Program

NURBSforms: A Modular Shape-Changing Interface for Prototyping Curved Surfaces

Demo based on full paper

• Yasaman Tahouni (MIT CSAIL, USA)
• Isabel P. S. Qamar (MIT CSAIL, USA)
• Stefanie Mueller (MIT CSAIL, USA)

We present NURBSforms: a modular shape-changing interface for prototyping curved surfaces. Each NURBSform module represents an edge of variable curvature that, when joined together with other modules, enables designers to construct surfaces and adjust their curvature interactively. NURBSform modules vary their curvature using active and passive shape memory materials: an embedded shape memory alloy (SMA) wire increases the curvature when heated, while an elastic material recovers the flat shape when the SMA wire cools down. A hall effect sensor on each module allows users to vary the curvature by adjusting the distance of their hand. In addition, NURBSforms provides functions across multiple modules, such as ‘save’, ‘reset’, and ‘load’, to facilitate design exploration. Since each module is self-contained and individually controllable, NURBSform modules scale well and can be connected into large networks of curves representing various geometries. By giving examples of different NURBSforms assemblies, we demonstrate how the modularity of NURBSforms, together with its integrated computational support, enables designers to quickly explore different versions of a shape in a single integrated design process.

Fabricatable Machines: A Toolkit for building Digital Fabrication Machines

Demo based on full paper

• Frikk H Fossdal (Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway)
• Jens Dyvik (Fellesverkstedet, Norway)
• Jakob Anders Nilsson (Norlink Consulting, Norway)
• Jon Nordby (Bitraf, Norway)
• Torbjørn Nordvik Helgesen (Nordvik Manifestation, Norway)
• Rogardt Heldal (Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway)
• Nadya Peek (University of Washington, USA)

Digital fabrication is changing the way we design and manufacture the objects around us. Digital fabrication machines enable mass-customisation. However, customising the machines themselves requires a high amount of expertise, which prevents even advanced users from taking part in the creation of bespoke fabrication tools. We present Fabricatable Machines, an open-source toolkit for designing custom fabrication machines. We designed a linear motion module, The Fabricatable Axis, that provides robust automated linear motion. The Fabricatable Axis can be resized, adjusted, and fabricated from different materials. Users can build machines by combining multiple axes. We optimised the design of the axis to be manufactured using a CNC mill, with few externally sourced parts. We observed users creating machines including portable milling machines, 3D printers, and pipe inspection robots using the Fabricatable Machines Toolkit.

Tangible Music Programming Blocks for Visually Impaired Children

Demo based on full paper

• Alpay Sabuncuoğlu (Koç University, Turkey & Twin Science and Robotics Lab, Turkey)

Programming can benefit children on learning science, math, and creative thinking, and has become a part of the primary school curriculum. However, programming tools for visually impaired children are still scarce. We developed an affordable and accessible tangible music platform for visually impaired children that aims to teach the basics of programming through music creation. By ordering the tangible blocks in an algorithmic structure, the children can create a melody. The physical and conceptual design of the system was developed with the help of visually impaired developers. We conducted a user study with fourteen visually impaired middle school children to observe their interactions with the prototype. In this paper, we present our design, provide several TUI design considerations for students with low to zero sight, and discuss the results of our user study and future directions.

SPIN (Self-powered Paper Interfaces): Bridging Triboelectric Nanogenerator with Folding Paper Creases

Demo based on full paper

• Chris Chen (Georgia Tech, USA)
• David E Howard (Georgia Tech, USA)
• Steven Zhang (Georgia Tech, USA)
• Youngwook Do (Georgia Tech, USA)
• Sienna Xin Sun (Georgia Tech, USA)
• Tingyu Cheng (Human Computer Interaction Institute, USA)
• Zhong Lin Wang (Georgia Tech, USA)
• Gregory D Abowd (Georgia Tech, USA)
• HyunJoo Oh (Georgia Tech, USA)

We present Self-powered Paper INterfaces (SPIN) combining folding paper creases with triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG). Embedding TENG into paper creases, we developed a design editor and set of fabrication techniques to create paper-based interfaces that power sensors and actuators. Our SPIN design editor enables users to design their own crease pattern by changing parameters, embed power generating modules into the design, estimate total power generation, and export the files. Then following the fabrication instructions, users can cut and crease materials, and assemble them to build their own interfaces. We employ repetitive push-and-pull based embodied interactions with the mechanism of paper creases and demonstrate four application examples that show new expressive possibilities applying different scales of embodied interactions.

