Newbury Work with Soundbeam on Innovative Music Technology
What is Soundbeam?
Soundbeam is an award winning musical instrument which uses motion sensors and switches to translate body movements into music and sound. This revolutionary device brings the joys of making music to youngsters with severe disabilities. Unlike musical instruments for individuals with special needs, Soundbeam doesn’t require any gloves, controllers or special instruments. Simply move in a way that feels comfortable, and Soundbeam will turn those movements into sounds that can be shaped and controlled by the users movements.
Soundbeam turned to Newbury Electronics when they needed PCBs for the latest version of the product. Cindy Crossland, of Soundbeam explained more: "The boards have a colour membrane with the switch number attached to it. The switches that use the PCB's, are triggered by touch and are part of the Soundbeam kit that is sold with the touch free sensors. The sensors are ultrasonic, ie they detect movement however small and translate this into music and sound." The switches can operate over a distance of 20m and are colourful, versatile, tactile and most importantly sensitive to the stimuli produced by the musician.
What was the challenge?
The Soundbeam product has complex internal features that control how the product operates. To meet the requirements of the product, high quality PCBs would have to be manufactured to very close tolerances.
What was the solution?
Fortunately, Newbury Electronics were more than capable of meeting this challenge. With decades of experience designing PCBs for a wide variety of applications, our standard manufacturing processes and procedures are more than capable of meeting most project requirements and were perfectly suited for this innovative project.
The Client View
"We needed well engineered and thin PCBs for this project and Newbury Electronics worked closely with us to ensure both the high quality of the design and manufacture. We have not been disappointed and the PCBs from Newbury Electronics have proved to be very reliable. Being able to get this expertise and the highest production standards from a UK based company was also an added bonus for Soundbeam, who wherever possible are keen to support UK businesses.”
Future development of the product is planned and Newbury Electronics will continue to provide its engineering skills and guidance as and when appropriate. For more information visit us on www.soundbeam.co.uk