Halloween at Knaresborough Technology Park

To celebrate Halloween we have changed the MRI portrait with us here in Knaresborough Technology Park to an image of a ghost. Using an infra-red distance sensor and the Apollo Ensemble system, when a person walks in front of the screen the ghost comes alive and starts telling jokes and rhymes!

Halloween Sensory Space - Completed

With the help of Camel Event Productions we have completed the Halloween sensory space for Creepy Crawlies. Using the Apollo Ensemble system, a computer controls all sounds, lights and videos when triggered by hidden switches.

Featuring a bubble tube, projector, fibre optics, ultra-violet, colour changing lighting and a sound system, the space makes the best use of Halloween props to create a scary atmosphere. Add to that a reverberated microphone and a real witch, the space becomes a perfect place to tell scary stories and really get in the Halloween mood!

As you try to open a book containing a hidden sensor, a portrait of a ghost comes alive to tell jokes and rhymes. The highlight of the sensory space is the bubbling witches cauldron which starts misting when you walk up to it!

The Halloween Sensory Space will be open in Creepy Crawlies at the start of next week and last until Halloween.

Halloween Sensory Space

We have begun work on a Halloween-themed sensory area for Creepy Crawlies, a large childrens play centre just outside York. The space, a rather compact 2m x 4m, will house hidden floor switches which trigger lights, sounds and videos to create a spooky atmosphere. The space will be open for the week leading up to Halloween and we'll soon post some more pictures.

We will even have an interactive, bubbling witches cauldron!

Last chance to catch MRI Exhibition

The 'Me, Myself and MRI' exhibition will be closing at York Hospital on the 3rd September. The feedback has been fantastic and we are currently in discussions to feature the show in other locations across the UK. In the meantime several of the individual pieces will be on display at partner organisations. This includes one portrait that wil be gracing the reception area here at Knaresborough Technology Park.


The portraits are running the Ensemble system, with a custom version of the Ensemble16 sensor interface. A number of custom blocks were designed for this exhibition and will be available as part of the new version of Apollo Ensemble due for release later this year.

Apollo welcomes new Product Specialist

Apollo is pleased to welcome recent graduate Ben Johnson to the team, joining the company as a product specialist. Ben worked with Apollo last summer to gain experience in the area of interactive technology, something that has proved mutually beneficial.

Ben recently completed a degree at the University of Hull, achieving a First Class Honors Degree in Creative Music Technology. During his final year Ben kept in regular contact with Creative Director Mark Hildred and continued working on the 'Me, Myself and MRI' project. This lead to him being offered the post to help support the growth of the company.

Ben will be working specifically on the new Ensemble product range and helping support a wide range of creative projects.

MRI Exhibition on the move

The MRI Exhibition was moved today to a new venue at York Hospital.

The exhibition space is close to the main reception, meaning that it will get a lot of footfall during its residency. Unfortunately one of the pieces was damaged during transit, so for the moment only five pieces are on show in the space.

Company visit to MRI Exhibition

Today we took everyone from Apollo and GSPK Design to Impressions Gallery to visit the 'Me, Myself and MRI' exhibition. After a brief overview from Sarah at Impressions, I gave a bit more background to the project.

Everyone then spent the next hour looking at the exhibition and the other galleries at Impressions.