Japanese Patterns as NFC Antennas for Interactive Urushi-ware

Demo based on full paper

• Keita Saito (University of Tsukuba, Japan)
• Takuto Nakamura (University of Tsukuba, Japan)
• Kazushi Kamezawa (University of Tsukuba, Japan)
• Ryo Ikeda (University of Tsukuba, Japan)
• Yuki Hashimoto (University of Tsukuba, Japan)
• Buntarou Shizuki (University of Tsukuba, Japan)

Urushi (Japanese lacquer) is a natural resin paint with electrical insulating capability. We focused on Japanese patterns on an urushi-ware that is a product coated urushi. To make urushi-wares interactive without losing elegance and beauty, we transformed Japanese patterns into near-field communication (NFC) antenna patterns. We developed three types of prototype antennas and confirmed their functionality. In addition, we developed an IC key tag and an interactive lunch box as example applications of interactive urushi-wares.

Transient Relics: Temporal Tangents to an Ancient Virtual Pilgrimage

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Angelo Fraietta (UNSW, Australia)

This paper examines creating a temporary virtual relic through the creation of an interactive soundscape in the context of a religious pilgrimage known as theStations of The Cross. The paper examines the history of the rite and its transformation from a physical pilgrimage to a virtual one. It examines the phenomenon of iconic relics, which in some case have a reckoned value equivalent to that of the physical objects they represent. Also, it examines both the conceptual and legal implications of embodying sound into tangible objects, resulting in their treatment as protected relics. Finally, it describes the creation of an artwork, whereby religious pilgrims manipulate interactive sonic balls that communicate with other networked sonic devices in an attempt to correlate metaphors of human behaviours—such as play, humiliation, and mobs—into a sonic relic of the historical narrative of Christ taunted by Roman soldiers.

ForceStamps: Fiducial Markers for Pressure-sensitive Touch Surfaces to Support Rapid Prototyping of Physical Control Interfaces

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Changyo Han (University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Katsufumi Matsui (University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Takeshi Naemura (University of Tokyo, Japan)

We present ForceStamps, fiducial markers for supporting rapid prototyping of physical control interfaces on pressure-sensitive touch surfaces. We investigate marker design options for supporting various physical controls, with focusing on creating dedicated footprints and maintaining the structural stability. ForceStamps can be persistently tracked on surfaces along with the force information and other attributes. Designers without knowledge of electronics can rapidly prototype physical controls by attaching mechanisms to ForceStamps, while manipulating the haptic feedback with buffer materials. The created control widgets can be spatially configured on the touch surface to make an interface layout. We showcase a variety of example controls created with ForceStamps. In addition, we report on our analysis of a two-day musical instrument design workshop to explore the affordances of ForceStamps for making novel instruments with diverse interaction designs.

BulkScreen: Saliency-Based Automatic Shape Representation of Digital Images with a Vertical Pin-Array Screen

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Riku Arakawa (The University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Yudai Kent Tanaka (The university of Tokyo, Japan)
• Hiromu Kawarasaki (The University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Kiyosu Maeda (The University of Tokyo, Japan)

Digital images appearing on displays in everyday activities (e.g., photos on a smartphone) are automatically and instantly rendered without manual intervention such that we can seamlessly appreciate them. In contrast, shape displays require manual designs of outputs upon actuation of input images to render 3D shapes. In this work, we aim to achieve automatic and on-the-spot actuation of digital images so that we can seamlessly see 3D physical images. To this end, we developed BulkScreen, an image projection system that can automatically render 3D shapes of input images on a vertical pin-array screen. Our approach is based on a deep-neural-network saliency estimation coupled with our post-processing algorithm. We believe this spontaneous actuation mechanism facilitates applications with shape displays such as real-time picture browsing and display advertisement, building on the benefit of representing physical shapes; tangibility.

Cushion Interface for Smart Home Control

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Yuri Suzuki (Keio Univercity, Japan)
• Kaho Kato (Keio Univercity, Japan)
• Naomi Furui (Keio University, Japan)
• Daisuke Sakamoto (Hokkaido University, Japan)
• Yuta Sugiura (Keio University, Japan)

In this research, we present a cushion interface for operating smart home applications. We developed a gesture recognition system using convolutional neural networks and embedded the acceleration sensor arrays in the cushion cover. To evaluate the system, we conducted experiments and measured recognition accuracy.

