i-Viron MicroClimate

Environment Environs
Floor/Ceiling Tiles plus Arduino equals i-Viron MicroClimate
UNIVERSAL CUSTOMIZATION
CUSTOMIZATION PATENT [14]
iVIRON MICRO-CLIMATE TILES(2010)
Patent Number: 3,131,978

Fig. 1 Fig. 2
(54)Patent for
“Micro-Climate Tiles”
( 5 4 ) TECHNOLOGICAL DEPLOYMENT FOR
DISSOLVING THE STATIC BARRIERS
BETWEEN SOCIAL EXPERIENCES WHILE
MAINTAINING INDIVIDUAL
CUSTOMIZATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL
( 7 6 ) Inventor/Fabricator: JD
Sassaman

Correspondence Address:
STUDIO 5-414
COZY DESK WITHOUT A WINDOW
3rd YR MARCH REGION
( 2 1 ) Initial Application: i-Viron
MicroClimate Tiles
( 2 2 ) F i l e d ..............2232
Fig. 3

[23] ABSTRACT
by reconceptualizing the floor and ceiling
interior cladding to be part of integrated
technological systems,the individual units
become important vessels of discreet
devices.

Ceiling Tiles

Floor Tiles

1ft
UNIVERSAL CUSTOMIZATION
CUSTOMIZATION PATENT [14]
MICRO-MICRO-CLIMATES(2010)
Patent Number: 3,131,978

Reflective Surface

Fig. 4

Aimable Speakers

Fig. 5

LED Array

Fig. 6

DIffuse Lighting Panel

UNIVERSAL CUSTOMIZATION
CUSTOMIZATION PATENT [14]
MICRO-MICRO-CLIMATES(2010)
Patent Number: 3,131,978

Fig. 7 Durable Walking Surface

Fig. 8

Flexible Heat Film

Fig. 9

ThermoElectric Flat Heater

1”
 UNIVERSAL CUSTOMIZATION
CUSTOMIZATION PATENT [14]
THE MICRO-MICRO-CLIMATE(2010)
Patent Number: 3,131,978

(54)Patent for
“Micro-Micro-Climates”
( 5 4 ) METHOD FOR DISSOLVING THE
STATIC BARRIERS BETWEEN SOCIAL
Fig. 1 HEAT EXPERIENCES WHILE MAINTAINING
INDIVIDUAL CUSTOMIZATION AND
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
(55) A SELF CONTAINED
ENVIRONMENT ASSOCIATED WITH
INDIVIDUALS, DEFINED BY THE AREA OF
INFLUENCE OF THE EMBEDDED
TECHNOLOGY.

( 7 6 ) Inventor/Fabricator: JD
Sassaman

Correspondence Address:
STUDIO 5-414
COZY DESK WITHOUT A WINDOW
3rd YR MARCH REGION
( 2 1 ) Initial Application: i-Viron
MicroClimate Tiles
Fig. 2 SOUND
( 2 2 ) F i l e d ..............2232

[23] ABSTRACT
by distributing environmental controls
throughout two networked tile planes,
discreet environments are democratized and
the need for finite deliniation is
undermined.

The Micro-Micro-Climate does away with the

chains/chords/cables of personal technology
Fig. 3 LIGHT and liberates the individual to experience
their ethereal individual environment in
ubiquity.

1’
Superstudio

‘Fundamental Acts: Life, Supersurface’ 1972

Superstudio

‘Continuous Monument’ 1972

Yves Klein

Air Architecture 1960

the ceaseless application
HUMAN
PRESENCE?
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

NO
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

NO

no response
HUMAN PRES-
HUMAN
PRESENCE?
ENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Your RFID Card contains your

Read Personal Iden- identity profile, customized by
tity Profile you, including your desired
settings for all embeded
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN
PRESENCE?
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN YES
PRESENCE?
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Light ON
at specified intensity

HUMAN YES Light Remains ON

PRESENCE?
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN NO
PRESENCE?
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN NO read Personal Iden-

PRESENCE? tity Profile for dim-
ming setting
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES

this personal setting is also

Read Personal Iden- coded into your RFID card and
tity Profile determines the ‘tail’ of your
personal environment

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN NO read Personal Iden-

PRESENCE? tity Profile for dim-
ming setting
HUMAN
PRESENCE?

