ArtBus computer interfaces for art, design, and multimedia

I'm Ed Bennett. I work in the Art and Technology department at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Mostly, I research non-media based electronics, electrical, and mechanical topics to support our students and faculty in DIY/New Media object making.

I got the idea for the ArtBus protocol in 2006 while I was working on a public art project by Steve Waldeck and Peter Gena. The protocol carries sensing and control signals between a computer and several devices. The protocol needed hardware to run on, so I designed an ArtBus I/O board and wrote the firmware to run it. The board and firmware continue to be my contribution to the project.

Making the whole system work as a group of devices, a collection of software, an operating a model of a  manufacturing context, and most importantly applying the ArtBus to art making is what's documented here.  A number of very capable and energetic people have made the ArtBus project work.

Work on the second major revision of the hardware is underway. I'm setting up the new board to use the AVR with Arduino libraries, but still keeping intact the philosophy of fixed-purpose, specialized interface devices. 

This and some of the other things I'm working on are in my main blog, Pervasive Tangibility at http://kineticsandelectronics.com/

email:

ed@kineticsandelectron ics.com

sbennett@sai c.edu