“… and we are the creators!” Technologies as Creative Material

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Sarah Matthews (University of Queensland, Australia)
• Marie A Boden (University of Queensland, Australia)
• Stephen Viller (University of Queensland, Australia)

Tangible embedded technology kits are increasingly being used in schools, often as a means of providing students a platform for problem solving and computational thinking. When they are incorporated in creative tasks such as open-ended design projects, embedded technologies take on the role of a design material – a medium for exploration, iteration and creation. This paper presents some early results of a video analysis of school children’s collaborative interactions with tangible, embedded technologies in an open-ended design task. We identify some of the difficulties students encounter and some of the practices they develop with these kits as they work to progress their designs. Our findings detail how children deal with the opacity of the system and how they use it as a springboard for imagination. Our study provides an opportunity to reflect on how technology kits currently resist becoming a design material.

ambienBeat: Wrist-worn Mobile Tactile Biofeedback for Heart Rate Rhythmic Regulation

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Kyung Yun Choi (MIT, USA)
• Hiroshi Ishii (MIT, USA)

We present a wrist-worn mobile heart rate regulator — ambienBeat — which provides closed-loop biofeedback via tactile stimulus based on users’ heartbeat rate (HR). We applied the principle of physiological synchronization via touch to achieve our goal of effortless regulation of HR, which is tightly coupled with mental stress levels. ambienBeat provides various patterns of tactile stimuli, which mimics the feeling of a heartbeat pulse, to guide user’s HR to resonate with its rhythmic, tactile patterns. The strength and rhythmic patterns of tactile stimulation are controlled to a level below the cognitive threshold of an individual’s tactile sensitivity on their wrist so as to minimize task disturbance. Here we present an acoustically noise-less soft voice-coil actuator to render the ambient tactile stimulus and present the system and implementation process. We evaluated our system by comparing it to ambient auditory and visual guidance. Results from the user study shows that the tactile stimulation was effective in guiding user’s HR to resonate with ambienBeat to either calm or boost the heart rate using minimal cognitive load.

LiftTiles: Constructive Building Blocks for Prototyping Room-scale Shape-changing Interfaces

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Ryo Suzuki (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Ryosuke Nakayama (Keio University, Japan)
• Dan Liu (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Yasuaki Kakehi (University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Mark D Gross (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Daniel Leithinger (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)

Large-scale shape-changing interfaces have great potential, but creating such systems requires substantial time, cost, space, and efforts, which hinders the research community to explore interactions beyond the scale of human hands. We introduce modular inflatable actuators as building blocks for prototyping room-scale shape-changing interfaces. Each actuator can change its height from 15cm to 150cm, actuated and controlled by air pressure. Each unit is low-cost (8 USD), lightweight (10 kg), compact (15 cm), and robust, making it well-suited for prototyping room-scale shape transformations. Moreover, our modular and reconfigurable design allows researchers and designers to quickly construct different geometries and to explore various applications. This paper contributes to the design and implementation of highly extendable inflatable actuators, and demonstrates a range of scenarios that can leverage this modular building block.

ExpandFab: Fabricating Objects Expanding and Changing Shape with Heat

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Hiroki Kaimoto (Shonan-Fujisawa, Japan)
• Junichi Yamaoka (University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Satoshi Nakamaru (Keio University, Japan & the University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Yoshihiro Kawahara (University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Yasuaki Kakehi (University of Tokyo, Japan)

ExpandFab is a fabrication method for creating expanding objects using foam materials. The printed objects change their shape and volume, which is advantageous for reducing the printing time and transportation costs. For the fabrication of expanding objects, we investigated a basic principle of the expansion rate and developed materials by mixing a foam powder and elastic adhesive. Furthermore, we developed a fabrication method using the foam materials. A user can design expanded objects using our design software and sets the expansion areas on the surface. The software simulates and exports the 3d model into a three-dimensional (3D) printer. The 3D printer prints the expandable object by curing with ultraviolet light. Finally, the user heats the printed objects, and the objects expand to maximum approximately 2.7 times of their original size. ExpandFab allows users to prototype products that expand and morph into various shapes, such as objects changing from one shape to various shapes, and functional prototype with electronic components. In this paper, we describe the basic principle of this technique, implementation of the software and hardware, application examples, limitations and discussions, and future works.

