Welcome Participation Committee Registration Dates Program Location

Pictures

Here you find a selection of pictures from the conference. (If you find a picture you don't want to have there, please tell us.)



Timetable

TimeMonday,
Feb 18
Tuesday,
Feb 19
Wednesday,
Feb 20
0915-1100Constitution of the German Working Group on Tangibles

time for setting up exhibits and posters
Paper Session 2
Making Tangible Interaction Work
Paper Session 6
Prototypical Evaluations
1100-1145Break + SnackBreak + Snack
1145-1330Paper Session 3
Supporting Real-Life Applications
Paper Session 7
New Directions
1330-1400RegistrationBuffet LunchBuffet Lunch
1400-1415Opening
1415-1500Paper Session 1
Mobile and Tangible Interaction
1500-1545Paper Session 4
Designing the Interaction
Panel
1545-1615BreakBreak
1615-1630Introduction to Exhibits and PostersPaper Session 5
Learning through Physical Interaction
1630-1700Closing
1700-1900Exhibits/Posters ReceptionBreak 
1900-1930Keynote
1930-2000Social Event
2000-2030Break
2030-2230Movie Night

Jump to: Keynote
Paper Session 1, Paper Session 2, Paper Session 3, Paper Session 4, Paper Session 5, Paper Session 6, Paper Session 7,
exhibits/demos, posters


Constitution of the German Working Group on Tangibles to top

Monday, Feb. 18, 10:00-13:00 (in German)

Gründung eines Arbeitskreises "Be-greifbare Oberflächen in Gemischten Wirklichkeiten" im Fachbereich Mensch-Computer-Interaktion in der Gesellschaft für Informatik (GI). Eine Mitarbeit ist auch für Nichtmitglieder der GI möglich.
Weitere Informationen finden Sie hier: AK_BI+GeWi.pdf



KEYNOTE to top

Tangible Bits: Beyond Pixels
Hiroshi Ishii (MIT Media Lab, USA)
Tangible user interfaces (TUIs) provide physical form to digital information and computation, facilitating the direct manipulation of bits. Our goal in TUI development is to empower collaboration, learning, and design by using digital technology and at the same time taking advantage of human abilities to grasp and manipulate physical objects and materials. This paper discusses a model of TUI, key properties, genres, applications, and summarizes the contributions made by the Tangible Media Group and other researchers since the publication of the first Tangible Bits paper at CHI 1997. http://tangible.media.mit.edu/



MOBILE AND TANGIBLE INTERACTION (Paper Session 1, Chair: Nicolas Villar) to top

AudioCubes: a Distributed Cube Tangible Interface based on Interaction Range for Sound Design
Jean Vanderdonckt (Université catholique de Louvain, BE); Bert Schiettecatte (PERCUSSA, BE)
AudioCubes is a novel tangible user interface allowing any person interested by sound design such as sound creators, and music trainers to intuitively explore and create dynamically changing sound. A new sound is created by manipulating distributed cube tangible user interface that can be coupled wirelessly by locating them in the interaction range of each other on a table. At any time, a sound processing network combines operational properties of AudioCubes, such as location on a plane or in space, movement, arrangement with other cubes, and layout. Sound algorithm parameters and the configuration of the sound processing network can be changed simultaneously, allowing a fast and convenient exploration of sound creation space that creates a new interaction technique for creating sounds.

Gesture Recognition with a Wii Controller
Thomas Schlömer (University of Oldenburg, DE); Benjamin Poppinga (University of Oldenburg, DE); Niels Henze (OFFIS Research Institute of Information Technology, DE); Susanne Boll (University of Oldenburg, DE)
In many applications today user interaction is moving away from mouse and pens and is becoming pervasive and much more physical and tangible. New emerging interaction technologies allow developing and experimenting with new interaction methods on the long way to providing intuitive human computer interaction. In this paper, we aim at recognizing gestures to interact with an application and present the design and evaluation of our sensor-based gesture recognition. As input device we employ the Wii-controller (Wiimote) which recently gained much attention world wide. We use the Wiimote's acceleration sensor independent of the gaming console for gesture recognition. The system allows the training of arbitrary gestures by users which can then be recalled for interacting with systems like photo browsing on a home TV. The developed library exploits Wii-sensor data and employs a hidden Markov model for training and recognizing user-chosen gestures. Our evaluation shows that we can already recognize gestures with a small number of training samples. In addition to the gesture recognition we also present our experiences with the Wii-controller and the implementation of the gesture recognition. The system forms the basis for our ongoing work on multimodal intuitive media browsing and are available to other researchers in the field.

Studying Applications for Touch-Enabled Mobile Phone Keypads
Paul Holleis (University of Duisburg-Essen, DE); Jonna Häkkilä (Nokia Group, FI); Jussi Huhtala (Nokia Research, FI)
We present a platform to evaluate mobile phone applications that make use of an additional dimension for key presses. Using capacitive sensors on each key, merely touching buttons as well as the force of the press can be measured. A set of applications well known from current mobile phones has been extended with functionality exploiting those new possibilities. The results of a study undertaken with this prototype are presented and conclusions are drawn for the design and implementation of such applications.

