[Inside the Box]: Bacon Bits Team 5

1. [Inside the Box]: Bacon BitsTeam 5 Kristen Hess Kyle Cecil Nick Morris Elizabeth Manley

2. [Effect #1]: Weather • Goal: To create wind on the stage. • For this effect we had two devices, a fan and a hot wired-hat system. • The fan blew papers off of a table to show the wind blowing. • A piece of fishing line was attached to the back right corner of the grid to a hat and another piece ran from the hat to a hot wire. • The fan blew air, the hot wire burned the fishing line and the hat flew off the stage to demonstrate the wind.

3. 10’ Wire running to DC Power source 24 gauge wire 4’ Fishing line To hat Fan

4. [Outcome/What could’ve gone horribly wrong…] • Outcome: This design worked very well and fulfilled the requirements of the effect. • What could’ve gone wrong: If the papers were not far enough from the fan or if the fan didn’t have one corner hanging off, the papers would not blow and create a wind effect.

5. [Effect # 2]: Lift and Rotate • Goal: To create the image of the invisible Kevin Bacon drinking a beer then tossing it to the ground • Design: We used two motors with 2 wheels each a different diameter to pull a beer can attached to two pieces of fishing wire up at different speeds. This created a tilting or drinking effect. Then we used a hot wire to burn the fishing wire and cause the can to fall.

6. [Outcome/What could’ve gone horribly wrong…] • Outcome: This effect turned out perfectly and fit into the play perfectly. • What could’ve gone wrong: One of the actors wipes of the top of the can. During one of the rehearsals she got it tangled and it didn’t work properly. This was a risk during the actual performance.

7. 80 RPM 12VDC Gear Motors Beer Can

8. [Effect #3]: Water • Goal: To make the audience believe the invisible Kevin Bacon is urinating on a plant. • Design: We used a water pump with an arched tube attached to it in a tupperware container of water. We taped the motor and tube down so they didn’t move and built an “L” shaped stand that attached to the grid.

9. Water Pump

10. [Outcome/What could’ve gone horribly wrong…] • Outcome: This effect worked perfectly and created a more realistic effect through the use of the switches on the control box. • What could’ve gone horribly wrong: The location of the plant prevented water from spewing all over the stage so it was imperative that the plant be placed correctly. Also, a ground fault occurred during rehearsal, disabling other effects from working

11. [Effect #4]: Balloon Descending • Initially we were going to have an actor walk the balloon on stage attached to fishing wire. As the actor walked a motor wound up the fishing wire. Then at the appropriate time the motor would begin again and the balloon would fall. • Final Design: Have the balloon already on stage but concealed. The actor lifts a wood piece and the balloon rises. Then at the appropriate time the motor winds the balloon up.

12. [Outcome/What could’ve gone horribly wrong…] • Outcome: Our design worked! • What could’ve gone wrong: If the fishing wire the balloon was attached to got tangled it may not have descended. Also, our water effect disturbed the master box and if we didn’t realize the green light wasn’t on, the effect wouldn’t have worked. We had one member of our team watch the box to make sure the green light was on at all times.

13. 140 RPM AC Motor Balloon Release Mechanism For mouse trap Wheel Mouse Trap Solenoid (DC)

14. [Effect #5]: Balloon Popping • Initial Design: a hot wire pops the balloon • The problem with using a hot wire is it was not easy to conceal and have on the stage since our balloon needed to descend as well. • Final Design: a mouse trap and solenoid are used to release a metal arm that comes down with enough force to pop the balloon

15. [Outcome/What could’ve gone horribly wrong…] • Outcome: This design worked remarkably well and was very reliable. • What could’ve gone wrong: If the balloon descended too far or was in the wrong position the metal arm would miss the balloon and it wouldn’t pop. To help prevent this from happening a guide was added to steer the balloon along the right path.

16. The [Control Box] • Our control box was fairly simple and consisted of a series of switches (AC) and push buttons (DC) connected in parallel

17. 12V DC • KEY: • HAT HOT WIRE • CAN HOT WIRE • CAN MOTORS • BALLOON POPPING SOLENOID GRID BOX 1 2 3 4 12V DC SOURCE 12V DC SOURCE

18. 120V AC FAN WATERPUMP BALLOON MOTOR 120V SOURCE

19. Grid Setup KEY 1- Weather 2- Rising and Turning 3- Water in Motion 4- Falling Object 5- Balloon Popping 5 4 1 2 3

20. [Safety] • Effect #1: We designed a thick plastic container with metal lining to catch and prevent a piece of hot fishing line from falling to the acting area. • Effect #2: We created a hot wire catch similar to Effect #1 to prevent hot wire from falling to the stage. • Effect #3: The water could create a slippery area if it does not go into its designated area. • Effect #4: The device could have been tripped over. • Effect #5: The mouse trap could be triggered by an actor or an actor could trip over the device

21. [What we learned] • Stay organized • Prepare ahead of time • Think about EVERYTHING that could go wrong • Always be willing to scrap an idea and try something new

22. [Conclusion] • We set up and took down our effects in under 5 minutes • All five of our effects worked and had thematic timing in the play