Physical computing: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 16:30, 6 September 2024

Revision as of 09:48, 5 February 2025

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{{distinguish|Mechanical computer}}

{{RefimproveMore citations needed|date=September 2014}}

'''Physical computing''' involves interactive systems that can sense and respond to the world around them.{{clarify|reason=If there is any distinction from an embedded system, mention it here.|date=September 2016}} While this definition is broad enough to encompass systems such as smart automotive traffic [[control system]]s or factory [[automation]] processes, it is not commonly used to describe them. In a broader sense, physical computing is a creative framework for understanding human beings' relationship to the [[Digital data|digital]] world. In practical use, the term most often describes handmade art, design or [[DIY]] hobby projects that use [[sensor]]s and [[microcontroller]]s to translate analog input to a [[software system]], and/or control [[electro-mechanical]] devices such as [[Electric motor|motor]]s, [[Servomechanism|servo]]s, [[lighting]] or other hardware.

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===Scientific applications===

Physical computing can also describe the fabrication and use of custom sensors or collectors for scientific experiments, though the term is rarely used to describe them as such. An example of physical computing modeling is the ''[[Illustris project]]'', which attempts to precisely simulate the [[Chronology of the universe|evolution of the universe]] from the [[Big Bang]] to the present day, [[Age of the universe|13.8 billion years]] later.<ref name="IP-20140614">{{cite web |author=Staff |title=The Illustris Simulation - Towards a predictive theory of galaxy formation. |url=http://www.illustris-project.org/ |date=14 June 2014 |work=[http://www.illustris-project.org Illustris Project] |access-date=16 July 2014 }}</ref><ref name="ARX-20140514">{{cite journal |author1=Vogelsberger, Mark |author2=Genel, Shy |author3=Springel, Volker |author4=Torrey, Paul |author5=Sijacki, Debora |author5-link= Debora Šijački |author6=Xu, Dandan |author7=Snyder, Greg |author8=Nelson, Dylan |author9=Hernquist, Lars |title=Introducing the Illustris Project: Simulating the coevolution of dark and visible matter in the Universe |date=14 May 2014 |arxiv=1405.2921 |doi=10.1093/mnras/stu1536 |volume=444 |journal=Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |issue=2 |pages=1518–1547|doi-access=free |bibcode=2014MNRAS.444.1518V |s2cid=16470101 }}</ref>

== Methods ==

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{{External links|date=October 2022}}

* [http://www.arduino.cc/ Arduino], a highly popular open source physical computing platform

* [http://www.raspberrypi.org/ Raspberry Pi], complete computer with GPIO's to interact with the world, huge community, many tutorials available. Many Linux distros available as well as Windows IoT and OS-less unikernel RTL's{{cfnclarify|date=May 2022}} such as Ultibo Core.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ultibo Core |url=https://ultibo.org/ |website=Ultibo.org}}</ref>

* [http://beagleboard.org/bone BeagleBone], a complete Linux computer with GPIO's, but a little less flexible

* [http://www.acmesystems.it/ FoxBoard (and others)], yet another Linux computer with GPIO, but with little information