Using Actuated Devices in Location-Aware Systems
Mike Fraser (University of Bristol, UK); Kirsten Cater (University of Bristol, UK); Paul Duff (University of Bristol, UK)
Location-aware systems have traditionally left mobility to the user through carrying, supporting and manipulating the device itself. This design choice has limited the scale and style of device to corresponding weight and form constraints. This paper presents a project introducing school children to location aware systems. We observed that it is hard to notice, physically grasp and simultaneously share these small personal devices in groups. These behaviours are partly grounded in the physical device design, but also in the location awareness model itself, which provides information ‘right here’ while the children are looking around and about them. These observations lead us to suggest the alternative model of pointing at locations so that they can be noticed and experienced by groups in public places. We further build this location model into the device itself by introducing actuated components from robotics to make a location-aware device called ‘Limbot’ that can be physically pointed. A preliminary study of the Limbot with the school children indicates rich sharing behaviours, but that user control of actuation at all points is critical to the ultimate success of our approach, and further exploration of our location model is required.

MAKING TANGIBLE INTERACTION WORK (Paper Session 2, Chair: Ali Mazalek) to top

Posey: Instrumenting a Poseable Hub and Strut Construction Toy
Michael Weller (Carnegie Mellon University, US); Ellen Yi-Luen Do (Georgia Institute of Technology, US); Mark Gross (Carnegie Mellon University, US)
We describe Posey, a computationally-enhanced hub-and-strut construction kit for learning and play. Posey employs a ball and socket connection that allows users to move the parts of an assembled model. Hubs and struts are optocoupled through the ball and socket joints using infrared LEDs and photosensors. Wireless transmitters in the hubs send connection and geometry information to a host computer. The host computer assembles a representation of the physical model as the user creates and configures it. Application programs can then use this representation to control computational models in particular domains.

Strengths and Weaknesses of Software Architectures for the Rapid Creation of Tangible and Multimodal Interfaces
Bruno Dumas (University of Fribourg, CH); Denis Lalanne (University of Fribourg, CH); Dominique Guinard (SAP Research / ETH Zurich, CH); Reto Koenig (University of Fribourg, CH); Rolf Ingold (University of Fribourg, CH)
This paper reviews the challenges associated with the development of tangible and multimodal interfaces and exposes our experiences with the development of three different software architectures to rapidly prototype such interfaces. The article first reviews the state of the art, and further compares existing systems with our approaches. Finally, the article stresses the major issues associated with the development of toolkits allowing the creation of multimodal and tangible interfaces, and presents our future objectives.

VoodooSketch - Extending Interactive Surfaces with Adaptable Interface Palettes
Florian Block (Lancaster University, UK); Hans Gellersen (Lancaster University, UK); Michael Haller (FH Hagenberg, AT)
Voodoosketch is a system that extends interactive surfaces with physical interface palettes on which users can dynamically deploy controls as shortcut to application functionality. The system provides physical ‘plug and play’ controls as well as support for sketching of controls, and allows controls to be associated with application functions via handwritten labels. The system uses a special digital pen, which writes ‘real’ ink on the palettes while functioning as a digital input device on the interactive surfaces. The palettes can be seamlessly integrated into existing applications, be appropriated by the user to suit different input requirements, and support new interaction styles across multiple surfaces, palettes and users.

DrawSound: A Drawing Instrument for Sound Performance
Kazuhiro Jo (University of Tokyo, JP)
DrawSound is a drawing instrument for sound performances that combines multi-touch input technology with the expressive character of drawing. The instrument is intended to be used in two different art projects, The SINE WAVE QUARTET, and aeo. In this paper, we describe the implementation of DrawSound with three different pens and show how we design the two different sound performances. We also explain our preliminarily observations about the unique characters of DrawSound.

HYUI - A Visual Framework for Prototyping Hybrid User Interfaces
Christian Geiger (University of Applied Science Düsseldorf, DE); Robin Fritze (University of Applied Science Duesseldorf, DE); Anke Lehmann (University of Applied Science Düsseldorf, DE); Joerg Stoecklein (University of Paderborn, DE)
This paper describes a pragmatic approach for the design of hybrid user interfaces based on a number of extensions of an existing 3D authoring system. We present the design and realization of a visual framework dedicated to the prototyping of hybrid user interfaces. The rapid development environment was applied in a teaching context during lectures on advanced user interface design. The results showed that our framework provides a suitable tool to quickly design and test hybrid user interfaces.

SUPPORTING REAL-LIFE APPLICATIONS (Paper Session 3, Chair: Michael Rohs) to top

Integration of Virtual and Real Document Organization
Thomas Seifried (Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences, AT); Matt Jervis (University of Waikato, NZ); Michael Haller (FH Hagenberg, AT); Masood Massodian (University of Waikato, NZ); Nicolas Villar (Lancaster University, UK)
In most work environments people archive both the real and digital versions of their documents. But unlike the digital world, in the physical world locating a document can become a very time consuming task. The reason for this is the lack of a direct connection between the physical and digital versions of documents.
The Smart Filing System combines the benefits of the digital and the real world providing an augmented filing cabinet. The system benefits by linking the physical world with the digital desktop world. In our setup, we implemented an addin for MS OneNoteTM. Furthermore, real folders and cabinets are extended with devices for direct input and output. This allows us to search and browse through digital documents using MS OneNoteTM. Simultaneously, our system also allows a feedback in the physical world, by highlighting the corresponding folder in the filing cabinet. In this paper we describe the hardware and software implementation our prototype system, and present the results of a preliminary pilot study of its use.