Be active! Participatory Design of Accessible Movement-Based Games

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Georg Regal (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, Austria)
• David Sellitsch (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, Austria)
• Simone Kriglstein (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, Austria & University of Vienna, Austria)
• Simon Kollienz (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, Austria)
• Manfred Tscheligi (University of Salzburg & AIT, Austria)

Regular physical exercise is an essential factor for preventing chronic diseases. Activities to support physical education in schools have been increasingly used in recent years as a target to get young people interested in sports. However, for visually impaired students it is difficult to participate in traditional team sports which are widely played in physical education. To overcome this issue, we developed a design toolkit consisting of building blocks that enable visually impaired students to create and play their own movement-based games. To investigate different types of building blocks and their potential to create accessible movement-based games, we conducted two game design workshops with visually impaired students. The results show that our building blocks can successfully be used by visually impaired students to empower them to become creators of movement-based games that are both accessible and engaging. By making our design-process transparent, we further provide insights on how to implement a co-creation process in a school for visually impaired students.

Wearable Bits: Scaffolding Creativity with a Prototyping Toolkit for Wearable E-textiles

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Lee Jones (Carleton University, Canada)
• Sara Nabil (Carleton University, Canada)
• Amanda McLeod (Carleton University, Canada)
• Audrey Girouard (Carleton University, Canada)

Smart garment and wearable e-textile prototypes are difficult to co-design because of the variety of expertise needed (garment design, sewing skills, hardware prototyping, and software programming). To help with this, we developed a toolkit for prototyping wearable e-textiles, named Wearable Bits, which enables co-design with non-expert users without demanding sewing, hardware or software skills. We developed a low-fidelity and medium-fidelity experience prototype of the toolkit and ran a series of workshops where non-expert users designed their own e-textile wearables using Wearable Bits. In this paper, we discuss the ideas they developed, their construction techniques, the roles individuals took on while building, and suggestions for future toolkits.

Embedding Conversational Agents into AR: Invisible or with a Realistic Human Body?

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Jens Reinhardt (HAW Hamburg, Germany)
• Luca Hillen (HAW Hamburg, Germany)
• Katrin Wolf (HAW Hamburg, Germany)

Currently, (invisible) smart speech assistants, such as Siri, Alexa, and Cortana, are used by a constantly growing number of people. Moreover, Augmented Reality (AR) glasses are predicted to become widespread consumer devices in the future. Hence, smart assistants can easily become common applications of AR glasses, which allows for giving the assistant a visual representation as an embodied agent. While previous research on embodied agents found a user preference for a humanoid appearance, research on the uncanny valley suggests that simply designed humanoids can be favored over hyper-realistic humanoid characters. In a user study, we compared agents of simple versus more realistic appearance (seen through AR glasses) versus an invisible state-of-the-art speech assistants (see Figure 1). Our results indicate that a more realistic visualization is preferred as it provides additional communication cues, such as eye contact and gaze, which seem to be key features when talking to a smart assistant. But if the situation requires visual attention, e.g., when being mobile or in a multitask situation, an invisible agent can be more appropriate as they do not distract the visual focus, which can be essential during AR experiences.

DIY Fabrication of High Performance Multi-Layered Flexible PCBs / SoftMod: A Soft Modular Plug-and-Play Kit for Prototyping Electronic Systems

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Mannu Lambrichts (Expertise Center for Digital Media, Belgium)
• Jose Maria Tijerina Munoz (Expertise Centre for Digital Media, Belgium)
• Tom De Weyer (Expertise Centre for Digital Media, Hasselt Universy – tUL – Flanders Make, Belgium)
• Raf Ramakers (Flanders Make – Expertise Centre for Digital Media, Belgium)

We present a novel DIY fabrication workflow for prototyping highly flexible circuit boards using a laser cutter. As our circuits consist of Kapton and copper, they are highly conductive and thus support high-frequency signals, such as I2C. Key to our approach is a laser machine that supports both a CO2 laser as well as a fiber laser to precisely process respectively Kapton and copper. We also show how the laser cutter can cure soldering paste to realize VIAs (Vertical Interconnect Access) and solder components. In contrast, previous approaches for prototyping flexible PCBs through laser cutting only considered CO2 lasers which can not process metals. Therefore these approaches mainly used ink-based conductors that have a significantly higher electrical resistance than copper.