YES Light Fades to OFF

leaving visible trace

Read Personal Iden-

tity Profile

Turn Lighting ON
for your profile

HUMAN NO read Personal Iden-

PRESENCE? tity Profile for dim-
ming setting
Proof of Concept Video
Movement Tracking
Arduino Code void loop(){
readIdentity();
RFID Identity // Response if(millis()/1000-time>1 ){ //the >__ value determines how
soon light goes off after RFID is gone
int val = 0; identity=0;
int dimSpeed; } // this checks to see if the current time is more than 2 seconds
char code[10]; away from the time the last RFID code was read
int bytesread = 0; if(identity==0){// if it was more than 2 secs, the light is set to turn off.
int identity=0; for(int i=0; i<6; i++){ //cycling throught the individual LEDS
float ledIntensity [6]; ledIntensity[i]= ledIntensity[i]-ledIntensitybase[i]/dimSpeed;
float ledIntensitybase[6]; // this is to be used in the //controlling the dim
function that dims the lights constrain(ledIntensity[i], 0, 255); // so light value can not go below 0
float ledPin []={ if(ledIntensity[i]<5)ledIntensity[i]=0; // if the value
3,5,6,9,10,11}; is close to 0, it will be made to go to 0
long time=0; // use long so a huge time stamp can be }
used here }

void setup() { if(identity==1){ // set the lighting profile for CARD A HERE == bright white
Serial.begin(2400); ledIntensity[0] = 250; // White LEDS 1
pinMode (2,OUTPUT); ledIntensity[1] = 250; // White LEDS 2
digitalWrite(2,LOW);//activates RFID Reader ledIntensity[2] = 0; // Red LEDS
for(int i=0; i<6; i++){ ledIntensity[3] = 0; // Blue LEDS
pinMode (ledPin [i],OUTPUT); // this array sets ledIntensitybase[0] = 250; // set the lighting profile base
up each led pin in a cell block to inform later below.
values for CARD A HERE to use in dimming
} ledIntensitybase[1] = 250;
} ledIntensitybase[2] = 0;
ledIntensitybase[3] = 0;
}