GeoTUI: A Tangible User Interface for Geoscience
Nadine Couture (ESTIA, FR); Guillaume Riviere (ESTIA and LaBRI), FR); Patrick Reuter (LaBRI, FR)
GeoTUI is a system designed for geophysicists that provides props as tangible user interface on a tabletop vision-projection system for the selection of cutting planes on a geographical map of a subsoil model. Our GeoTUI system allows the geophysicists to manipulate in the same action and perception space since the movement of the physical artifacts is done on the tabletop and thus constrained to two dimensions. Consequently, it combines the advantages of the spontaneous conditions of user interaction that the geophysicists are commonly used to in their classical paper/pen/ruler environment with the advantages of the use of powerful geological simulation software. We conducted an extensive user study in the workplace of the geophysicists that clearly revealed that using a tangible interaction performs better than using the standard mouse/keyboard GUI for the cutting line selection task on a geographical subsoil map. Consequently, it increases the efficiency for the real-world trade task of hypothesis validation on a subsoil model. Moreover, this geological user case is complex enough to confirm the hypothesis that in space-multiplex conditions, specialized devices perform better than generic ones.

The ColorTable - A Design Story
Valerie Maquil (Vienna University of Technology, AT); Thomas Psik (Vienna University of Technology, AT); Ina Wagner (Vienna University of Technology, AT)
The paper describes the design story of the ColorTable, a tangible user interface in support of urban planners and diverse stakeholders collaboratively envisioning urban change, which was developed in an iterative process of design-evaluation-feedback-redesign in a series of workshops with users in the context of real urban planning projects. It seeks to clarify a number of more general design issues related to tangible user interfaces – how to make use of material and spatial properties in designing both, physical interface and multiple and simultaneous interactions; how to handle the complexity of urban projects while keeping interfaces and interactions simple and transparent.

Squeeze, Rock, and Roll; Can Tangible Interaction with Affective Products Support Stress Reduction?
Miguel Bruns Alonso (TU Delft, NL); David Keyson (ID-StudioLab, TU Delft, NL); Caroline Hummels (Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, NL)
In this paper we explain that we focus on tangible interaction, because the physical world is inherently meaningful for people, i.e. we perceive the world in terms of what we can do with it, in terms of our skills. By physically interacting with the world this meaning emanates. We elucidate this principle by means of Escale, a tangible device to enter answers on questionnaires into a computer. Meaning is created by coupling the graphical layout of the scales on the questionnaires, to the layout of buttons on E-scale, and by enabling to slide down E-scale along the scales while entering data. The results from our experiment show that unity of location and time, increasing bandwidth by controlling multiple parameters simultaneously and physical learning and thus development of bodily skills, increase usability (reduce time) as well as experience (overall satisfaction). We hope that sharing the rationale behind our TEI designs and research might contribute to the discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of TEI.

Turning a Page on the Digital Annotation of Physical Books
Chih-Sung (Andy) Wu (Georgia Institute of Technology, US); Susan Robinson (Georgia Institute of Technology, US); Ali Mazalek (Georgia Institute of Technology, US)
The Graphical User Interface (GUI) has created an efficient work environment for many applications. However, when users are confined by keyboards and mice, they lose the ability to interact with the virtual world using habits from the real world. Our research examine how emerging modes of authorship, such as wikis, can be used to generate new possibilities for bringing atoms and bits together for digital annotation. Our goal is to combine the everyday habits in reading books with emerging digital possibilities.
In this paper, we present a prototype system called WikiTUI, which brings digital media to physical paper books. This system allows readers to access the digital world through fingertip interactions on books, and enables them to share information with other readers using wiki technology. WikiTUI not only bridges the gap between the digital and the physical worlds, but also facilitates multiple contributions to a reference base spanning across these worlds. We present user evaluations of the WikiTUI prototype and discuss research implications.

DESIGNING THE INTERACTION (Paper Session 4, Chair: Paul Holleis) to top

BounceSlider: Actuated Sliders for Music Performance and Composition
Romain Gabriel (Chalmers University of Technology, SE); Johan Sandsjö (H-interaction.com, SE); Ali Shahrokni (Chalmers University of Technology, SE); Morten Fjeld (Chalmers University of Technology, SE)
The ForceFeedback Slider (FFS) is a one-dimensional actuated slider using a motor to produce tangible interaction with position and force as input and output parameters. To create a new concept, we have built a mixing desk, placed six FFSs (two implemented here) into a partially realized SliderBox, and added a LED and two toggle buttons to each slider for additional interactivity. We have developed a tool called BounceSlider for improvising music. This application for real time music performance and composition uses a slider handle that can act as a ball. Users can lift and release the handle to set the ball in motion and produce a particular sound each time it bounces against the baseline. Based on physical characteristics, the user can create different sounds and loops by changing two settings: gravity (speed) and bounce type (ball physical characteristics). BounceSlider allows the user to create and save loops of Musical Instrument Digital Interface (Midi) with up to five sounds at a time.

