The threat, fine particulate matter - commonly
known as air pollution - poses to the health and
life quality of breathing organisms is evident,
yet widely downplayed or not even perceived at
all. The installation is an interactive data
visualisation of PM 2.5 and PM 10 data. It's goal
is to create awareness in making an invisible
threat to human health more comprehensible
for the layperson by making it visible.
Through a haptic interface the user can actively
compare different air quality conditions by
navigating through different measurement
stations in the world and travelling forth and
back in time, while having the simulated
particle system respond to the data accessed
accordingly. In addition to projecting the
particle simulation on the layers of the semi-
translucent 3D-screen, the corresponding raw
data is shown on a small LED screen.
The code for the particle simulation was written
in the Processing IDE (Java) and the Arduino IDE
(C++). The physical interface was implemented
using two potentiometers (navigation through
the data array) and a small LED screen
(visualising the raw data) connected to an
Arduino micro-controller. DIY 3D-Screen The
frame was constructed using battens from the
hardware store. Off-the-shelf mosquito nets
were clamped along the edges. With an
airbrush, high reflective paint was evenly
applied to the meshes surface, to ensure
optimised visibility of the projected particles.
