Hackers in Residence - The ElectricBone

Mechanical Assembly

The mechanical structure for the instrument uses a few different materials. The main handle and the slide stay are made of wood. As is the plate for attaching the control box. The slide itself employs two different layers: an inner slide made of brass pipe (9/16") and a piece of PVC pipe (1/2") as the outer slide. Besides these, there are two acrylic plates carved with a laser cutter: one serves as a mounting rack for the ultrasonic sensor and the other as the deflector. All the pieces are assembled with screws or pressure.

The inner slide is attached to the main handle and the outer one to the other handle, both firmly placed into tight holes on the wood. The acrilic plates for the distance sensor go on top of each of these handles. This allows a slide action which is very similar to what a player would get with an actual trombone, plus it keeps the distance sensor at a constant straight angle with the bouncing plate, helping avoid false readings. Besides the slide attachment point, another hole on the other side of the main handle receives the mouthpiece. A third, lateral hole is used to attach the Sound Sensor in the same area, in order to catch the lips' vibration.