Why an App? (For more than start and stop)

Because an Interactive 3D Zoetrope can do so much more than start and stop

New Android Sequenced 4-Mation app for new machines with stepper motors, illuminated button, synchronized sound and sequencing. Turntable kits use the the original 4-Mation app for iOS and Android. iOS app for new machines with stepper motors and sequencing later this year.

iOS 4-Mation app for Turntable kits and the older brushed motor zoetrope machines.

Android 4-Mation app for Turntable kits and the older brushed motor zoetrope machines.

All machines have a physical start/stop button. Base machines come with a touch button for start and stop. Exhibits have a smart, external panel mounted, illuminated, stainless steel button for sequence start, stop and other pre-programmed interactions. But – if you’re creating your own animation and need to adjust the strobe timing, or you want to change the strobe brightness, or synchronise the animation speed with a camera for filming, or modify sound and sequence programming – then you need the app. It’s also for STEM experimentation, you can show the transition when the Persistence of Vision effect kicks in or breaks; by slowly ramping the animation speed up, or down. Or you can just have fun playing with the RGB colours. The app is free, it is not monetised in any way. There are no ads nor does it collect any data or connect to the internet and it will always be that way.

For Public Exhibits with smart one button control – the app lets you customize the animation sequence that runs when the illuminated stainless steel button is pressed. You can set the length of the sequence. You can add synchronized sounds that play during the animation for each animation phase, spin-up, strobes on, strobes off, animation stop, and while the animation is idle. You can set the button to light up again in the middle of the animation and provide interaction – such as momentarily turning off the strobes, or even running the animation backwards! Exhibits ship with an agreed and pre-programmed sequence, but if you want to change anything it’s simple and intuitive in the app with an English command dictionary (SpinFPS[rate], Strobes[power], Sound[index, play, stop, fadein fadeout], etc..)

Film It: Sync Animation fps with Camera fps at 24, 25, or 30 and Share Video* The apps animation speed control lets you synchronise the animation with a camera at precisely 24, 25 or 30 frames per second so you can share high quality video on social media.

For Enthusiasts the app provides full real time control with separate speed and extra strobe control features. In this video we started the animation without the strobes, and told Ana to switch the strobes on using the app. Ana has a good poker-face, she is hard to impress, but her jaw dropped when she turned the strobes on the first time. That moment, when a spinning blur just bursts into life, always creates emotion. With the strobes on/off toggle in the app these moments are on tap.

For Artists and Animators the app provides precisely configurable strobe timing to exactly match your animation. And of course you get all the power of sequence programming and synchronized sounds to create a custom experience if you’re putting the zoetrope on public display.

STEM: Your Eyes are Deceiving you, Explore How * Remember playing with Flip-Books as a kid, did you try to flip the pages slowly so you could wrap your head around the effect? With the App, precise speed control is childs play. Slow the animation to see and feel the moment when the Persistence of Vision effect breaks down. Then speed it up for the reverse transition of blinking freeze-frames coming to life.

Rainbow Zoetropes The strobes are RGB and the app lets you play with 6 different colours. On neutral toned animations like the Bone Urchin it adds an extra dimension. There’s also a disco mode that smoothly, randomly, and continuously cycles through the colour space.

* available on Walnut and Beech machines with integrated stepper motors, not available with turntable kit machines