Interact, Excite, and Feel
Parisa Eslambolchilar (FIT Lab, UK); Rod Murray-Smith (University of Glasgow, UK)
This paper presents a dynamic system approach to the design of multimodal interactive systems.We use an example where we support human behavior in a browsing task, by adapting the dynamics of navigation using speed-dependent automatic zooming (SDAZ), allowing the user to switch smoothly among different modes of control. We show how the user’s intention is coupled to the browsing technique via the dynamic model, and how the SDAZ method couples the document structure to audio samples using a model-based sonification. We demonstrate that this approach is well suited to mobile and wearable applications, and audio feedback provides valuable information, supporting intermittent interaction, i.e. allowing movement-based interaction techniques to continue while the user is simultaneously involved with real life tasks.

LEARNING THROUGH PHYSICAL INTERACTION (Paper Session 5, Chair: Alissa Antle) to top

A representation Approach to Conceptualizing Tangible Learning Environments
Sara Price (Institute of Education, London, UK)
Tangibles, in the form of physical artefacts embedded with sensor technologies, offer the opportunity to exploit and build on our everyday interaction and experience with the world, enabling new forms of engagement and access to tools for supporting learning. The implications for learning are considerable, potentially bringing about a radical change in the way we conceptualise learning and learning activities. However, we know little about the specific learning benefits, and currently lack an effective structure within which to establish them. Although several frameworks have been proposed for conceptualizing tangible environments, none highlight the central role that external representations have in tangible environments. This paper argues for the importance of placing primary emphasis on representation, and the role that this might play in mediating interaction and cognition in tangible environments. The representation-tangible relationship is outlined, together with their differential potentials for learning. Based on this the paper then proposes a conceptual framework for systematically investigating how different ways of linking digital information with physical artefacts influence interaction and cognition, to gain a clearer understanding of their role for learning.

Let Me Actuate You
Bart Hengeveld (University of Technology Eindhoven, NL); Caroline Hummels (Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, NL); Kees Overbeeke (Eindhoven University of Technology, NL); Riny Voort (Viataal-Research, Development & Support (RDS), NL); Hans Van Balkom (Viataal-Research, Development & Support (RDS), NL); Jan De Moor (Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, NL)
In this paper we focus on two aspects of Tangible Interaction that have our particular interest: 1) the added value of tangibility when designing interfaces for toddlers and 2) the value of actuators. Especially the latter is something that in our opinion has been under-investigated within the field of Tangible and Embedded Interaction. In this paper we will address the abovementioned topics by giving examples from the LinguaBytes project, which is aimed at developing an intelligent interactive play and learning environment for toddlers with multiple disabilities. These two aspects of Tangible Interaction have our particular interest since we see that multi-handicapped children could benefit highly from Tangible Interaction, but often lack the necessary bodily skills. Using actuators could offer these children possibilities to become more autonomous, thus enhancing their self-esteem and motivation. We feel that our work could not only benefit multi-handicapped toddlers in particular, but could also be used to design interactions that are more respectful to heterogeneous users in general.

PROTOTYPICAL EVALUATIONS (Paper Session 6, Chair: Eva Hornecker) to top

Making Sense of Group Interaction in an Ambient Intelligent Environment for Physical Play
Ron Wakkary; Marek Hatala; Ying Jiang; Milena Droumeva; Malahat Hosseini (all from Simon Fraser University, CA)
This paper presents the results of a study on group interaction with a prototype known as socio-ec(h)o.
socio-ec(h)o explores the design of sensing and display, user modeling, and interaction in an embedded interaction system utilizing a game structure. Our study involved the playing of our prototype system by thirty-six (36) participants grouped into teams of four (4). Our aim was to determine heuristics that we could use to further design the interaction and user model approaches for group and embodied interaction systems. We analyzed group interaction and performance based on factors of team cohesion and goal focus. We found that with our system, these factors alone could not explain performance. However, when transitions in the degrees of each factor, i.e. high, medium or low are considered, a clearer picture for performance emerges. The significance of the results is that they describe recognizable factors for positive group interaction.

Action and Reaction for Physical Map Interfaces
David Chatting (BT Group PLC, UK)
In this paper we present experimental results measuring the success of users manipulating a physical map interface to navigate to specific locations. We evaluate four different mappings between the action of the user and the reaction of the display, two where axis act consistently and two where they are inconsistent. Consistent mappings outperform those that are not and of these one mapping is significantly better and quicker to learn. Measures of error, speed of completion and reports of difficulty and task enjoyment support this. We use this to make specific recommendations for such interfaces and highlight new challenges.

