Things happen so quickly in the world of Bare Conductive that there are some projects you may have missed. Or you could be new to electric paint altogether and would like an idea of what can be achieved with the product patented by four graduates of the London College of Art and Imperial College in 2009. Some of these projects are on an epic scale and involve teams of professional designers and interactive artists; but the beauty of Bare Conductive is that anyone can start using it for simple applications.
1. Wall of Sound
German design agency Fischer Appelt turned a blank wall in their offices into a fully interactive audio experience, using Bare Conductive paint and the Touch Board. The ridiculously talented team painted retro ghetto blasters, amplifiers, speakers and reel to reel tape recorders with electric paint, with sensors painted into the wall to correspond, for example, with play, stop and volume control buttons. A Touch Board on the reverse side of the wall was programmed with the team's music selections and playlists.
Rapid has recently added to its Bare Conductive range with a selection of new products – including two new kits based around the Touch Board. The Starter and Pro Kits are ideal for beginners and experienced makers respectively, while a Lamp Kit contains everything you need to transform a paper template into either a touch, dimmer or proximity lamp. Plus – just the thing for those large scale projects – one litre tins of conductive paint.
2. Staircase alarm
This is a classic beginner project, either just for fun, pet surveillance or genuine home security. There is no need to paint directly onto your staircase - use masking tape or another self-adhesive backing on which to apply the conductive paint. Attach a speaker or buzzer to your Touch Board, program the Touch Board with the sound you want to be played, and apply a line of paint to connect the Touch Board with the staircase sensor strip.
3. The wall that comes alive
Branding and design agency Dalziel and Pow produced this interactive touch wall for a retail exhibition, to show how sensor-based technology could be used to create audio visual experiences more in common with freeform animation than traditional touchscreen technology.
4. MIDI Piano
Another Bare Conductive classic. You can use a template to draw the keys of your piano onto card weighing at least 200gsm. The Touch Board will need to be set up in 'On Board Midi Mode' so that the sound of the piano notes can be played.
5. Liquidity Lamp
In this project, industrial product designer Jose Maria Riesco used electric paint, diluted with baby oil, as a sensor to switch on a 220V bulb. The paint mixture is poured into a modified petri dish, triggering a signal in an Arduino microcontroller which turns the bulb on. Riesco's purpose for the piece is to alter people's perceptions of the domestic electronics around them and encourage new ways of interacting with them.
NEW BARE CONDUCTIVE PRODUCTS AVAILABLE
Rapid has recently added to its Bare Conductive range with a selection of new products – including two new kits based around the Touch Board. The Starter and Pro Kits are ideal for beginners and experienced makers respectively, while a Lamp Kit contains everything you need to transform a paper template into either a touch, dimmer or proximity lamp. Plus – just the thing for those large scale projects – one litre tins of conductive paint.