SoftMod: A Soft Modular Plug-and-Play Kit for Prototyping Electronic Systems

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Mannu Lambrichts (Expertise Centre for Digital Media, Belgium)
• Jose Maria Tijerina Munoz (Expertise Centre for Digital Media, Belgium)
• Raf Ramakers (Hasselt University, Belgium)

We present SoftMod, a novel modular electronics kit consisting of soft and flexible modules that snap together. Unlike existing modular kits, SoftMod tracks the topology of interconnected modules and supports basic plug-and-play behavior as well as advanced user-specified behavior. As such, the shape of a SoftMod assembly does not depend on the desired behavior and various 2D and 3D electronic systems can be realized. While the plug-and-play nature of our modules stimulates play, the advanced features for specifying behavior and for making a variety of soft and flexible shapes, offer a high-ceiling when experimenting with novel types of interfaces, such as wearables, and interactive skin and textiles.

Peace: Projecting Dual-Identities on Interactive Furniture

Demo based on Pictorial

• Sara Nabil (Newcastle University, UK & Carleton University, Canada)
• Richard MacLeod (Fouadisms Ltd, UK)

The world is promoting inclusion and diversity more than ever before. Many people have dual-identities that they alternate between and may often blend. In our design research we explore everyday objects and the role of technology to accommodate people’s needs and personalities. Can furniture change its shape to reflect our dual-identities? Can our interior spaces reveal their hidden aesthetics when interacting with us? We designed a set of matching interactive furniture to unfold these narratives. Our Peace Table and Peace Painting change colour with proximity to reflect the dual identity of Western-Muslims. This pictorial describes our design concept and process with the aim of encouraging the HCI community to design for experiential artwork. Such interactivity can enrich and add new dimensions to the quality of living experience by merging technology into home decor in calm, ubiquitous and non-intrusive ways.

CodeAttach: Engaging Children in Computational Thinking through Physical Play Activities

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Junnan Yu (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Clement Zheng (University of Colorado, Boulder, USA)
• Mariana Aki Tamashiro (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Christopher Gonzalez-millan (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)
• Ricarose Roque (University of Colorado Boulder, USA)

Many toys and kits have been developed to help cultivate computational thinking in young children in the past decade. However, a majority of these kits ask children to move a robot/character around a limited space, constraining what could otherwise be generative and creative learning experiences into pre-defined activities and challenges with uniform outcomes. How can we expand what children can program and how they can create code? In this work, we present CodeAttach, a learning kit designed to engage young children in computational thinking through physical play activities. CodeAttach consists of three parts: (1) an interactive hardware device, (2) a mobile application to program the device, and (3) supporting materials for different play activities. With CodeAttach, children can attach the device to the supporting materials or other everyday objects to create their own props for physical play. The device offers different inputs and outputs and supports children to change the rules of existing physical activities or create new activities by programming this device. We outline the principles guiding the design of CodeAttach, its initial development process, and insights from early playtest with young kids and expert researchers.

BulkScreen: Saliency-Based Automatic Shape Representation of Digital Images with a Vertical Pin-Array Screen

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Riku Arakawa (The University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Yudai Kent Tanaka (The university of Tokyo, Japan)
• Hiromu Kawarasaki (The University of Tokyo, Japan)
• Kiyosu Maeda (The University of Tokyo, Japan)

Digital images appearing on displays in everyday activities (e.g., photos on a smartphone) are automatically and instantly rendered without manual intervention such that we can seamlessly appreciate them. In contrast, shape displays require manual designs of outputs upon actuation of input images to render 3D shapes. In this work, we aim to achieve automatic and on-the-spot actuation of digital images so that we can seamlessly see 3D physical images. To this end, we developed BulkScreen, an image projection system that can automatically render 3D shapes of input images on a vertical pin-array screen. Our approach is based on a deep-neural-network saliency estimation coupled with our post-processing algorithm. We believe this spontaneous actuation mechanism facilitates applications with shape displays such as real-time picture browsing and display advertisement, building on the benefit of representing physical shapes; tangibility.

Everyday Life Reflection: Exploring Media Interaction with Balance, Cogito & Dott

Demo based on full paper; also presented as a talk

• Ine Mols (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands & University of Technology Sydney, Australia)
• Elise van den Hoven (University of Technology Sydney, Australia & Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)
• Berry Eggen (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)

Reflection is of increasing interest in HCI as it has many potential benefits in design, education and everyday life. In this paper, we explore media-supported reflection through the design and deployment of three concepts. In contrast to prevalent reflective approaches that are based on system-collected data, we explore how user-created media can support personal reflection. Three interactive prototypes were developed, focusing on different modalities: Balance uses audio, Cogito uses text, and Dott uses visual media. We evaluate these concepts in an in-thewild study that is both explorative and comparative. We found that the open-ended systems primarily supported reflection during the creation of media and that the use depended on opportunity and triggers. We conclude the paper with a discussion of our findings regarding the method and the implications of our findings for the broader area of design for reflection.

