The Crying Rock

The Crying Rock was made as an Interactive Landscape project for Technology and Ideas in Listaháskóli Íslands. The Crying Rock uses a sound module to pick up sound to which it will cry via a water pump that has been fitted inside the rock.

Supplies

A rock

A water pump

Three tubes of equal length

Cement drill

Arduino

Arduino shield

Tube divider

Jumper wires

A sound module

2 wires

Plexi glass

Step 1: Find a Rock and Drill Holes.

Firstly, find a rock that is suitable for the project. Use a cement drill to drill three holes into the rock. Two of the holes are for the water tubes which were fitted according to a drill size. The third will be a bigger hole to the side of the rock where the sound module will be placed. Drilling slowly and steady will ensure your rock will not break or crumble.

Step 2: Set Up the Arduino and Code

Use an Arduino and an Arduino shield for this step. The jumper wires attached to the Arduino are connected to the sound module that will be placed inside the rock. The code used for the final showcase ensures the rock will cry for three seconds each time it is activated but the sensor value will need to be adjusted to the noise around it.

Step 3: Add the Water Pump.

Attach the water pump to the Arduino shield as shown in the picture. Solder the wires to the pump and screw them in to the Arduino. Slide the tubes onto the OUT and IN holes on the other side of the pump. The water will be sucked in through the IN tube and be pumped out of the OUT tube. The OUT tube will be attached to a tube divider which forks the tubes allowing water to be pump through two holes in the rock.

Step 4: 3D Printing and Laser Cutting

Laser cut a plexi glass 25x25cm with two holes. This is the surface for the rock and the holes are made for the tubes and running water. So that the running water does not come into contact with the wires, 3D print a drain for the opening closest to the front on the plexi glass. 3D print two tube ends to control how the water leaks out of the "eyes".

Step 5: Build Structure

Build a box to hold the water supply and wiring. Thread the tubes and wires through the rock and into the box. Adjust the code accordingly and decorate as desired.