Bike Tourings Work Shop goes Off Grid

While considering where and how to provide myself with a work shop we decided on going with a 16 foot diameter dome kit from Pacific Domes in Oregon. The family owned company has been providing these unique structures since 1980.

I find it interesting how this dome came to me.

While working with a client in Colorado I realized we were having some communication issues. Due to the fact she was from Spain at times her English was a bit odd and she did not like being corrected or criticized so I did my best to try and understand what she was trying to say sometimes.

A very eccentric sort she had purchased a dome kit in preparation for Y2K and wanted to be prepared for that crisis which of course never happened so this is why the dome kit I have is so old. More about that later.


* * *

Years later the female client and her brother came to visit me in Colorado while I had since moved away I happened to be in town visiting my property there. During our visit I learned she had been battling with dementia for several years. She has since passed away and I was very sad to hear that news as she was a unique and authentic individual with a beautiful sense of humor. Her brother offered this dome kit to me for helping him get some things moved out of her storage shed. However, we couldn't find the frame pieces.

We ordered the replacement parts when it came time to build with what we had, which was an outdated cover we were able to make fit without too much trouble. I designed the floor plan to be portable measuring sixteen feet square and built dome on top of the plywood I had painted with floor paint from the hardware store. While attending bike mechanic school I had an opportunity to meet with the owner and got a tour of their production facilities and some of the domes which were sold locally. What a wonderful bunch of folks with positive attitudes and lots of energy.



I learned that Pacific Domes provides disaster relief, provides large domes for concerts and events and so many other uses for their structures.

It is a very interesting design and I have been enjoying the work space for approximately eighteen months now. I was able to build in these work benches with shelf storage underneath and a drying rack between the two work benches. With drying rack positioned directly beneath the ventilation fan. I was concerned about there being enough space for new bike builds. I did find it necessary to build a rolling tool cabinet that I can easily move around when necessary and use both sides of the tool board.

Our next task was to supply power to the work shop. This was done with solar panels. Larger panel came with its own job site solar generator from Sun Wize and came with a built in dc to ac power inverter as well as a built in charge controller and volt meter. This is nice for plug and play hassle free power when panel is connected to generator.





Up until now it has been a very challenging and unique experience working in such a different shaped space as created by the geometric frame design based on Buckminster Fuller's ideas and findings. I don't know about all that stuff but I am enjoying the work shop and grateful to have a place for me and Bubby to play.

Our kit included round windows, screens, zipper roof and a wall screen for added ventilation when needed. For more information visit Pacific Domes, Inc.

Source: http://www.biketourings.com/3/post/2013/07/bike-tourings-work-shop-goes-off-grid-with-pacific-domes.html

Electronica Temple Dome

This year 'Mystic in the Trees' roared through the night with a hot list of DJs in the 'Electronica Temple Dome', a 44-foot dome provided by Pacific Domes.

During the day the Electronica Temple Dome transformed into an all-encompassing workshop space, with yoga, medicinal mushrooms, capoeira, tantric meditation, Mayan sacred wisdom, and a crystal council.

Also included in the festival was 'The Village & Devotional Dome', also provided by Pacific Domes, which welcomed guests to the festival with reverberating gong healing.

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Some of the Featured Artists where:

CHEB I SABBAH

LACHLAN

DRAGONFLY

VNDMG

DJ UJJAYI

TIGERHIPPY

DJ BALANCE

JAYA LAKSHMI & ANANDA: KIRTRONICA

RA SO

MYSTRAL

SERENDIPITY

ELY

DJ YOM

AIRE RED TREE

For more info on DJs, go to http://mysticinthetrees.com/lineup/electronic-lineup/

Thank you to Everyone who was involved.

Christie puts dazzle into the launch of new Audi A3 Sportback

Audi A3 Experience offers a stunning audiovisual show with 360° projections and 3D mapping in a spectacular geodesic structure

The event was staged first in Plaza de Colón in Madrid between 28 February and 8 March, and then in Plaza de Cataluña in Barcelona from 16 to 23 March.

The show was held in a special geodesic dome. A true landmark in modern engineering, this igloo-like structure was designed and created by the US company Pacific Domes using a sophisticated negative pressure system that makes the metal structure vanish to create a 800 square metre screen.

