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Floor-monsters

I am a papertoy designer and developer. I call myself an Unicorn ( * )

In my career as a papertoy designer I have done wonderful things: exhibits, workshops, presentations, books...

And this is only with paper, 3D shapes and illustrations ... But I always try to push myself.

And the floor-monsters are no different.

What is a floor-monster?

These 3 legged beasts seem to live dormant on the floor. But they're ALIVE! They are activated by movement, sound, light...

Floor monsters are made of cardboard, their body is controlled with simple electronics and their brain is a micro-computer.

The walls between art and engineering exist only in our minds. - Theo Jansens

Big hairy goal

The vision of the Artist in me: I want to fill a room in the Rijksmuseum with many different FloorMonsters.

Monsters that respond to noise, light, motion … and other triggers. Sometimes the monsters move synchronously as a flock. The monsters have different bodies: 2 legs, 3 legs, x legs. They also have different ways of moving. They are made of different materials and so they make different sounds as they move.

You have to walk through the room to get into the next part of the museum: the exhibition explaining the evolution of the FloorMonsters. You can find different types of monsters and you can build/create your own monster.

After that you can buy the FloorMonsters(c) DIY package in the museum shop with pre-cut/scorn cardboard legs and all the (electronic) components needed to build one. Make your own FloorMonsters … as Theo Jansen predicted.

How will this thing move?

The vision of the Hacker in me: How to create those monster legs? How should the pattern look? What is the easiest way to do it? What should you take into account? The direction of the corrugated cardboard?

How much should you explain and how much do you allow the viewer to investigate on their own?

How can you use a Micro:bit or Arduino to simplify the electronics of the FloorMonsters?

How does the monster move? How does the servo work to “tighten” the legs? How heavy is the FloorMonster? Can the motor handle that? Is the cheap servo strong enough?

How long does a FloorMonster live? Will 1 battery pack be enough or do we need another “lifeline”? Can they live off light?

Will cardboard be to difficult to handle for children? From what age can you cut with knives?

How do I explain what kind of cardboard you need to make a FloorMonster? For example, a banana box is too thick, so you have to search for a single layer of corrugated cardboard.

(*) Unicorn: mythical creature. Also a reference to designer’s who are also developers.

Many believe they exist, some know someone who hired one, few claim they saw one in the past, always in strange circumstances.