if(identity==2){ // set the lighting profile for CARD B HERE == dim white
ledIntensity[0] = 100;
ledIntensity[1] = 100;
ledIntensity[2] = 0;
ledIntensity[3] = 0;
ledIntensitybase[0] = 100;
ledIntensitybase[1] = 100;
ledIntensitybase[2] = 0;
ledIntensitybase[3] = 0;
}
if(identity==3){
ledIntensity[0] = 200; // set the lighting profile for CARD C HERE == BLUE
ledIntensity[1] = 200;
ledIntensity[2] = 0;
ledIntensity[3] = 250;
 ledIntensitybase[0] = 200; if ((val ==10)||(val == 13)) {
ledIntensitybase[1] = 200; break;
ledIntensitybase[2] = 0; }
ledIntensitybase[3] = 250; code[bytesread] = val;
} bytesread++;
if(identity==4){ }
ledIntensity[0] = 50; // set the lighting profile for CARD D }
HERE == RED if(bytesread == 10) {
ledIntensity[1] = 50; if(code[0]==’2’&& code[1]==’F’&& code[2]==’0’&&
ledIntensity[2] = 250; code[3]==’0’&& code[4]==’E’&& code[5]==’6’&& code[6]==’C’&&
ledIntensity[3] = 0; code[7]==’2’&& code[8]==’C’&& code[9]==’0’){
ledIntensitybase[0] = 50; identity=1; // this is the white card A - tag code 2F00E6C2C0
ledIntensitybase[1] = 50; dimSpeed=10;
ledIntensitybase[2] = 250; }
ledIntensitybase[3] = 0; else if(code[0]==’2’&& code[1]==’F’&& code[2]==’0’&&
} code[3]==’0’&& code[4]==’E’&& code[5]==’6’&& code[6]==’9’&&
if(identity==5){ code[7]==’E’&& code[8]==’0’&& code[9]==’F’){
ledIntensity[0] = 250; // set the lighting profile for CARD D identity=2; // this is the white card B - tag code 2F00E69E0F
HERE == ALL LIGHTS dimSpeed=40;
ledIntensity[1] = 250; }
ledIntensity[2] = 250; else if(code[0]==’2’&& code[1]==’F’&& code[2]==’0’&&
ledIntensity[3] = 250; code[3]==’0’&& code[4]==’E’&& code[5]==’6’&& code[6]==’9’&&
ledIntensitybase[0] = 250; code[7]==’D’&& code[8]==’F’&& code[9]==’7’){
ledIntensitybase[1] = 250; identity=3; // this is the white card C - tag code 2F00E69DF7
ledIntensitybase[2] = 250; dimSpeed=120;
ledIntensitybase[3] = 250; }
} else if(code[0]==’2’&& code[1]==’F’&& code[2]==’0’&&
code[3]==’0’&& code[4]==’E’&& code[5]==’6’&& code[6]==’C’&&
for(int i=0; i<6; i++){ code[7]==’2’&& code[8]==’D’&& code[9]==’8’){
analogWrite(ledPin[i], ledIntensity[i]); identity=4; // this is the white card D - tag code 2F00E6C2D8
delay(5); dimSpeed=2;
} }
} else if(code[0]==’2’&& code[1]==’F’&& code[2]==’0’&&
code[3]==’0’&& code[4]==’E’&& code[5]==’6’&& code[6]==’9’&&
void readIdentity(){ code[7]==’D’&& code[8]==’E’&& code[9]==’F’){
if(Serial.available() > 0) { identity=5; // this is the white card E - tag code 2F00E69DEF
time=millis()/1000; // here a time stamp is recorded in the dimSpeed=160;
value (long) ‘time’ to be compared in the loop with the current }
time to determine how long-ago the last RFID was read. }
if((val = Serial.read()) == 10){ }
bytesread = 0; }
while (bytesread < 10){ }
if (Serial.available() > 0){
val = Serial.read();
MicroClimate :: Lighting
60degree light cone
MicroClimate :: Sound
90degree sound cone
MicroClimate :: Heat
MicroClimate :: Heat-Light-Sound
60degree light cone
haptic actuators:

Radiant Heating

http://www.radiant-floor-heating.com/hydronic/
Hydronic radiant floor heating systems use a
boiler to heat up hot water and a pump to circulate the
hot water in plastic pipes installed in a concrete slab.
The pipes, embedded in the floor, carry heated water
that conduct warmth to the surface of the floor where
it broadcasts energy to the room.
Separated radiant heat zones are typically con-
trolled by one thermostat and served by a manifold
which distributes the flow of warm water to the indi-
vidual circuits of tubing within each zone.
Hydronic heating offers heat that does not make
noise or give off uneven heat, as a forced air system SubFloor with Hydronic Radiant Heat
would. Again unlike forced air systems, the hydronic
system warms people and objects rather than just air
so one can leave the door ajar without worrying about
losing heat or becoming cold. On the downside, it is
not recommended the radiant system double-up for
cooling or cleaning the air the way a forced-air sys-

http://www.a2energy.com/pages/radiant.php
tem can. Although it depends on the application, is
it usually admitted that radiant heating systems are
20 to 40% more energy efficient than other heating
systems. Almost any typr of flooring can be installed
ontop of this system.
The main drawback is that this heating system
is not instantaneous.

