There are many elements to the display of the Emett machines in a live environment. They will be on display for four months in Birmingham and any thoughts of leaving them running continuously were instantly rejected. The machines need to be cared for and maintained. When Rowland Emett was alive he took great pride in caring for his 'Things' and lavished attention on them regularly.
The Cloud Cuckoo Locomotive.
To reduce the time that they are actually moving the machines are all controlled centrally. They run to a pre-ordained sequence with pairs of machines in action followed by a pause, followed by another pair of machines...
Every 15 minutes the clock strikes in Cloud Cuckoo Valley and all of the machines are brought to life. At the same time they are accompanied by music. When all the machines are active it is a set of pieces by Thomas Arne (of 'Rule Britannia' fame) with a harpsichord and wind arrangement. When the individual pairs are in action it is a set of pieces written for mechanical clock by Haydn arranged for harpsichord, musical box and assorted percussion.
To achieve this level of coordination Professor Peter Wooliams has written control software that can be programmed to operate a series of relays and play the relevant music files. It is very flexible allowing for fine tuning and refinement of the sequences and is, best of all, simple to operate.
The Emett Controller in action.
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