Mindball® was a very popular exhibit for many years, but it didn’t function perfectly, the way it had been designed. Rather than writing off Mindball®, the Workshop team was put to the task of reimagining the exhibit. They started by building a prototype. The headbands were replaced with something more durable. Three wood screws, serving as electrodes, were soldered to the original headband wires and built into a specially designed plastic holder. To ensure a good connection between skin and electrode, the contacts were spring loaded. The next step was the fabrication of two sturdy arches out of aluminum and the installation of the electrode holder. The finished prototype exhibit was tested on the floor for six months to evaluate its functionality and to collect feedback from visitors. Subsequently, the curator, designer and fabricator decided on the design, materials and fabrication elements for the redesign.
The first step of the redesign was to refurbish the table top. For that purpose, a Lexan® sheet was painted (on the back side), then fitted and glued to the existing wooden surface to improve durability and appearance. A new ball track cover had to be fabricated using Plexiglas® to match the new table top. The new electrode holders were fabricated from a sheet of blue polyethylene in a complex process that started with the designing of a pattern, followed by the routering of the polyethylene sheet and finished with the welding of the plastic pieces. The end product is an old exhibit with a new and shiny facelift, which not only looks good, but functions even better.
A special thanks to Alastair, a member of our knowledgeable and creative Workshop team, for his expertise.
Make sure you come visit and try out the new and improved Mindball® which is part of our BodyWorks Gallery!