Typical Installation Layers

 http://www.passivehouse.us/passiveHouse/PassiveHouseInfo.html
haptic actuators:

Electric resistance heaters

This type of heating can be either very appro-

priately used, or very inefficient. In conjunction with

http://www.passive-house.co.uk/
a well insulsated area, or a project such as a passive
house, this type f heater is super efficient because it
does away with an HVAC system and its accompany-
ing inefficiencies. It heats small spaces quickly. And,
it directly heats people and objects, not the air.
this system can also be used in conjunction
with a raiant heating system. Here, it can ‘fine-tune’
the temperature in a local area and the radiant system
can maintain a threshold temperature. Also, this type
of heating can be used to super heat areas of raiant Ideal Passive House
pipe heating.
Ultimately, a thermoelectric heater is making
one more, and therefor inefficient conversion of en-
ergy. PLants generally use natural gas to generate
electricity and this, in turn, is converting that to heat.
Most homes, however, have a natural gas heating
system so this conversion is unnecessary. Coupled
with a pasive house or other super-insulation strategy
it can make sense to employ thermoelectrics as part
of a larger system.

typical Space Heater - ThermoElectric

CH.01 CH.02 CH.03 CH.04 CH.05 CH.06 CH.07 CH.08 CH.09

Environmental Controls

Micro-Speakers

http://www.triadspeakers.com/products/icm8lcr.html#
Triad produces a series of ‘Mini’ theater speak-
ers designed for ceiling placement. At the smallest,
these are about 12” x 10.5” x 7.5”deep. These direct
sound at a 45degree angle towards the listener.
SpeakerCraft offers an ‘aimable’ in-ceiling
speaker that includes dual tweeters and a 7”radius
woofer. This unit is 4.5”deep, powered by 60Watts
and directionally aims the sound at the listener.
Polk Audio is also a top in-ceiling speaker pro-
ducer. They make a wide variety of speakers, most
popular is the 9” diameter RC60i series. the appear-
ance mimics recessed ceiling lights to ‘blend-in’. All of triad Mini Ceiling Speakers
these options are expensive: over $200 for a set.

http://thestereoshopinc.com/main/index.php?main_page=product_
info&cPath=40_82&products_id=623

Aimable Ceiling speakers

 CH.09 CH.08 CH.07 CH.06 CH.05 CH.04 CH.03 CH.02 CH.01

Environmental Controls

Sound Spotlights

The source of sound is not the physical device

http://www.holosonics.com/technology.html
you see, but the invisible beam of ultrasound, which
can be many meters long. This new sound source,
while invisible, is very large compared to the audio
wavelengths it’s generating. So the resulting audio is
now extremely directional, just like a beam of light.
Of course, the ultrasound, which contains fre-
quencies far outside our range of hearing, is com-
pletely inaudible. But as the ultrasonic beam travels
through the air, the inherent properties of the air cause
the ultrasound to change shape in a predictable way.
This gives rise to frequency components in the audible Holosonic Speakers
band, which can be accurately predicted, and there-
fore precisely controlled. By generating the correct
ultrasonic signal, we can create, within the air itself,
essentially any sound desired.
Essentially, to overcome the inherent limita-
tions of sound wave generation and speaker cone
-size,Holosonic has made a narrow beam of sound
from a small acoustic source by generating only ul-
trasound.

Relevant youtube video webaddress

the speakers are sold commerically as either

Relevant website of the provider

16” or 24” squares at 1/2” deep and are accompanied
by a processor/amplifier, cables and an audio source.

Sound Aiming with Ultrasound waves

 Plus-Components-announce-NKWs-new-10mm-micro-axial-fan-
http://www.ferret.com.au/c/Switches-Plus-Components/Switches-
haptic actuators:

Micro-Fans

On the opposite end of the spectrum from the

‘Air Curtains’, micro-fans offer the possibility of a dif-
fused source of air-circulation and the potential to
evenly circulate radiant heat or cooling.
The micro -axial fan by SwitchesPlus is only
10mmx 10mmx 2mm, inaudible, and has an airflow
of 1.3l/min.

