Recently, Sharp introduced new extra-long-range infrared proximity sensors that rock the house better, harder, faster, and yes, stronger than any sensors like it. We got a hold of a few for testing, and decided that it was a perfect opportunity to upgrade 2Ï€r! But we didn’t want to simply hack them in to our current setup! With the experience we’ve gained from running 2Ï€r at various events across the western US, we decided to go right back to the drawing board and rework the whole platform. It’s now shorter, sleeker, and incorporating a swanky design accent, as well as containing the glory of the new sensors.

The first step of a project like this is to draw it out, and recently at IA, we’ve taken to drawing everything out in CAD before buying any of the materials. This leads to a lot less waste, and helps to overcome some of the possible design challenges early on. As such, the last few weeks have had numerous meetings and work sessions to really hammer down what we want this thing to be.

I’m excited to share these images with everyone, so I’ve created a flickr set with all the various layers of the file separated out into individual images.

Enjoy!

Recently we sent Yuri’s Night a proposal to run 2Ï€r at their party. We haven’t heard back, but we’re hoping for the best! No matter what happens, we’ll definitely be at the party.

2pm-2am, Saturday April 12th, 2008.
NASA AMES Research Center, Moffett Field CA

Further details are available at their site, ynba.org.

Wish us luck!

Photo credit: Scott Beale – Laughing Squid