dyno

Jussi Ängeslevä, Stephen Hughes, Sile O'Modhrain
Copyright Media Lab Europe 2004 - All Rights Reserved

Download video sceneario (19 Mb)

Dyno is an intelligent climbing wall concept combining novel hardware and software as well as a range of scenarios for potential use. The attempt is to improve current existing climbing walls with retro-fittable components that make the wall more flexible, provide some exciting novel uses and improves the known existing ways. Technologically Dyno consists of a family of climibing holds of different sizes and shapes. They are augmented with illumination capability as well as sensors to detect if it is being touched, and networked together through a socket bus and controlled with central computer.

Background:

Indoor climbing is often considered "second best", a practicing platform for outdoor climbing, and therefore the wall and the hold designs largely borrow from the shapes and structures in the wild. The innovation is often to higher level of "realism". An ordinary climbing wall consists of a vertical array of panels (with possible overhung parts) each of which has a number of embedded T-nuts to which the climbing holds are screwed into. Different routes on a same vertical panel array are distinguished with different colour holds.

Our approach was to attempt to see what is possible beyond what outdoor climbing can provide and address those. Simultaneously, we want to improve the flexibility and customisability of wall design in its more traditional form.

The Dyno concept consists of three main component sets:

1. the Holds, Well designed translucent climbing holds with custom electronics built in for illumination and touch detection and communication.

2. socket bus, consisting of concentric rings that are retro-fittable around the T-nuts in the wall. The units are wired together to provide power and communication to the holds. Only 2 wires are needed, as the signal is modulated in the power supply cables. Every hold has its own unique address so that the signal sent from the computer can be picked by the appropriate hold.

3. A computer that monitors the wall and can operate different programs on it.

Scenarios:

Several concept applications have been thought using the system. Obviously, building a working prototype is crucial in imagining new novel uses beyond these.

1. Set a custom route:

- Traditionally a route on a wall is a set of holds of one colour. Several routes can exist on the same array of panels, but a climber is not supposed to use any other than those that are part of his/her climb. By making it possible to light up the holds, setting routes is much easier. Instead of having to change a particular hold to different colour, it can be simply programmed to switch on for a particular route. Secondly, it is often difficult to see the colour of a hold, when it is covered with chalk that climbers used in their hands to improve the friction. By having only the ones lit up that are part of the route makes it very easy to detect the available holds in a given route.

To select a route, one can simply toggle between the different possibilities on a wall, or key in preferred level of difficulty, and the system will display available climbs.

2. Setting a route

Instead of having to change the holds to set a route, the system can be set to "record" mode, where by climbing, the climber sets a new route. This can then be stored in the library of climbs for other people to try in the future.

3. Next

A common practice in climbing training is that the trainer points different holds on a low wall with a stick, that the climber has to reach the next. Because the instructor has to reach to the hold to be able to point at it, this means that this kind of training is only possible not far off the ground. Lighting up the grips the trainer can perform the same exercise in the whole length of the climbing wall.

4. Add a block.

Another common practice in low climbing walls is for the climbers to "add" a new hold to the end of a sequence other climbers have performed before. This gradually extending route becomes more and more difficult as people add new moves to it. Again, using the sensing and display capability of the system, this can be made much easier, and to the length of the whole wall.

5. Dynamic level of difficulty

Climbing levels of difficulty is often difficult to evaluate. Tall people have advantage in certain kinds of moves, but shorter, ligher bodies are better suited for others. The level of the climb can be dynamically adjusted to the level at which the climber is at, by monitoring each move, and comparing the level of difficulty of each move (as well as the kind, whether it is a reaching move, a dynamic move, a balancing move or something else), and dynamically adjust the climbing route to the difficulty level of the climber.

6. Stamina training

when a climber is on the wall, it is very hard to concentrate on anything else than the climbing itself. Stamina training, known in many other sports, is very difficult to perform in climbing. We suggest a communication between heart beat monitor and the Dyno system to adjust dynamically the difficulty level of the climb to maintain certain heart beat level for optimal stamina training.

playful applications: - Climbing indoors with the intelligent grips provides possibilities for several more playful scenario, especially for the younger climbers.

7. Hot Grips

Every time one makes a move, the next grip lights up in the route, but only for a short period of time. During that time, the climber has to reach that in order to continue the game.

8. Catch a grip

An animated moving light, that "jumps" from hold to hold tries to escape the climber. He/she has to climb fast to catch it, or drive it to corner.

9. cat and a mouse

When several panel arrays are installed with the Dyno system, a climber in one panel array can light up holds on another. The climber in the other panel then has to try to catch the first climberby touching the lit up holds hin his/her own panel array.

10. Screensaver

when nobody is climbing, the wall can be animated to attract people to the wall. Grip is an interface proposal that was developed as a part of MIDE (Movement as an interaction design element) workshop in Media Lab Europe. The workshop was taught by Carol Strohecker and Sile O'Modhrain.