Are Tangibles More Fun? Comparing Children's Enjoyment and Engagement Using Physical, Graphical and Tangible User Interfaces
Lesley Xie (Simon Fraser University, CA); Alissa Antle (Simon Fraser University, CA); Nima Motamedi (Simon Fraser University, CA)
This paper presents the results of an exploratory comparative study in which we investigated the relationship between interface style and school-aged children’s enjoyment and engagement while doing puzzles. Pairs of participants played with a jigsaw puzzle that was implemented using three different interface styles: physical (traditional), graphical and tangible. In order to investigate interactional differences between the three interface styles, we recorded subjective ratings of enjoyment, three related subscales, measured times and counts of behavioral based indications of engagement. Qualitative analysis based on observational notes and audio responses to open interview questions helped contextualize the quantitative findings and provided key insights into interactional differences not apparent in the quantitative findings. We summarize our main findings and discuss the design implications for tangible user interfaces.

Connectibles: Tangible Social Networks
Jeevan Kalanithi (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US); V. Michael Bove, Jr. (MIT, US)
This paper presents "Connectibles," a prototype instantiation of a tangible social network, a new type of social network application rooted in physical objects and real world social behavior. This research is inspired by theoretical work that suggests that gifts act as physical symbols of social relationships. The Connectibles system leverages gift-giving practices, presenting users with gift objects ("connectibles") that they exchange with one another. These objects automatically form always-on communication channels between givers and receivers. As a user collects more and more of these objects, he or she begins to acquire a dynamic, physical representation of and interface to her social network. The community of users’ interactions implicitly represent the structure of the social network; these data can be accessed with a GUI application, allowing users to explore and interact with their social network. This system was implemented and subject to three user studies. The overarching goal of this work is to examine how a set of devices might naturally and harmoniously interface the physical, virtual and social worlds.

NEW DIRECTIONS (Paper Session 7, Chair: Elise van den Hoven) to top

Robotany and Lichtung: a Contribution to Phenomenological Dialogue
Jill Coffin (Georgia Institute of Technology, US)
This paper discusses phenomenological structures relevant to tangible and embedded interaction through a phenomenological interpretation of an interactive art piece. This discussion distinguishes between two basic traditions in phenomenological philosophy, the Husserlian and the Heideggerian. In addition, it illustrates the notions of Lichtung, intentionality, Verhalten, ready-to-hand and present-at-hand. The paper concludes with some implications of a Heideggerian phenomenological framework.

Sprout I/O: A Texturally Rich Interface
Marcelo Coelho (MIT Media Laboratory, US); Pattie Maes (MIT Media Laboratory, US)
In this paper we describe Sprout I/O, a novel haptic interface for tactile and visual communication. Sprout I/O combines textiles and shape-memory alloys to create a soft and kinetic membrane with truly co-located input and output. We describe implementation details, the affordances made possible by the use of smart materials in human computer interaction and possible applications for this technology.

Towards a New set of Ideals: Consequences of the Practice Turn in Tangible Interaction
Ylva Fernaeus (Stockholm University, SE); Martin Jonsson (Sockholm University, SE); Jakob Tholander (Södertörn University College, SE)
The practice-oriented turn in social sciences has implied a series of fundamental consequences and design challenges for HCI in general, and particularly in tangible interaction research. This could be interpreted as a move away from scientific ideals based on a modernist tradition, reflected in four contemporary themes in tangible interaction research. The first theme concerns a shift from an information centric to an action centric perspective on interaction. The second concerns a broadened focus from studying properties of the system, to instead aim at supporting qualities of the activity of using a system. The third concerns the general shift towards supporting sharable use, rather than primarily individual use settings. The last theme concerns the shift towards multiple and subjective interpretation of how to use new technological artefacts. We discuss how these themes are grounded in theoretical as well as more concrete technical developments in the area of tangible computing.

Murmur: Kinetic Relief Sculpture, Multi-Sensory Display, Listening Machine
Aimee Rydarowski (Georgia Institute of Technology, US); Ozge Samanci (Georgia Institute of Technology, US); Ali Mazalek (Georgia Institute of Technology, US)
In this paper we describe the concept, design, and implementation of Murmur, an interactive kinetic display made of one hundred computer CPU fans. Murmur responds to sound input from its environment via embedded microphones to produce patterns on a reactive surface. The reactive surface consists of hinged paper pieces situated in front of each fan. When activated by sonic elements in the environment, including sounds intentionally generated by an interactor, Murmur responds by turning on and off its fans in a sequence. The wind pressure generated by the movement of the fans stimulates the surface, forcing the paper up and out to create a variety of dynamic patterns. Each pattern represents characteristics of the sonic environment. We also analyze the feedback received from the interactors and discuss the possible ways of making the interaction more immersive.

Cooking up Real World Business Applications Combining Physicality, Digitality, and Image Schemas
Joern Hurtienne (Technische Universität Berlin, DE); Johann Habakuk Israel (Fraunhofer-Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology IPK, DE); Katharina Weber (FHTW Berlin, DE)
Tangible interaction research has opened up new ways to interact with computers and extended our imagination of what is possible with digital systems. However, research on tangible user interfaces (TUI) seems to have lost sight of the everyday situation of the majority of people who still work with standard computer systems. This paper investigates a design process for applying TUI in a GUI dominated domain while preserving the functionality of the traditional systems. We exemplify a user centered design process using (1) image schemas as a meta-language for analysis and design and (2) a systematic function allocation of digital and physical user interface elements. We demonstrate this process in the context of the redesign of an invoice verification and posting system of a German beverage company.



