Atlas
Atlas
Interactive Installation
Interactive Installation
Design Engineer
Design Engineer
Design Engineer
My Role
My Role
My Role
Overview of my Project
Overview of my Project
This was a team project exploring cyber-physical systems, where I worked as product designer on a sculptural installation of Atlas carrying the globe. We used computer vision and machine learning to track a participant's arm position and mirror it in the lifting range of Atlas's robotic arm, letting users interactively "hold up the sky" alongside him. We iterated the design from a full-body cardboard lo-fi prototype through to a final upper-body sculpture, balancing a mechanical joint structure with a statuesque, museum-piece aesthetic in copper and wood.
This was a team project exploring cyber-physical systems, where I worked as product designer on a sculptural installation of Atlas carrying the globe. We used computer vision and machine learning to track a participant's arm position and mirror it in the lifting range of Atlas's robotic arm, letting users interactively "hold up the sky" alongside him. We iterated the design from a full-body cardboard lo-fi prototype through to a final upper-body sculpture, balancing a mechanical joint structure with a statuesque, museum-piece aesthetic in copper and wood.
Methodology
Methodology
Concept Sketching & Ideation
Lo-Fi Prototyping
Mechanism & Joint Design
Sculpting & Model-Making
Computer Vision Integration
Hardware-Software Pipeline Development
Iterative Prototyping & Testing
Concept Sketching & Ideation
Lo-Fi Prototyping
Mechanism & Joint Design
Sculpting & Model-Making
Computer Vision Integration
Hardware-Software Pipeline Development
Iterative Prototyping & Testing
01 Context
This installation draws inspiration from the Titan Atlas from ancient Greek mythology. In the myth, Atlas was condemned to hold up the sky for eternity after the Battle of the Titans. Our installation aims to allow users to replicate Atlas' action and engage with the ''globle'' interactively. The installation features a sculpture of the upper body Atlas carrying the globe, with computer vision and machine learning detecting the participants' arm positions so that the lifting motion of Atlas's arms will attempt to synchronise with the lifting motion of the participant's arms. Atlas may fail to hold the globe if the participants drop their arms too quickly and the globe will fall.
This installation draws inspiration from the Titan Atlas from ancient Greek mythology. In the myth, Atlas was condemned to hold up the sky for eternity after the Battle of the Titans. Our installation aims to allow users to replicate Atlas' action and engage with the ''globle'' interactively. The installation features a sculpture of the upper body Atlas carrying the globe, with computer vision and machine learning detecting the participants' arm positions so that the lifting motion of Atlas's arms will attempt to synchronise with the lifting motion of the participant's arms. Atlas may fail to hold the globe if the participants drop their arms too quickly and the globe will fall.
02 Process
We went through a few cycles of iterations since the proposed idea. Initially we designed a model with the whole body of Atlas kneeled down with the globe on his shoulders. The following figure shows one of our lo-fi prototypes at the early stage.
We went through a few cycles of iterations since the proposed idea. Initially we designed a model with the whole body of Atlas kneeled down with the globe on his shoulders. The following figure shows one of our lo-fi prototypes at the early stage.
We wanted the arms to look both mechanical and human at the same time so we designed mechanisms using more curved joints, reminiscent of bones while the head and chest plate were more statuesque in nature. We went with a rustic copper and wooden look to make the structure look like an antique model displayed in a historic museum. It's a visual and interactive model to innovatively tell the story of the Greek God Atlas!
We wanted the arms to look both mechanical and human at the same time so we designed mechanisms using more curved joints, reminiscent of bones while the head and chest plate were more statuesque in nature. We went with a rustic copper and wooden look to make the structure look like an antique model displayed in a historic museum. It's a visual and interactive model to innovatively tell the story of the Greek God Atlas!
The figure below demonstrates the full pipeline of software communication with each other. The very beginning input data of the pipe line would be the coordinates data of the participant's arm, the final output of the pipeline would be the mechanical movement of the robotic arms and Atlas's head. This was done with Arduino and Wekinator.
The figure below demonstrates the full pipeline of software communication with each other. The very beginning input data of the pipe line would be the coordinates data of the participant's arm, the final output of the pipeline would be the mechanical movement of the robotic arms and Atlas's head. This was done with Arduino and Wekinator.
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I design experiences that matter and connect with people :)
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#Hire me
I design experiences that matter and connect with people :)
want to know more?
Get started
2026 Anoushka Sawardekar