Final Project - Finito

Chopstick Chomp

Students
Lisa Harriott, Computer Science

Description
Chopstick chomp is a game where the player uses chopsticks to guide virtual sushis to a Buddha, which then eats the sushi.   Chopstick Chomp is designed to help persons get used to using chopsticks by adding a game that requires them to be used.

Photos

The Chopstick Controllers

A screenshot of the game.

Technical Details

Input
The input to the game from the chopsticks is the values from an accelerometer attached to the chopsticks.   These are the values that the virtual chopsticks move by.   There is also two metal pieces on the end of the chopsticks that send a signal when they are connected.   This lets the game know if the chopsticks are being squeezed together.

Output
One output of the game is the game displayed on the screen.   The player is able to see the chopsticks, grab the sushi, and guide the sushis to be eaten.   There is also a vibration in the real life chopsticks and a chomping sound from the buddha when a sushi is successfully eaten.

Construction
The components of the Chopstick Chomp comprise of an Arduino microcontroller, two chopsticks, a chopstick helper, two metal pieces, a cellphone vibrator, an accelerometer, a computer to run the program, a breadboard, and wire.   The chopstick helper holds both the accelerometer and the vibrator in addition to helping the user handle the chopsticks. Originally, the plan was to use a pressure sensor to detect whether the chopsticks were squeezed together and the motor was from a PS2 controller, so it was bulky. The original prototype with 3D printed chopstick helpers:

The final prototype looked much neater:










Software
The code for this system is written in the Processing 2.0 programming environment and the Arduino 1.0.2 programming environment.   The arduino receives the input from the accelerometer and passes it on to the processing program.   Also, the arduino receives input from the processing program and uses it to turn on the vibrator attached to the chopsticks.   The processing program is responsible for interpreting the values given by the arduino program and projecting them onto the game screen. For example, one feature is that when the chopsticks are squeezed, they appear to be squeezed in the game.



Acknowledgements
Thanks to Zane Cochran for ideas and help regarding the game and chopstick controllers as well as for troubleshooting and photo editing of images in the game.