Designed Interactive Toys for Children with Cerebral Palsy

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Yixuan Bian (Xi’an Jiao Tong Liverpool University, China)
• Xiaoyu Wang (Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University, China)
• Dongchen Han (Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, China)
• Jie Sun (Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, China)

Children with cerebral palsy (CP) need to go through intensive rehabilitation exercises to develop and enhance their fine motor control in daily living. However, most of them cannot persist the regular repetitive exercise session using traditional tools for a long time. To provide a playful and attractive rehabilitation environment, toys are introduced to motivate children for exercises. This study aims to develop diverse toy modules and combine with basic blocks from LEGO to support various hand and arm functional training. The joyful color, cartoon animals, visual and audio feedbacks are proposed to increase the modules’ attractiveness. Their interchangeable handles and knobs can support different levels of exercises, which improve the toy modules’ accessibility for children with CP. Preliminary user testing in the hospital suggests that toys are warmly welcomed, easy to manipulate and play. We plan to collect user performance data and track the toys’ long-term effect in rehabilitation training to aid therapists in evaluating individual recovery progress.

Haptic feedback in running: Is it possible for information transfer through electrical muscle signalling?

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Kevin Lu (Industrial Design, Netherlands)
• Aarnout Brombacher (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)

Designing Tangible Tools for the Creation of Personalized Visits by Museum Professionals

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Stéphanie REY (Univ. Bordeaux, France & Berger-Levrault, France)
• Nadine Couture (Estia Institute of Technology, France)
• Celia Picard (University Toulouse, France)
• Christophe Bortolaso (Berger-Levrault, France)
• Mustapha Derras (Berger-Levrault, France)
• Anke M. Brock (University Toulouse, France)

Museums aim at offering personalized visits to encourage visitors to visit more than once. Few approaches consider the specific skills of museum professionals when designing tools for this purpose. We conducted a three-step iterative and user-centered design process with 13 museum professionals from six museums. This analysis led us to a main finding: the most complicated task for museum professionals is to explore their design space, composed of all possible visitor profiles for which to create visits. We propose a visualization for this multidimensional design space and six potential interactions on this representation. In an exploration space, we classify them on two axes: the selection approach and the type of interface (GUI versus TUI). We analyze their benefits and limits and, based on a pilot study, we propose insights and questions for future design.

Build Your Own Hercules: Helping Visitors Personalize Their Museum Experience

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Stéphanie REY (Univ. Bordeaux, France & Berger-Levrault, France)
• Celia Picard (University Toulouse, France)
• Yanis FATMI (University Toulouse, France)
• Fanny Franco (University Toulouse, France)
• Sarah Guilbert (University Toulouse, France)
• Jérémy MANÉRÉ (University Toulouse, France)
• Christophe Bortolaso (Berger-Levrault, France)
• Mustapha Derras (Berger-Levrault, France)
• Nadine Couture (Estia Institute of Technology, France)
• Anke M. Brock (University Toulouse, France)

Museums compete with the entertainment industry to attract a large audience. One solution to make them more attractive is to personalize the visits according to visitors’ preferences. Following a user centered design approach with visitors and museum professionals, we designed and implemented Build Your Own Hercules. This tangible prototype helps groups of visitors or individuals choose a visit based on their characteristics and desires. A pilot study in the museum provided first insights about the ease of use, satisfaction and interest within visitor groups.

Self-Interfaces: Utilizing Real-Time Biofeedback in the Wild to Elicit Unconscious Behavior Change

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Nava Haghighi (MIT, USA & MIT, USA)
• Arvind Satyanarayan (MIT, USA)

Self-Interfaces are interfaces that intuitively communicate relevant subconscious physiological signals through biofeedback to give the user insight into their behavior and assist them in creating behavior change. The human heartbeat is a good example of an intuitive and relevant haptic biofeedback; does not distract and is only felt when the heart beats fast. In this work, we discuss the design and development of a wearable haptic Self-Interface for Electrodermal Activity (EDA). EDA is a covert physiological signal correlated with high and low arousal affective states. We will evaluate the effectiveness of the EDA Self-Interface based on its intuitiveness, its ability to generate useful insight, whether this insight leads to behavior change, and whether the user can develop an intuitive awareness of their EDA over time when the device is removed. We hope the findings from this study will help us establish a series of guidelines for development of other Self-Interfaces in the future.