NKW32-n816051
the even smaller, Axial fan has a 6mm diameter
. these fans are being produced primarily for portable
electronic devices and are paired with heat sink tech-
nologies to transfer approximately 20% more heat.
the Stokes Institute that produced ths fan has investi- Micro-Fan options
gated both radial and axial flow geometries, aerodyna-

http://www.stokes.ie/html/research/micromechanical/microfans.html
ics and fabrication at this micro-scale. Their products

http://www.eetimes.com/electronics-products/elec-
tro-mechanical/4089198/Micro-fan-touts-high-air-
are not simple ‘shrunken’ versions of larger fans, and
they suggest the potential to have specifically micro-
engineered fans embedded into larger systems.

flow-fast-speed
Alternate Micro-fans
 http://rocky-mountain.siggraph.org/sigweb2/pages/%20etech%20
http://www.effects.com.ph/cgi-bin/photogallery/display.asp?cat_id=2
haptic actuators:

Fog and Steam Walls

These technologies are primarily being used by

theater and production companies for big performanc-
es. The effects are generally used in combination with
lighting to accentuate the depth or thicknes of the fog.
All of these actuators have proven to be safe enough
for deployment around huge crowds of people.
Very thin fog walls or ‘fog screens’ have recently

fog%20wall.htm
been pioneered as projection screens. These screens
have the effect of making images appear to float in
thin air, as the fog is barely visible where there is no
projection. It requires both electricity and pressurized
water flow to create the screen and a projector for the Fog Wall as a Barrier
images. A person can walk through the ‘screen’ and

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfmSJQuhlk4&p
temporarily interrupt the projection, which will reas-
semle once the fog become stable again as a projec-

=2C537906E9D61284&playnext=1&index=25
tion surface.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iehOzdf4JPk
http://www.fogscreen.com/en/product/English/

Fog SCreen Displaying high-def images

haptic actuators:

Air Curtains

An air curtain is a device that is mounted above

a doorway and blows air down across the door, sepa-
rating the indoors from the outdoors, or one environ-
ment from another. It is designed to keep an indoor
controlled temperature inside of the building, saving

http://www.berner.com/
energy when anything from a customer to a tractor
trailer enters and exits the building.
This technology is used on a huge range of
scales, from industrial applications (up to 30ft tall) to
small retail applications such as a food refridgerator/
dispenser.
Air Curtain Principles

http://www.marsair.com/industrial.html
Common retail air curtain
Proof of Concept Video
5 Identities :: 2 Tiles
Plan View :: MicroClimate Interaction

fast moving person

the microclimate of a
moving person will vaguely
anticipate their action. it will
also submit to other more
stable microclimates.

group of people
when people gather, their
microclimate is additive and
activates a much larger area
than either individual would.

stationary person
this person’s microclimate
will hold steady even with
the disturbance of a passing
person.
Plan View :: Interstitial MicroClimates
croC
croCl
oC
Cl

Overlap Zones
Here microclimates must act
according to the heirarchy of
space, in this case time-
occupation. the longer user
environment trumps a faster
environment. interference of the
microclimate indicates alternate
user presence.

Dissipation Zones
Embedded micro fans keep the
unused spaces working as
low-level HVAC and as a distur-
bance to micro-environment tails.
Proof of Concept Video
Network Response
3-sided :: potential scalar combination

individual tiles

tile array
4-sided :: potential scalar combination

individual tiles

tile array
5-sided :: no scaling :: emergent secondary shapes

primary tile secondary tiles

tile arrays
6 -sided :: potential scalar combination

individual tiles

tile array
7-sided :: no scaling :: emergent secondary shapes

primary tile secondary tile

tile array
8-sided :: no scaling :: emergent secondary shapes

primary tile secondary tile

tile arrays
6 -sided :: potential scalar combination

individual tiles

tile array
6 -sided :: emergent secondary shape

secondary tiles

tile array
6 -sided :: tile specificity

these highly specific tiles work in

ventilation conjunction with the heating
tiles and help to define the
micro-climate in temperature.

light/sound the instant technologies should

be able to follow a user very
specifically and are easiest to
deploy in the majority of tiles.

heating because of the square fotage of

effective radiant systems and the
time delay for heating, the
largest tile is best for this
technology
Floor Tile :: Callouts

Heat Film
energy efficient
flexible
simple installation
serial electrical connections

Thermoelectric Heater
fine tune micro area heat level
heats tile not air

Micro Fan Array

pull down to keep heat local
blow up to diffuse unwanted heat
work with ceiling microfans to
generate consistent airflow/exchange
Ceiling Tile :: Callouts

Lighting
LED arrays embedded in tiles of all
sizes. the lighting identity can follow
the user instantaneously and
accurately throughout the system

Micro-Speakers Embedded
sound projection cone can be
customized per speakers. souns
followsthe user through the tile
array moving throughout
networked speakers.

