Pricing and Technical Information
Please contact TechnoFrolics for any information not covered here, including our rental pricing.
Pricing
TechnoFrolics offers a range of configurations, services, sales and rental options, with examples including:
- Abstract artwork with stock choreography, electronics only, with the case built by the client
- Custom logo and choreography with case, lighting, music system, and shipping crate
- Visitor-interactive versions
- Outdoor vs. indoor units
- Rental and lease-towards-puchase agreements
Additional pricing factors include quantities ordered, display size, lighting, commercial versus educational application, and the like.
Sale pricing in single quantities begins at $28,000 for the electronic internals of our standard size abstract artwork with 4 stock song selection buttons. Rental pricing begins at $3500 per show (plus shipping and a staff setup person). Please see our pricing document for more detail.
To receive specific pricing and technical details applicable to your needs, please call or email TechnoFrolics.
Technical Description
The exhibit's visible grid of cactus-like objects is made up of permanent magnets covered with very fine iron powder the consistency of flour. The fur-like strands that form are the result of millions of tiny iron dust particles lining up along the magnetic field lines.
The exhibit's motions result from modulating this permanent magnetic field with a matrix of powerful computer controlled electromagnets. These electromagnets are made by winding a coil of copper wire around an iron-based core and running variable electric current through the coil.
The existing dances and silent dramas are hand-choreographed by the artist using a real-time choreography computer language. It takes the artist approximately 40 hours of choreography to create a 1 minute dance to music.
In interactive versions of the exhibit a sensor pad device projects a high-frequency, low voltage and very safe, electric field, and registers changes in this field as users move their hands above the pad. There are multiple sensors in the pad, each of which controls the electric current in one electromagnet. The pad detects both x-y (left-right) and z (height) position of a user's hand(s). (The electrical parameter that is altered by hand position and detected by the sensor pad is the ‘capacitance’.)
We occasionally receive questions from students, science fair volunteers, and others, asking how they might create a simpler item based on current designs, etc. We've created this page to address such queries.
Pre-Choreographed Songs
Existing pre-choreographed songs for our abstract artwork piece, as shown here dancing to the first three pieces below, include:
- Smalltown Boy by Jimmy Somerville. Choreography length 2:58. MP3 sample (0:35).
- Harmonic Meetings Album by David Hykes & The Harmonic Choir. Choreography length 50:48 x 2 (two clips that alternate). MP3 sample of both clips (0:24).
- Flight of the Bumblebee by Rimsky Korsakov. Choreography length 1:33. MP3 sample (0:12).
- Pump Up the Jam by Technotronic. Choreography length 1:40. MP3 sample (0:24).
Details Regarding Case Fabrication
We encourage reviewing photos of past cases in the Dancing Iron Dust gallery.
For more technical detail , including safety, lighting, cooling, dimensional information, and more, please contact TechnoFrolics for an access code, and then go here.