Exhibits to top

D01: A TOUCHING HARMONY: MIDAS in Artistic Practice
Kevin Muise (Simon Fraser University, CA); Ji Dong Yim (Simon Fraser University, CA)
Advances in technology provide artists with new opportunities for developing engaging works, however these often push the artist’s technical ability. We address this issue in demonstrating that MIDAS can be applied to artistic practices with relative ease and at a low cost. The authors present, as a case study, A Touching Harmony – a flexible screen-based installation that explores depth as variable within user-interaction. We discuss the use of MIDAS within the implementation of the installation.

D02: ActionCube - A Tangible Mobile Gesture Interaction Tutorial
Jukka Linjama (Nokia, FI); Panu Korpipää (Finwe Ltd., FI); Juha Kela (Finwe Ltd., FI); Tapani Rantakokko (Finwe Ltd., FI)
This study addresses the issue of how to aid adoption of new interaction means for mobile devices. The research problem is how to promote and guide the use of new movement interaction modalities to a novice user, who has no prior knowledge of gesture control. The aim was to create a pleasurable experience that invites users to learn how mobile device movement control works. The main contribution is an interaction tutorial application that combines gesture control with a physical visual tangible object in a mobile device, demonstrating interaction elements that are potentially applicable in future mobile devices.

D03: Back to the sandbox - Playful Interaction with Granules Landscapes
Steffi Beckhaus (University of Hamburg, DE); Roland Schroeder-Kroll (University of Hamburg, DE); Martin Berghoff (University of Hamburg, DE)
We present a novel, tangible interface demonstrated by means of the artwork, GranulatSynthese, an installation for the intuitive, tangible creation of ambient, meditative audiovisuals. The interface uses granules distributed over a tabletop surface and combines them with rear-projected visuals and dynamically selected sound samples. The haptic landscape can be explored with the hands, shaped into both hills and open space and composed intuitively. Form, position, and size of cleared table areas control parameters of the computer generated audio-visuals. GranulatSynthese is a meditative application, which invites to either play or step back, watching the visuals and sounds evolve. The installation has proven very accessible. It is inviting and absorbing for a long time for many visitors to the installation.

D04: E-scale: unity of location and time, increasing bandwidth and enhancing physical learning does matter
Caroline Hummels (Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, NL); Kees Overbeeke (Eindhoven University of Technology, NL)
In this paper we explain that we focus on tangible interaction, because the physical world is inherently meaningful for people, i.e. we perceive the world in terms of what we can do with it, in terms of our skills. By physically interacting with the world this meaning emanates. We elucidate this principle by means of Escale, a tangible device to enter answers on questionnaires into a computer. Meaning is created by coupling the graphical layout of the scales on the questionnaires, to the layout of buttons on E-scale, and by enabling to slide down E-scale along the scales while entering data. The results from our experiment show that unity of location and time, increasing bandwidth by controlling multiple parameters simultaneously and physical learning and thus development of bodily skills, increase usability (reduce time) as well as experience (overall satisfaction). We hope that sharing the rationale behind our TEI designs and research might contribute to the discussion about the strengths and weaknesses of TEI.

D05: HYUI - A Visual Framework for Prototyping Hybrid User Interfaces
Christian Geiger (University of Applied Science Düsseldorf, DE); Robin Fritze (University of Applied Science Duesseldorf, DE); Anke Lehmann (University of Applied Science Düsseldorf, DE); Joerg Stoecklein (University of Paderborn, DE)
This demo accompanies the paper with the same name, see here.

D06: SpeakCup: Simplicity, BABL, and Shape Change
Jamie Zigelbaum (MIT Media Lab, US); Angela Chang (MIT, US); James Gouldstone (MIT Media Lab, US); Joshua Jen Monzen (MIT, US); Hiroshi Ishii (MIT Media Lab, US)
In this paper we present SpeakCup, a simple tangible interface that uses shape change to convey meaning in its interaction design. SpeakCup is a voice recorder in the form of a soft silicone disk with embedded sensors and actuators. Advances in sensor technology and material science have provided new ways for users to interact with computational devices. Rather than issuing commands to a system via abstract and multi-purpose buttons the door is open for more nuanced and application-specific approaches. Here we explore the coupling of shape and action in an interface designed for simplicity while discussing some questions that we have encountered along the way.

D07: Tangible Menus and Interaction Trays: Core tangibles for common physical/digital activities
Brygg Ullmer; Rajesh Sankaran; Srikanth Jandhyala; Blake Tregre; Cornelius Toole; Karun Kallakuri; Christopher Laan; Matthew Hess; Farid Harhad; Urban Wiggins; Shining Sun (all from Louisiana State University, US)
We introduce core tangibles: physical interaction elements which serve common roles across a variety of tangible and embedded interfaces. We describe two such tangibles: tangible menus and interaction trays. These may be composed together to dynamically bind discrete and continuous interactors to various digital behaviors. We discuss our approach, implementation, and early usage experiences.

