In our final week we decided to use the plastic curved half. The styrofoam encases the breadboard and arduino. 
For the rest of the week we have had some people play with the I-Ve and give us some feedback about their experience. Based on their experience, we have tweaked the visual design of I-Ve. We have altered the instructions and added small features. Below is the demo of I-Ve in action.
The user uses the remote to navigate through the menus. The top button allows the user to select an option. The bottom button allows the user to go back or cancel their option. The remote is labeled with the the functions of the remote.
Depending on what menu or screen the user is on, the right sice of bottom portion of the screen displays feedback to let the user know how to rotate the remote. If they want to select an option they simply press on the top select button. The LED lights up when the button had been pressed.
During this last week, we also received very shaky values from the accelerometer and it was sometimes jumpy when trying to navigate through the menus. Professor Shiffman suggested that we use the LERP function to average out the values. After doing this, our accelerometer seemed to work smoothly.
Processing code
Arduino Code – Serial Communication
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In our presentation displayed above, we wanted to make this more of a product pitch than a physical computing project. Below is our breakdown of I-Ve’s birth and what we hope to accomplish with it.
Observations:
Editing video often requires much equipment and a powerful computer.
They often include too many features, while cool, are distracting and unnecessary to patching together a simple home movie – such as crazy transitions and filters/effects.
The interface is convoluted and not intuitive for the amateur or beginner.
Concept:
We want a simple, yet robust physical interface that anyone can pick up and start editing right away.
We want this to be a fun experience that can be had by any family member at their leisure and without any familiarity with editing systems/techniques.
We would also like to propose a prototype for the professional of an alternative and hopefully more efficient video editing tool.
Research:
Linear editing techniques: 3-point editing – in/out/timeline
jog/shuttle device (pic)
TV remote controls – the fact that everyone is comfortable with a TV remote and when asked if they would enjoy using such a device, people responded positively.
Process:
Our original idea was to create a music-based video game – we were fascinated by the use of an accelerometer to match audio patterns.
However, after brainstorming, our love of the video editing process, and the realization that the use of an accelerometer could match the editing process so well, we came to I-Ve!
We loved the idea of a physical “cut” motion mapping to the cut of a video track.
Process 2:
Code design had to include multiple features.
Foremost, a way to browse different video files.
A way to scrub the selected video.
A way to cut the video, aka set in/out points.
A way to review the shots and export finished movie.
Feedback of accelerometer position.
Process 3:
Remote design had to lead to intuitive use and natural movements.
Mimic TV remote to offer familiarity, yet keep number of buttons to a minimum.
Select and back/cancel button to navigate menus.
Accelerometer to do everything else.
LED for feedback of button pushes.
Challenges:
Built-in processing library crashed – pursued alternative library
Making processing interface intuitive and well-suited for our remote
Unstable accelerometer values
Perf-board is difficult to solder correctly
Finding suitable materials for construction
Lots of user testing
Next Steps:
Wireless capability
More features: transitions, titles, etc.
Smaller remote construction/improved design
Exporting audio for final edited movie
Lots and lots of user testing, especially in a living room with people unfamiliar with video editing.
