might include some 150 or so pieces of paper in
a detailed image. Many bigger, and many smaller, just 150 as
an average. This gives us an area about the size of our keyboards.
(This whole project is being done in 10,000 times the actual
default scale.)
In order to get going we have to train our super-urchin to only
move along the outside edge for a key operation I call "Trace".
There are some 12 operations we have trained our urchins to
do, and more on the books, but this is a basic one. The urchin
might be taught to position its right side snug up against the
pipe cleaner. Then always go forward, and forward, this will make
for a CounterClockwise Smart-Urchin. Anyway, our CCSU
Object is ready to go as soon as he is put into a Polygon of
pipe cleaners and shown where the edge is. Put him in there
and watch him go!!
A "real" CCSU will keep track of where he has been by leaving
a trail. And depending on "overlap" and other factors will also
leave various "marks" on those pieces of paper. Of course I'm
leaving lots of stuff out, but I hope you get the picture. Still and
all
we have one more step to have something useful: We attach two
tensioned strings to our CCSU fellow. We can attach these
to the a flag post on the top center of the CCSU. Now we have
something! If we stand on the sidelines and record the movements
in the string every time the CCSU center is square over a piece of
paper as our CCSU moves itself about, WE CAN NOW RECORD
the CCSUs EVERY CRITICAL MOVEMENT.
What is this long boring recording worth? Well, think about
this, will you....
1. You find an urchin of the same size, and train it to cut the
grass, remove a glaze, dispense a liquid, texturize, remove
clay, add wax resist, or doing any ONE thing useful for
you.
2. Call this a CCTU (Counter Clockwise Tool Urchin - of
course).
3. You put the CCTU on some strings, powered by some electric
motors, and driven by another computer, that also has
software
that they call "Controller" software - not expensive, not
exotic.
4. You feed the computer that "moves list" we recorded, the
computer tells the motors to turn, the strings move, and our
CCTU is pulled and pushed around while he is busy doing
is one task.
Whallla! You can go home, turn off the lights, at Lambau
and go "unwind" with the CCSU. When you come back Lambau will be
cut, dried, wax resisted, routed out, dug up, dusted off, or whatever
the urchins that you tied the string gismo to were trained and equipped
to
do.
= = = A thought on this Process = = = = =
Screen processing, and some other "printing" processes already
"computer driven" and making inroads into the "cover a tile with
anything" markets. Well that is whatever that is, but it is not
"ceramic art",
not to my mind. This is about a chance to make decorating tiles
with traditional ceramic materials and processes somewhat more
competitive with those non-ceramic processes.
========
=======
>> And whether the price/cost you have suggested will fall in the
future?
I will assume you are thinking of a "Turnkey system" that we may sell
someday. Prices for "light industrial" CNCs have fallen by
something like 50% in the last 4 years, as it relates to hardware
we believe to be near optimum for this. Small "2 tiler" now
maybe $4,000 & large "100tiler" maybe $12,000 for the hardware
only. We have no plans to "sell" the software, but we are very
interested in a forming a few partnerships with tile artists,
universities,
craft centers, or corporations. For me this is about a couple of my
passions and interests, it is not and never will be about money.
=========
==========
We believe that anybody knowing exactly what we are doing would
be at least three years in software development before they could match
where we are now. My career has spanned 25 years of R&D departments
and leading edge software development, I also believe this to be true.
In addition to Engraving type machines (CNCs) which are economical but
limited , the software could as well decorate regular 3d items such as
sinks,
and other items large and small. (Sending Gail crawling up the side of
a
100 Yard sink or toilet would be fun also.)
As the software can also estimate, simulate (to printouts), and help
with
visualization issues there would seem to be opportunities to bring
interior
designers, architects, and such in closer contact with the artistic
process.
This is all, frankly, rather foreign to me, but it is very clear that
the Web
could play a role that might excite some of the venture capitalist types
that
I have been reading about (I don't think they are covering Door County).
Perhaps a progressive School and University might be looking for an
opportunity to combine art and technical disciplines in a truly new and
unique way. Photography, programming, and the ceramic arts do not
cross in any significant way that I am familiar with.
We have been getting the results of a series for glaze and color tests
these
last several weeks and are very pleased. Our first decorating project,
depending on the delivery of our new 8' by 4' bed machine should be
within two months. Our intention is currently to decorate large
handmade
tiles, for such uses as trays, furniture, and "panels".
And just one more thing:
=================
It has occurred to us, most seriously, that this system will be ideal
for
replicating some of the world's best in-situ mosaics, and other art
pieces for full-size or precisely scaled displays. A set of quality
photographs,
very careful handling all along the way, shared knowledge of historical
materials, and we should be able to replicate a historical piece for
museums and galleries with absolutely unmatchable accuracy. The
software
is IDEAL for this type of challenge. For work related to this type of
challenge anywhere in the world, I would be forever most grateful.
==========
Best,
George Koller
Sturgeon Bay, WI - Door County
(Ich spreche noch etwas Deutsch, und Ich werde sehr gern wieder mit
eine Deutsche Firma
arbeiten!)
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