Eowave Eobody1 - Manual (Page 6)

6
I - Sensors & new ways of expression • user’s manual
manual ©eowave/Ircam 2003
I - Sensors
& new ways of expression
From the Idea…
Men have always dreamt of new ways of communication. Through ages, men have thought
of their body as a tool of communication. And indeed, when communicating, this is not only
your voice, nor the only expression in your face that transmits a message, but your entire
way of being. This is your entire body which projects you inside the individual world of one
another. In all cultures, men have developped new ways of communication through dance,
music, art. And still in a matter of a better communication, men have always worked to
improve the interaction between men and machines, thus since the very beginning of
mechanics and later, electronics. More and more, the body has become the cornerstone of
interactive systems of communication. New technologies widen the range of controls. And
controls have entered everyday’s life without us noticing. Remote controls are everywhere:
we control TV, we control VCRs, DVDs, stereos, ovens, climates, windows, garage doors…
Control surfaces are everywhere. Faced to art, control appears to be the new way of expres-
sion of this early millenium. Many artists are looking for new ways of expression, of concep-
tualizing ideas… In this perspective, sensors open new dimensions of expression.
eo•body
is the key link between the world of analogue sensors and digital systems.
…To the Realization
The need of new technologies to control the sound has increased with the development of
interactive sound installations and interpretation of musical pieces requiring interfaces other
than traditional instruments.
eo•body is the intermediate you need to connect sensors of
any kind (faders, mechanical pressure sensors, piezo electric sensors, infrared barriers,
intruder detector/passive IR sensors, temperature sensors, etc.) to a musical MIDI environ-
ment (sequencer, computer, sampler…).
eo•body does not impose the sensor type and fea-
tures portability and versatility. It can be used for sound synthesis control with the jMax envi-
ronment (Real time team), PD or Max/MSP. As another example,
eo•body can also be used
for the control of a MIDI/digital audio sequencer with an original and completely new user
interface.
The MIDI digital code allows to transmit many different data sources. It is known for the
transmission of music notes but other sources such as light, pressure, temperature, speed
or electromagnetic field can be transcoded via MIDI. Considering this, the field of applica-
tions of MIDI becomes much wider… All you need is a powerful analogue to MIDI converter
like
eo•body and sensors of your choice. As a sensors to MIDI interface meaning to simpli-
fy the design of new gestural controllers or interactive sensor-based sound installations,
eo•body converts analogue signals generated by sensors to MIDI messages which will be
received by a sound generator and used to control parameters such as volume, panoramic,
reverberation… The MIDI messages coding the gestures act directly on the sound, turning
the whole system into a new kind of musical instrument.
eo•body will transmit the sensors
signal to the computer under digital form, through the MIDI standard. eo•body is fully com-
patible with any kind of devices featuring a MIDI interface (MIDI port) and makes a real brid-
ge between the analogue world of sensors and digital audio control by gestures. Don’t limit
yourself:
eo•body can convert to MIDI up to 16 sensors!