https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/argineering/rgkit-play
I’m sure you’ve seen the quintessential soft-drink advertisement. Ice cubes slowly descending into an empty glass, the camera traveling upwards as the liquid fills up the glass, bubbling between the cubes of crushed ice. Finally, a slow zoom shot of the chilled drink-can, resplendent with condensation on it. Let’s think of something else, perhaps the quintessential burger advert. A patty slowly flipping in the air before settling down on a bun, followed by a slice of tomato, and a leaf of lettuce descending onto the patty in slow motion. A spritz of sauce follows, and finally, the top bun settles in place with a flourish of sesame seeds. Your mouth’s watering too, right? That’s because these advertisements were designed to do just that… and the reason they’re so effective? Robots!
Robots practically dominate the world of video advertising. Whether it’s a drone taking incredibly stabilized shots of cities, or a robotic arm that’s allowing the camera to move in precise paths that a human can’t move in, or even in those food commercials, where the entire scene is choreographed from beginning to end, and robots handle everything from dropping the food exactly where it needs to fall, and a camera following a pre-set path to give you a seamless video. For the most part, these robots are extremely expensive and difficult to come by for small-time creators, but the guys at Argineering have a perfect solution to that.
Meet RGKit Play, a set of delightfully modular robotic components that you can put together to create your own motion-rig. Comprising all sorts of toys and tools like wireless motors, belts, pulleys, turntables, rails, light-controllers, and sensors, RGKit Play lets you easily and effectively create rigs to film professional-style videos, move/animate your products, create motion-sculptures, and even make stop-motion films without breaking the bank! RGKit Play puts you in the role of the DOP (Director of Photography) as the robots carry out your vision. You can shoot professional-looking videos, or even create stop-motion flicks using RGKit-compatible stop-motion software. Moreover, the kit even lets you build complex dioramas or kinetic artpieces, bringing your sculptures and illustrations to life by using moving, sliding, and other interacting modules to add motion to your art and designs!
RGKit Play offers the building blocks of creating your own imaginative custom-rig. Multiple wireless modules connect to each other without creating an eye-sore of wires and cables, and they’re all controllable via the RGKit app. You can either individually control components, or create sequences that instantly begin running the second you hit play. The modules are as versatile as LEGO blocks, allowing you to execute practically anything you’ve got on your mind, from creating mesmerizing commercial videos to kinetic art, motion design, or even stop-motion animations. You can either control the motion of objects, or even move your camera. Conversely, the light-controller and touch-sensor allow you to dictate how and when your scene lights up, and if you’ve got yourself a phone-stand with a tripod mount, you can film all of this directly on your phone!
As playful as RGKit Play is meant to be, it still boasts of a professional build. The parts come fabricated in metal, with CNC-machined construction to ensure minimal tolerances for a smooth operation. The modules even have an AI-chip on the inside that constantly monitors stability, and the smartphone app works on iOS as well as Android devices. Designed to remove the barrier to entry for people interested in videography or visual engineering, RGKit Play is versatile and inexpensive… you could grab yourself a Beginner’s Kit for around $200, or if you’re a studio looking for a more extensive setup, the Pro Kit includes all the modules and multiple spare parts to create your own pro-rig that you can easily assemble at home or at the workplace!
Designer: Argineering
Click Here to Buy Now: $110 $180 (40% off). Raised over $200,000.
RGKit Play: Play With Movement Like a Pro
RGKit Play is the first-ever modular wireless kit of motors, light controller and sensors that lets you add tons of movements to your design, instantly.
Move your camera, animate your origami, automate your stop motion, or build your own interactive installation. With a phone app that makes the whole process quick and smooth, without having to learn to code or do electronics.
With the variety of options in RGKit Play’s accessories you will get to create the movements you want and all of this with just one motor. Move back and forth or up and down, go in circles, pull, push, lift.
Animate Your Designs in an Incredibly Short Time
Plug the modules to a power source and they will automatically sense each other and connect to your phone. No need to worry about wiring or setting up complex electronics. On RGKit App, you can choose between two modes: Manual Mode & Auto Mode. In Manual Mode, you can control all the modules in real time, and in Auto Mode you can create a sequence of movements, and when you click play the sequence automatically starts.
With RGKit Play App, you can start slow and go fast, stop suddenly or ease into a new movement. Play around with the parameters; speed, acceleration, duration, delay, and a lot more. All with zero lines of code!
The Movements
Create your turntable and control it instantly with the Rotator and Disc.
Bring your kinetic typography to life.
Pull, lift and squeeze with high precision with Rotator and Pulley.
See your illustrations in motion.
Rotate your camera 360-degree continuously or with steps with Rotator and Adjustable Arm.
Make your very own add-on accessories.
Use a camera slider with motion stability features with Rotator and Camera Slider.
Attach it to any of your studio stands with 2 Rotators and 2 Adjustable Arms.
Connect modules like building blocks and sync them with 2 Rotators, Pulley and Disc.
Shoot Food, Beverages & Products
Move your camera in a perfect circle around your subject. Sync the camera movement with other subjects’ movement to shoot the perfect moment, with all its details.
Take Videos in Slow Motion
You can orchestrate an entire sequence of movements and set it to the fraction of second, then take a video like the above without the hassle. With all the complex electronics and coding out of the picture, all you will need is RGKit App’s drag-and-drop interface.
Sync your Light, Subject & Camera Movement
Multiple motors for your light, subject and camera completely in sync and entirely controlled by you through RGKit Play App.
Automate Your Stop Motion Hassle-free
Connect RGKit Play to your stop motion app and automize the whole process. While triggering the camera to take a shot, control your subject’’s or camera’s movement to automatically move and stop in the duration you decide.
Move It Smoothly & Pricisely
With built-in motion stability features, RGKit Play produces the smoothest movement, so you could eliminate jitters, and shoot videos like a pro. And with RGKit App you will have high precision in distance, time and speed. The Camera Slider carries up to 5kg (11 lbs) and moves at a speed of 5 cm (2″)/second. RGKit Play is modular with lots of accessories to choose from, the idea is you can play around with them and use their unique capabilities.
Make Your Projects Interactive
With RGKit Play’s Touch sensor your design reacts to you and moves accordingly. You can place the sensor under surfaces like wood, glass, plastic and paper and it will detect your touch through the surface.
How to Set Up Your RGKit Play
It’s very simple! Mount RGKit Play’s modules and accessories to your design or camera. Drag and drop on RGKit App to customize your movements. Play with movement like a pro.
Click Here to Buy Now: $110 $180 (40% off). Raised over $200,000.