Measuring 10.5 metres high and with a diameter of 21.7 metres, the dome covers a floor area of around 370 square metres. New Media has the exclusive rights to this system in Spain and is currently one of only four companies in Europe who have access to this type of infrastructure.

Inside the dome the company installed six Christie Roadster HD20K-J projectors (3-chip DLP^®, HD resolution, 18,000 lumens ANSI) to create 360° projections onto the screen, with over 12 million pixels at 4K resolution, synchronised using a 7thSense Delta media server, Medialon and L-Acoustics 5.1 surround sound.

The six projectors were fixed on supports at 2 metres above the ground and at increments of 60°, edge-blended with Christie Twist™.

Another three Christie projectors, in this case Christie HD14K-M (3-chip DLP, HD resolution, 13,500 lumens ANSI), were used for the 3D mapping on the new A3 Sportback model which was located on a revolving platform inside the dome.

The show opened in pitch darkness before an offstage voice announced the start—at which point the rings of the Audi logo were lit up one by one. Afterwards various flashes of light appeared using 3D mapping which were gradually connected together to create countless light cubes that formed the first complete image of the stage. Later, fast-moving lines appeared from right to left, drawing the outline of the new Audi A3 Sportback. Next, the panel hiding the Audi A3 Sportback, and on which its silhouette was projected, was slowly withdrawn to reveal the real car. The idea was to transmit the sensation of the transformation from virtual to real.

When the car was started, it revolved in a circle and turned to face the audience; the parking lights were turned on to create the idea of movement, in such a way that it seemed as if it were moving forward through an abstract world of lines, spirals and tunnels projected onto the stage.

Once the Audi A3 Sportback emerged from the tunnel, we found ourselves in the cities of Madrid and Barcelona, filmed in 360°, which were projected on the screen and reflected on the body of the car. The new Audi A3 Sportback was combined with pre-recorded images of the cities to give the sensation of driving around them.

The event also used two Christie MicroTiles videowalls, in 4x3 and 5x3 configurations, which showed the Audi A3 TV advert. In addition, a Christie LX1500 projector (3 LCD, XGA resolution, 15,000 lumens ANSI) was used for the projection on the outer surface of the dome.

All the projectors, as well as the MicroTiles videowalls, were managed with two 7thSense Delta media servers: one with 6 outlets and the other with 4. Meanwhile, the whole event was synchronised with a Medialon Showmaster Control used as the central integrated control for all the audiovisual elements.

“It was a truly spectacular event, really impressive and never seen before in Spain”, said Marcos Fernández, Christie Sales Director for Spain and Portugal. “It was amazing to see how New Media made the most of our visualisation technology to produce such a creative and at the same time complex experience”, he added.

“The truth is that this event was totally pioneering in Spain and with this sophisticated equipment we managed to give the audience a completely immersive experience”, claimed Diego de Anna, New Media CEO. “The most complex element of the event was synchronising the show’s various audiovisual and light elements, but thanks to the control systems used and the versatility of the Christie equipment, the integration was a complete success.”

“We chose Christie projectors because they are reliable, robust and versatile”, continued De Anna. “Of the equipment available on the market they delivered the best performance, as well as being really intuitive to handle.”

Meanwhile, Pepe Soler-Roig, Audi’s Sponsor & Events Manager, added, “We were impressed with the quality of the image, power and performance of the Christie projectors we used in the events held in Madrid and Barcelona to present the new Audi A3 Sportback. Audi always look for excellence in the events it organises, and the Christie projectors certainly gave us what we were looking for.”

Specifically addressing Christie MicroTiles, Pepe Soler-Roig said that he had been very pleasantly surprised: “At first, we had not envisaged using this element in the project, but once we saw it in place and in operation we were instantly convinced that it should be a key feature of the show. And it goes without saying that we are more than happy with the result.”

He concluded, “The audiences at the event were bowled over by the quality and originality of the show. The impression the public took away with them was having been part of a show with the latest audiovisual technology.”

The show itself lasted eight minutes and was screened a minimum of 20 times each day, from 11 in the morning until 9 at night. Between Madrid and Barcelona, around 25,000 people were able to participate in the Audi A3 Experience.