High-pressure water modulation
→ First research mockup by Béatrice Lartigue. Cotton wool, figurine.
→ High-pressure misting test.
Creating a cloud of water large enough to stand out in public space requires the use of a high-pressure misting system.
→ Water is pressurised at 1000 PSI to be atomised into millions of droplets that remain suspended in the air.
Challenge: To vary the size and density of the cloud over time. Constraint 1: The misting pump doesn't allow for variation, as it operates at constant water pressure and flow. Hypothesis 1: Very rapidly alternate on/off cycles of misting based on the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) technique. Constraint 2: The pump must operate over a long ON time. Repeated ON/OFF cycles can lead to early wear and tear. Hypothesis 2: Apply the PWM method downstream of the pump.
→ PWM is a technique to synthesize a pseudo-analog signal using an "all-or-nothing" signal.
→ A solenoid valve circuit routes the flow of pressurized water alternately to the misting nozzles or to a needle valve set to maintain a pressure similar to that of the nozzles.
→ Data sheet excerpt for a 2-way solenoid valve.
→ General system diagram.
→ Water that has not been misted is collected and fed back into the high-pressure pump via a compressor.
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