“… and we are the creators!” Technologies as Creative Material

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Sarah Matthews (University of Queensland, Australia)
• Marie A Boden (University of Queensland, Australia)
• Stephen Viller (University of Queensland, Australia)

Tangible embedded technology kits are increasingly being used in schools, often as a means of providing students a platform for problem solving and computational thinking. When they are incorporated in creative tasks such as open-ended design projects, embedded technologies take on the role of a design material – a medium for exploration, iteration and creation. This paper presents some early results of a video analysis of school children’s collaborative interactions with tangible, embedded technologies in an open-ended design task. We identify some of the difficulties students encounter and some of the practices they develop with these kits as they work to progress their designs. Our findings detail how children deal with the opacity of the system and how they use it as a springboard for imagination. Our study provides an opportunity to reflect on how technology kits currently resist becoming a design material.

Creating Mediated Touch Gestures with Vibrotactile Stimuli for Smart Phones

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Qianhui Wei (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)
• Min Li (NXP Semiconductors, Belgium & Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)
• Jun Hu (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)
• Loe Feijs (Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands)

Mediated touch gestures are essential for delivering information in social networking. This study presents a method to create mediated touch gestures with vibrotactile stimuli for smart phones and explores the effectiveness of applying mediated touch gestures with vibrotactile stimuli when sending text and stickers in instant messaging applications. We developed a preliminary prototype to record vibration signals of touch gestures. The envelopes of the recorded signals are approximated by piecewise linear functions and then translated to MIDI parameters for generating vibrotactile stimuli. We applied mediated touch gestures in instant messaging applications as haptic icons. A user study showed that gesture traits and the contact time affected the sensation of haptic icons. The enhancement effect of touch gestures was influenced by the contact time.

Heart Waves: A Heart Rate Feedback System Using Water Sounds

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Omid Ettehadi (OCAD University, Canada)
• Lee Jones (Carleton University, Canada)
• Kate Hartman (OCAD University, Canada)

Wearable devices of today help people track and monitor their biometric data such as heart rate. While the tracked data can help inform people of their health, many find that it adds unnecessary anxieties in the way the feedback is provided. In the case of college students, they spend most of their time in a stressful environment, leading them to an increase in the risk of mental health issues. To help with this issue, we present Heart Waves, an experimental ambient feedback system that tracks heart rate and uses water sound to provide feedback in a stressful work environment. Heart Waves uses the sound of falling water to create a relaxing atmosphere to help ease any stress they are going through. As the user’s heart rate goes up, the flow of water increases, and as their heart rate goes down, the flow rate of water decreases. The purpose of this project is to automatize the processing of heart rate data so that the user does not have to analyze the data and create an ambient feedback system that adjusts to their heart rate.

Toning: New Experience of Sharing Music Preference with Interactive Earphone in Public Space

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Inkyung Choi (Hanyang University, Korea, Republic of)
• Dain Kim (Hanyang University, Korea, Republic of)

The users in their 20s are curious about the feedback after sharing the music that they like, as much as the act of sharing itself. Moreover, they wish to share their musical taste with various people not only with their acquaintance, in everyday spaces and when on the move. In this paper, we present an interactive music sharing service called Toning, that makes users express their musical taste and share music with people in the same space through the most common wearable device, bluetooth earbuds. Our design process started with user survey and interview, aiming to understand their opinion about proper way of expressing music preference, and define design guidelines. Based on this, early concept design was conducted.

Haplós: Vibrotactile Somaesthetic Technology for Body Awareness

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Diego S Maranan (University of the Philippines Open University, Philippines)
• Jane Grant (University of Plymouth, UK)
• John Matthias (University of Plymouth, UK)
• Professor M Phillips (University of Plymouth, UK)
• Sue Denham (Wotelsat UK, UK)

Inspired by somatic methodologies and neurophysiology, Haplos is a low-cost, wearable technology that applies vibrotactile patterns to the skin, can be incorporated in existing clothing and implements, and can be programmed and activated remotely. We review existing vibrotactile technologies and known uses of vibrotactile stimuli; describe the hardware, textile, and software components of Haplos; describe results from a quasi-experimental workshop to evaluate Haplos; and discuss future research and development directions.

