Outdoor Requirements

This week I have been looking into waterproofing and securing the map installation as we it would be located in the courtyard. We have already decided that we will not be making the map installation. Instead we will have a small scale model that will be our proof of concept. We still wanted to investigate the technical and material requirements of this installation. What we wanted to address was:

• What material would the map be
• How would the electrical components be waterproof
• How would the map be secured

Material:
The material for the map needs to be durable and waterproof in order to withstand the Irish weather. The first material I looked at was Perspex (or Acrylic) Sheets, however these are transparent, even white perspexs has some transparency. It does have a high resistance than glass and could withstand windy conditions.

Transparent Perspex

White Perspex

  




http://www.accessplastics.com/acrylic-perspex-sheets/
http://www.365plastics.ie/index.php/plastic-sheets/acrylic-perspex-sheets.html

Another option is High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Sheets, a plastic produced from petroleum. The most common form of plastic and can be found in a wide range of items from plastic bags to plastic shairs. This material is corrosion resistant, non toxic and water resistant. 

HDPE Sheets

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23869 
http://www.regal-plastics.com/hdpe-high-density-polyethylene-sheet.html
http://www.quadrantplastics.com/en/products/machinable-plastics/moderate-80-c/hdpe.html

Fibreglass is another option that is a robust material and is used in the housing industry, storage tanks, piping, it is even used to make surfboards. It is lightweight but durable. There are two types of Fibreglass. E-glass, which is Electrical Glass. The other is S-glass, which is structural glass and 30% stronger. Like the Perspex, fibreglass is also transparent, but Fibreglass Honeycomb panels are not.

Fibreglass Sheet

Fibreglass Honeycomb Panel 

https://www.acpsales.com/Fiberglass.html
http://www.glastic.com/en/products/glastic-electrical-products/flat-sheet-laminate.html

For creating the outlines of the countries we would use the same material as the map, but in a different, darker colour. I also looked a little into waterproof paint as an alternative. 
Acrylic paint would be suitable, but would need a varnish over it as it has pours. It also is not that weather resilient but if sheltered this would be fine. Another option is simply exterior paint, like ones you would use on a house, which is definitely weather proof. It must also be considered what material will be painted onto.
http://www.chiff.com/a/acrylic-painting.htm
http://www.weathershield.ie/products/index.jsp

Waterproofing Electronics:
It is important that the electronic elements of this installation are protected against the weather. The Arduino would be located in the Lantern stand but it would be a good idea to have a waterproof case, available online. As for the wires there are plenty of water proof wires available online as well as a waterproof potentiometer. A water proof filler can then be used to seal any areas where water might get in. 

Arduino Case

Waterproof Wires

http://www.ebay.com/bhp/clear-enclosure
http://www.alibaba.com/showroom/waterproof-electrical-wires.html
http://potentiometer.us/potentiometers/singleturn_potentiometer/waterproof.htm

For the LED Light strip it would be a simple matter of using waterproof LED Strip which is available online.

Waterproof LED Strip

http://loweledlighting.ie/led-lighting/led-strip-bar-lighting/waterproof-5-metre-300-leds-strip-light-with-100-watt-dc-driver-ls-5swp-300-72d.html
http://www.ebay.com/bhp/white-led-light-strips-waterproof

Securing Map:
The map will be free standing, because of this we needed to look a securing this to the ground. Through the creation of the prototype I saw that 2 poles would not be enough and a third was needed in the middle for extra support. These poles would then have to be fixed into the ground. The first way I looked at how fences are succoured. One method was to use metal spikes that would be hammered into the ground.

The problem with this method is it is not that secure and depends on the looseness of the ground and how far down you put the spike. The second I looked at was using bolts to secure the posts. 

This method would be good if we had to secure the map to a concrete surface as it does not require you to create holes through the ground. The final method and most secure is to embed the poles in concrete. 

This would involve digging a hole, inserting the pole and filling the hole with cement and then covering. 
http://www.landscapejuice.com/2007/08/how-to-concrete.html
http://www.diynot.com/pages/op/op003.php
http://www.perfectpergolas.co.uk/pergola-assembly/assembly-instructions-step-2

I feel that despite us not actually creating this installation, we have researched enough into the materials and requirements that if we had the money to implement this we would be fully capable of doing so.