What Is Teleo

Overview
Who Uses Teleo
What You Can Do With Teleo

Teleo™ is a rapid-prototyping and development tool developed and marketed by MakingThings. It consists of a line of modular and networkable hardware components that can easily be connected to a computer via USB and programmed and controlled using any one of a number of programming languages. Components range from a variety of input and output modules, motor controller modules and accessories.

If you’re interested in taking a more detailed look at the Teleo product line or in purchasing, please feel free to jump directly to our Products section.

For those of you who are interested in getting a concrete sense for how Teleo is already being received by artists, designers and developers alike, feel free to explore the menu to your left. You’ll be able to browse selected projects, hear what they’re saying about Teleo, and, tap directly into the rapidly growing Teleo community. We hope you find it all both helpful and inspiring.

Teleo is proving to be a powerful, cost-effective tool for those looking to build highly creative and differentiated displays, kiosks, exhibits, installations, models, and interactive environments. It’s also being used as a rapid prototyping and development tool for designing digital devices and machines.

As such, everyone from retail merchandisers and kiosk designers to museum exhibitors and architects to individual artists, engineers and hobbyists are using one or more products from the Teleo product line.

And because Teleo is flexible, expandable and relatively inexpensive, it’s proving an ideal teaching and learning tool at the University level. Graphic Design Departments, Engineering Departments and Art & Technology Departments are among our most devoted customers. Feel free to browse a list of some of the Universities currently integrating Teleo into their curricula.

Teleo’s wide range of customers is also testament to the fact that you don’t need to be an expert or low-level programmer to work with the toolset. In addition to supporting C++, Teleo also supports Cycling74's MAX application as well as Macromedia's Flash (MX 2004 and Action Script 2.0).

Teleo also works on multiple operating systems, including Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.

If you would like more information, please email: info@makingthings.com

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To get an idea as to the breadth and depth of potential applications, please take a look at the incredible work of some of our customers in the Gallery. In the meantime, we’ve started to put together a list of general ideas that we feel have yet to be fully explored with the Teleo product line:

SMART BILLBOARD
A billboard that interacts with the users as they approach. This could be a bus stop kiosk with interactive routing information, or a movie poster that triggers a preview. The user would not be required to touch the screen but could use arm gestures to interact with the content.

PRODUCT DISPLAY FOR STORE OR TRADESHOW
An interactive product display that draws customers and that helps communicate product-specific information. When a customer approaches a particular product in a display or on a shelf, a serious of actions could be triggered. For example, a spotlight highlighting the product could switch on and/or some sort of product-specific audio-visual presentation could be launched.

DYNAMIC WINDOW DISPLAY
A dynamic window display that responds to people as they walk by. For example, a Flash movie projected on to the window could display different graphic patterns or video clips depending upon how many people pass by and how quickly.

MECHANICAL, RECONFIGURABLE ENVIRONMENT
A full-scale, fully automated, reconfigurable environment with walls that move and lights that turn on as people walk around the space. The environment can be compact or more spread out, depending on whether the audience participates as a group or individually. This type of project could envelop the viewer, creating the sense that the environment is alive.

FULL-SCALE INTERACTIVE PROJECTION
An interactive environment where users can interact with images that are projected onto the wall or floor. For example, a projected image could follow a person around the room and/or react to various body gestures. Moreover, you could set up an environment in which multiple users could interact with the piece simultaneously, requiring coordination among the users, be it in a cooperative or competitive manner.

INTERACTIVE ARCHITECTURAL MODEL
A stand alone, interactive architectural model that enhances client presentations. For example, touching or pointing to different parts of the model could trigger spotlights, launch ambient sounds and voice narrations, and/or set various motors in motion that animate specific parts of the structure.

INTERACTIVE OR KINETIC SCULPTURE
A series of objects or sculptures on a gallery wall that react as visitors approach and walk along the gallery wall. A "wave" effect could be generated by integrating a series of audio-visual elements or a series of electro-mechanical movements.

INTERACTIVE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
Turn your body into a musical instrument by mounting sensors to a glove, shoe, belt or cap. As body parts move and interact, sensor could read data which, in turn, could trigger all sorts of specific sounds -- from particular musical instruments to vocal sounds to natural or ambient sounds.

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