Micro Fan Array

work with floor microfans to generate
consistent airflow/exchange
pull air up to diffuse heat
blow air down to keep heat in human space
iViron MicroClimate Tils

Floor Tile SubStructure

The floor tile is built to structurally carry the

weight of a person so the prototype can be tested at
full scale. In this case, the tile is covered with 1/8”
plexiglass so the substructure must be substantial.
The RFID Reader is embedd in such a way that
it will not be crushed when stepped on. It has four
wires that must be directly connected to the arduino
board.

Floor Tile Structure

Embedded RFID Reader

iViron MicroClimate Tils

Floor Tile

The face of the RFID Reader must be able to

interact with the RFID cards at close proximity due to
the prototyping technology.

Floor Tile with Plexi and Reader

Embedded RFID Reader

iViron MicroClimate Tils

Ceiling Tile Layered Construction

The ceiling tile is constructed in a completely

different manner from the floor tile. It is layered with
plexi, a diffusing light layer, embedded technology and
a reflective top surface.

Ceiling Tile // From below

Ceiling Tile // From Above

iViron MicroClimate Tils

Ceiling Tile Layered Construction

The top of the ceiling tile reflects the LED lights

down to the display surface. The wiring is routed
around the edges of the tile. Each LED has one ground
and one power wire going to the arduino board.

Opening the Ceiling Tile

LED Arrangement inside Tile

iViron MicroClimate Tils

Ceiling Tile Wiring

For this prototype, the wiring connections are

quite elaborate. This system could easily be stream-
lined with existing technology for multi-light arrays that
do not require individual wiring. Here, the multitude of
lights create the five different RFID profiles.

Wiring the Arduino and Breadboard

Wiring Connection to Ceiling Tile`

 Red LED iViron Ceiling White LED

Blue LED

ID Cards
ds
ds
iViron Floor
RFID
 Red LED iViron Ceiling White LED

Blue LED

ID Cards

RFID
 Red LED iViron Ceiling White LED

Blue LED

ID C
Caards
s
iViron Floor
RFID
 Red LED iViron Ceiling White LED

Blue LED

ID Cards
ds
ds
iViron Floor
RFID
iViron Ceiling

to digital pin

Ground
 iViron Ceiling

to digital pin to digital pin

Ground Ground
 iViron Ceiling

Ground

to digital pin to digital pin

Ground Ground
 iViron Ceiling

Ground
to digital pin to digital pin

to digital pin to digital pin

Ground Ground
 Ground

5v

to digital pin

to serial port pin

iViron Floor
Infrared Receiver
LED

Personal Settings Device

(analog output)

battery power
Infrared Transmitter
i.viron floor tile
 Ground

Digital Pin
Potential to make this emitter
battery powered means it would
not need to be hard wired to the
arduino board.

A small watch
battery can supply
enough power for
this emitter.

i.viron floor tile

Infrared Receiver i.viron ceiling tile LED

to digital pin

5V

10K resistor

Ground
Ground
Ground

5V
to analog pin

10K resistor

to analog pin

Personal Settings Device

(analog output)
and all your modern ammenities like ipods iphones ipads personal lamps heating controls...
 take it with you...
everywhere

i-viron Microclimate
no cords no cables no plugs no wires no jacks no connections no thermostat no earbuds no
 i-viron Microclimate
tile pairs

available everywhere...

easy installation distributed network connections additive aggregation infinitely expandable

 office den

bedroom

master suite

dining

kitchen

living
front entrance

family entrance
parking
master bedroom section