The first time I truly felt recognized and alive was during a trip. I was standing by the ocean, feeling the waves crash against the shore, the wind blowing against my face, and the vastness of the sea stretching endlessly in front of me. In that moment, I felt small but also deeply present, as if the ocean itself acknowledged my existence. It was a powerful feeling—like nothing was impossible.

I wanted to recreate that sensation, to build something that could visually represent the feeling of being recognized and present. My idea was to use a ToF sensor to interact with a dynamic visual, mimicking how the ocean responds to movement.

Since this was a quick assignment, I found a Touch Designer Tutorial to make a particle simulation and connected the Arduino to create an ocean simulation that interacts with the hand.

As I moved my hand over the sensor, the waves in the simulation reacted, shifting and changing, just like the real ocean.

Material

Hardware: VL53L0X ToF sensor, Arduino, LED output

Data Flow: Arduino reads distance → Sends it through Serial → TouchDesigner uses it to control the ocean effect

Interaction: Moving a hand over the sensor changes the waves

Circuit

Code

TouchDesigner

Testing

Credits

TouchDesigner Tutorial: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1CM411u7yW/?share_source=copy_web&vd_source=3a95f0657f18702c7cedbe43458b3b4a

Reference Image: https://images.app.goo.gl/r1aWdhP3vCd6w8QJ8