Sounds of Welser 交互式安装 by Responsive Spaces

Sounds of Welser 交互式安装 by Responsive Spaces is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 A' Design Award 铜奖 in 装置设计 Competition Category.

铜装置· 2023

Sounds of Welser 交互式安装

by Responsive Spaces

Client: Welser Profile

A' Design Award 铜奖 Winner in 装置 Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #147550

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The Design

About Sounds of Welser 交互式安装

Welser Profile 是一家全球型钢供应商。该公司正在为其游客中心寻找互动的品牌体验。经过 13 代的传承，Welser Profile 已成长为行业的世界领导者。因此，响应式空间以这个成功故事的核心为基础，让产品成为主角，这是非常有意义的。真实的客户产品被用来建造一个钢管风琴，它在美学上暗示着传统，并通过创造神秘的音景来让人们一睹潜在的魔力，从而对每一种人类接触做出反应。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 铜奖

Sounds of Welser 交互式安装是 A' Design Award 铜奖得主，这是授予以创造力、独创性和敏锐见长的杰出设计的极具声望的认可。铜奖得主是技艺娴熟、创意惊人的作品，印证了其设计师丰富的经验、想象力与机智。预计Sounds of Welser 交互式安装将成为一件备受推崇、令人钦佩且被珍爱的物品，兼具显著的专业性与创新性。这件赢得 A' Design Award 铜奖的设计融入艺术、科学、设计和技术领域的最佳实践，并因注重细节而出类拔萃。Sounds of Welser 交互式安装出色地满足需求，触动渴望，迷住情感，并吸引好奇心。

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: While The design of the installation resembles an organ, it is far more technical, with sophisticated capacitive sensors that respond to touch and a dynamic sound engine that changes its sets of instruments every other minute.
One of the unique features of the installation is the way in which the technology is hidden, allowing visitors to focus on the tactile and sonic experience of interacting with the steel profiles. The capacitive sensors allowing for a precise and intuitive interaction with the product, while the dynamic sound engine creates a constantly changing soundscape that is unique and engaging.
Dimensions & Packaging: Dimensions: Width 4000 mm x Depth max. 1000 mm x Height max. 3400 mm
Tags: interactive installation, sound installation, organ, soundscapes, touch installation
Production Technology: Developing the organ required a combination of advanced production technology and carefully selected materials. Hidden from the users, there are a PC, 2 speakers and a microcontroller. Capacitive sensors for each steel profile are triggered by touch through the change of its resistance. The profiles are electrically conductive but are insulated by a wooden base, which allows for safe and distinguishable interaction with them. 18 profiles result in 9 tones and two different octaves on each side.
Design Challenge: An alloy coating was applied to each profile to prevent flash rusting and ensure durability. However, this presented a challenge as the alloy negatively impacted the profiles' electrical conductivity. Different alloys were meticulously tested until the best solution was found. The calibration of the sensors had to be consistent across all 18 profiles, which presented an additional challenge. The developed sensor system demanded attention to detail and a lot of testing under various conditions.
Research: Through a process of exploration and experimentation, an idea was settled upon for an interactive installation featuring an organ made entirely of real customer steel profiles from Welser Profile. Visitors would be able to touch the profiles to create various sounds.To bring the idea to fruition, prototypes were tested using various materials and production techniques. The result is an installation that combines advanced production technology with carefully selected materials and an intuitive design to create a truly immersive experience for visitors.
Inspiration: As a global provider of steel profiles, Welser Profile was looking for an interactive brand experience for its visitor center. "The product is the hero" was the core idea of this installation. The history of Welser is a ongoing success story, which building upon made perfect sense. Real products were used to build this steel organ, which aesthetically hints towards tradition and reacts to every human touch by offering a glimpse of the underlying magic through creation of mystical soundscapes.
Project Duration: The project launched in September 2021 in Gresten, Lower Austria in the Headquarter of Welser Profile and will be a permanent interactive installation.
Operation Flow: The organ installation is an interactive experience that allows visitors to explore and create sounds by touching real steel profiles. The sounds produced by the installation are constantly changing, and visitors can experiment with different combinations of touches to create their own unique soundscapes.
Team Members: Steel Organ Design, 3D & Development: Julian Reil
Image Credits: Photos / 3D Sketches / Sound: Julian Reil
Video: Isabella Rogl (das narrativ), Manuel Bauer (das narrativ)