D08: WiiArts: Creating collaborative art experiences with WiiRemote interaction
Hyun-Jean Lee; Hyungsin Kim; Gaurav Gupta; Ali Mazalek (all from Georgia Institute of Technology, US)
WiiArts is an experimental video, audio and image processing art project that makes use of pre-existing sensing technologies provided by Nintendo WiiRemotes and a Sensor Bar. Currently, most WiiRemote-based physical interactions have been designed to mimic the gesture of body movement in sports and other action-based games. These Wii games are generally competitive in nature, and players interact by responding to predefined interaction rules in either a single-user or multi-user mode. Making use of the WiiRemote as a pre-existing tangible and embedded interface, we explore applications that can engage participants in active and expressive art creation in a collaborative manner. In this paper, we describe several prototype applications based on this concept: Illumination (draWiing), Beneath (Waldo), WiiBand, Time Ripples. In these applications, three interactors can work together to compose both images and sounds.

D09: XENAKIS - Combining Tangible Interaction with Probability-Based Musical Composition
Markus Bischof, Bettina Conradi, Peter Lachenmaier, Kai Linde, Max Meier, Philipp Pötzl, Elisabeth André (Augsburg, DE)
In this paper we present the table-based tangible interface application Xenakis which uses probability models in order to compose music in a way that can be strongly influenced by the user. Our musical sequencing application is based on a framework for tangible interfaces with an architecture that is strongly inspired by the model-view-controller pattern. In addition, we developed a hardware setup for tangible interfaces and used MatraX for tracking markers. The sequencer is the first implementation based on this framework. It allows users to create music simply by moving tangibles on the table. The graphics engine Horde3D is used to visualize the user-interaction and to show the relationships between the tangible objects on the table, creating an appealing audio-visual experience. An evaluation with 37 first time users was conducted in order to discover the strong and the weak points of such tangible user interfaces, especially in the context of our application.

D10: Gesture Recognition with a Wii Controller
Thomas Schlömer (University of Oldenburg, DE); Benjamin Poppinga (University of Oldenburg, DE); Niels Henze (OFFIS Research Institute of Information Technology, DE); Susanne Boll (University of Oldenburg, DE)
This demo accompanies the paper with the same name, see here.



Posters to top

P01: A Malleable Physical Interface for Copying, Pasting, and Organizing Digital Clips
Florian Block (Lancaster University, UK); Nicolas Villar (Lancaster University, UK); Hans Gellersen (Lancaster University, UK)
We present a system that extends a typical workstation environment with a malleable physical interface for working with digital clips. It allows users to pick digital clips, give each its own dedicated key for direct access, and combine keys dynamically on a physical surface in a way that inherently reflects the state of an extended clipboard. The system affords copying and pasting of multiple clips each directly accessible through its own key shortcut. The keys can also be dynamically re-arranged to organize clips, and taken from workstation to another to transport clips, acting simultaneously as token and as copy-paste-interface for a digital object.

P02: A tangible interface for browsing digital photo collections
Shuo-Hsiu Hsu (Orange Labs, FR); Sylvie Jumpertz (Orange Labs, FR); Pierre Cubaud (Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers, FR)
We present a design concept of a tangible user interface for browsing image contents. A layer structure for image presentation and three kinematical gestures are proposed to facilitate navigation in the digital photo collections. We describe how gestures support the photo browsing and how the visual display is synchronized with gestures.

P03: Black Box: Exploring Simple Electronic Interaction
Kristina Andersen (STEIM, NL)
This paper proposes a series of simple interactive boxes designed to investigate children’s experience and understanding of abstract electronic interaction. The black box project is the first step of an investigation into the width of the potential uses of electronic sensing devices.

P04: Contact Management on the Wall: A Card-Game Metaphor for Large Displays
Tom Gross (Bauhaus-University Weimar, DE)
Tangible and embedded computing brings technology integrates digital technology in the physical environment of everyday life. Thereby, families in private households are increasingly researched and supported. In this paper we present the concept and implementation of the FamilyFaces—a contact management tool supporting families when managing their contacts and information disclosure, and we report on initial user feedback. FamilyFaces is based on a card-game metaphor on large displays to provide wide-spread access to family members, from teenagers to grandparents.

P05: Control of Data Flow and Configurations within Inter-appliance Using a Camera-Phone
Satoru Mitsui (Waseda University, JP)
In recent studies, user interaction models for connecting information appliances to each other using real-world tangible interaction are limited to specified scenarios or applications. We developed a novel model for connecting appliances in every scenario based on the extension of the drag-and-drop interaction metaphor, which has proved acceptable to users. By applying this model with a cameraphone, we propose an interaction technique that is able to realize the direction of the data flow between connected appliances. One of the most important differences from existing research is that our technique enables users not only to use data files contained by one appliance on another appliance, but also to associate and configure networked appliances to each other, in a tangible manner.

