Capush

Capush is a concept of modular capture units developed as part of a research project.

The Capush concept builds on the assumption that a single capture unit is not sufficient to address the diverse needs when producing knowledge resources in fabrication workshops. A key aspect of Capush is thus to consider a fleet of capture units (multiplicity) composed of different unit types with different features (variety). Some of these features can be automatized (degree of automation).

This website provides an overview of proof-of-concept implementations of different unit types with which we experimented. We don’t provide detailed tutorials how to recreate these units because we only implemented them as rough prototypes, that is, with lots of dangling cables and without proper cases which could everything nicely together and protect it from falls or other incidents likely occur in the day-to-day of a fabrication workshop.

Websocket based protocol to connect to units can be found on our Github repository

[Capush] fixed camera unit

[Capush] fixed camera unit

The fixed cam is a basic unit type whose main functionality is to provide access to a networked camera. For our proof of concept implementation, we selected a Raspberry PI as the base unit as it has a small form factor while providing the convenience of a full Linux distribution. These boards come equipped with a range of wired and wireless network connections, and are often readily available in many fabrication workshops.
[Capush] pan-tilt camera unit

[Capush] pan-tilt camera unit

The pan-tilt camera is an extension of the fixed camera. It is also installed permanently in the environment but its camera is mounted on a pan-tilt assembly enabling rotations around the pan and tilt axis for more control over the focus area. The control of the pan-tilt assembly can be automatic or manual. The latter lets makers control the orientation of the camera either through physical manipulations or through a (virtual) joystick interface displayed on a computer or smartphone’s screen.
[Capush] clamp camera unit

[Capush] clamp camera unit

A clamp camera is a mobile extension of the pan-tilt camera. It includes a battery pack and is mounted on a clamp, so that it can easily be moved and attached in the environment in different locations to get different points of view. This unit can thus be used to capture a scene from flexible points of view, providing the makers with a quick and simple way to set up their scene.
[Capush] head-mounted camera unit

[Capush] head-mounted camera unit

The head-mounted camera is an extension of the pan-tilt camera mounted on a headset, similar to the clamp but worn by the person, enabling a first person viewpoint capture. By attaching the unit once to the head, the maker can move around in the space wearing the head-mounted camera to go from an activity to another.
[Capush] table-bot unit

[Capush] table-bot unit

Table bot is a pan-tilt camera mounted on a small robot. Either the maker or the robot can decide the best position and orientation for this camera unit. In particular, the robot can track pieces (e.g. circuit board) or tools (solder) and move around on a table to maintain the distance between the objects of interest and the camera constant. Bill of material Alphabot2-pi