P06: DrawSound: A Drawing Instrument for Sound Performance
Kazuhiro Jo (University of Tokyo, JP)
This poster accompanies the paper with the same name, see here.

P07: Inquiring Materials for Tangible Prototyping
Alissa Antle (Simon Fraser University, CA)
As TUI research moves from technical to empirical studies which explore theoretical claims, it is important for researchers to be able to quickly and easily build low fidelity (lo-fi) prototypes to explore the unique features of interaction that TUIs offer. Currently, the best practices for choosing prototyping materials are vague at best. In this paper, I present an analysis of the role of materials in inquiry and propose a set of criteria for evaluating the suitability of lo-fi prototyping materials.

P08: Marble Track Audio Manipulator: A Tangible User Interface for Audio Composition
Alex Bean; Sabina Siddiqi; Anila Chowdhury; Billy Whited; Orit Shaer; Robert Jacob (all from Tufts University, US)
We created a tangible user interface that allows children to create musical compositions through constructive play. Our Marble Track Audio Manipulator (MTAM) is an augmented marble tower construction kit where marbles represent sound clips and tracks represent different sound effects. To create musical compositions, children collaboratively build a marble tower and then play their compositions by dropping marbles into the tower. As marbles roll through the tower children can interact with the marbles and thus improvise and alter their musical compositions. By augmenting a popular toy, physically representing sound clips and effects as well as allowing improvisation, the MTAM system provides children with a creative, playful, and engaging encounter with music.

P09: Pragmatic Haptics
Angela Chang; James Gouldstone; Jamie Zigelbaum; Hiroshi Ishii (all from MIT Media Lab, US)
This paper explores situations in which interfaces may be improved or simplified by switching feedback modalities. Due to availability of and familiarity with audio/visual technologies, many interfaces provide feedback via audio/visual pathways when a haptic pathway would best serve. The authors present a series of interface designs in which simple and inexpensive choices allow for reduction of cognitive complexity by allowing mental simplicity rather than technological familiarity to dictate design of information transmission.

P10: RENATI: Recontextualizing Narratives for Tangible Interfaces
Ayoka Chenzira (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA); Yanfeng Chen (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA); Ali Mazalek (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA)
RENATI is an acronym for recontextualizing narratives for tangible interfaces. It serves as an umbrella term for our art/research experiments within a hybrid environment that uses oral narratives, and non-generative and immersive art with sensing technologies to create tangible narratives. In this paper we introduce our first prototype, which uses a custom-built mannequin to allow viewers to engage with a multi-viewpoint story titled Flying Over Purgatory.

P11: Tangible Design Support System Using RFID Technology
Takuma Hosokawa (NTT Comware, US); Yasuhiko Takeda; Norio Shioiri; Mitsunori Hirano; Kazuhiko Tanaka (NTT Comware, Japan)
We introduce a tangible design support system using RFID technology. This system allows users to design their houses on their own through tangible objects. Building a new house is a big project for many people, and everyone dreams about freely designing their own house. However, in general, it is difficult to realize this without architectural knowledge and a high level of computing skills. Our system employs tangible user interfaces for a user who has limited or no knowledge to design a new house and investigate the design. For example, the user can design room layout by paving the design table with special tiles and customize the room’s properties such as wall, floor, or even furniture by placing miniatures on the table. Through this design process, the user can identify crucial design elements based on their preferences and make the right decision as well as allow an architect to understand the user’s preferences.

P12: The Robot is the Program: Interacting with roBlocks
Eric Schweikardt (Carnegie Mellon University, USA); Mark Gross (Carnegie Mellon University, USA)
The roBlocks construction kit is a tangible concurrent programming environment that encapsulates sensory, kinetic, and computational behavior in modular building block units that snap together to construct robots. The choice of a protocol for propagating values through the constructed robot affects its behavior.



Pre-Conference Activities to top

Visit with us "Kunst Museum Bonn", "Haus der Geschichte" and/or "Deutsches Museum Bonn" on Sunday, Feb. 17, afternoon.

Haus der Geschichte
Our guided tour starts at 14:00, please meet us at about 13:45 in the entrance hall of the museum.
Take the tram/underground train from the central station line 16, 63 and 66, stop Heussallee. For more travel information see google maps and VRS (public transport Bonn)

Arithmeum Bonn
Our guided tour starts at 14:00, please meet us at about 13:45 in the entrance hall of the museum.
It is a five minute walk from central station to the museum or take the tram/underground train, stop Universtität Markt. For more travel information see google maps and VRS (public transport Bonn).

Kunst Museum Bonn
Our guided tour starts at 16:00, please meet us at about 15:45 in the entrance hall of the museum.
Take the tram/underground train from the central station line 16, 63 and 66, stop Heussallee. For more travel information see google maps and VRS (public transport Bonn).

Deutsches Museum Bonn - Research and Technology in Germany after 1945
Please meet us at 16:00 in the entrance hall.
Take the bus line 610 from the central station, stop Kennedyallee, address Ahrstr. 45 For more travel information see google maps and VRS (public transport Bonn).

All those events are free of charge for you!
If you plan to attend one of those, please send a note to Dagmar Kern (it is not binding but helps us in planning).