The Prefix/Suffix Model: Data Extraction to Encourage Expressive Walking Movements through Sonification

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Frank Feltham (RMIT University, Australia)
• Lian Loke (University of Sydney, Australia)
• James Curtis (RMIT University, Australia)

Interactive auditory feedback on physical movement activity can provide new insights into kinaesthetic awareness. Much existing work tends to emphasise corrective sonic feedback approaches to cyclic movements, either for enhancing or correcting faulty performance. Less explored is the application of aesthetic sonification for encouraging playful, creative expression of rhythmic actions such as walking. To aid the sonic interaction design process, some form of conceptual model of walking is required. We contribute a preliminary version of the Prefix/Suffix Extraction model, informed by previous work on gesture to sound-action chunks. By decomposing the footstep into a prefix-middle-suffix signal, we can control and explore various mappings of weight transfer through the articulation of the foot to sonic characteristics that may encourage the walker to play with their normal way of walking. A public installation of an interactive pressure-sensitive sound-generating surface acted as a proof-of-concept, with four different harmonic sound treatments resulting in noticeable variations in how members of the general public creatively engaged with their walking

Circus Science – Designing Responsive Flying Trapeze Performance Costumes

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Patrick Roche (University of St. Thomas, USA)
• Collin J Goldbach (University of St. Thomas, USA)
• Jeffrey A Jalkio (University of St. Thomas, USA)
• Alix Putman (University of St. Thomas, USA)
• AnnMarie Thomas (University of St. Thomas, USA)

We have partnered with local trapeze and circus arts instructors to combine various commercially available, wearable electronic components in the design and construction of a high tech, responsive costume for circus performers. Implementing microcontroller-based electronics in performance costumes is a novel approach that offers a new platform for enhancing a traditional circus performance with the rapidly expanding field of consumer microcontrollers and wearable electronics. We discuss the inspiration, implementation, and design challenges that led to our specific decisions in development, and what direction we hope to take the development in the future.

Rolling Pixels: Robotic Steinmetz Solids for Creating Physical Animations

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Yujin Lee (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Korea, Republic of)
• Myeongseong Kim (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Korea, Republic of)
• Hyunjung Kim (KAIST, Korea, Republic of)

This article introduces Rolling Pixels, that are essentially robotic Steinmetz solids, for constructing frame-by-frame physical animations. As a bicylinder-shaped Rolling Pixel rolls back and forth or left and right, the shape and color of the top view of the pixel changes repeatedly without using any additional shape- or color-changing techniques. Implemented using off-the-shelf products and technologies, Rolling Pixels are easy-to-build, reproducible, and customizable kinetic design material. We describe the design and implementation of the current prototype of Rolling Pixels. We also illustrate the potential of the Rolling Pixels as building blocks for physical animations through a set of simulated examples.

Incingarette: Blending Concepts and Crafting Animated Parables to Track Smoking

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Kenny K. N. Chow (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China)

Previous work in HCI about personal informatics and behavior change suggests that representing data in intuitive metaphors and meaningful stories on glace-able displays should be considered to complement typical data visualization for daily user reflection and understanding. Informed by insights from social psychology, providing information regarding one’s behavior (i.e., feedback) should (1) link behavioral data to positively or negatively valued outcomes; (2) show changes in the outcomes over time; and (3) include measures for pursuing different outcomes. Grounded in metaphor and blending theories from embodied cognition, we suggest metaphorically mapping less intuitive behavior-outcome links with more direct cause-effect relations from seemingly unrelated yet familiar domains. A behavior and a comparable scenario are cognitively compressed into an animated parable”. This paper describes the theoretical framework and design guidelines, and reports the development of a blended concept, “incingarette” (cigarette and incinerator), and its prototype. The work-in-progress informs updates on design recommendations. “

WraPr: Spool-Based Fabrication for Object Creation and Modification

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Joanne Leong (MIT, USA)
• Jose Martinez (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA)
• Florian Perteneder (Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan)
• Ken Nakagaki (MIT Media Lab, USA)
• Hiroshi Ishii (MIT, USA)

We propose a novel fabrication method for 3D objects based on the principle of spooling. By wrapping off-the-shelf materials such as thread, ribbon, tape or wire onto a core structure, new objects can be created and existing objects can be augmented with desired aesthetic and functional qualities. Our system, WraPr, enables gesture-based modelling and controlled thread deposition. We outline and explore the design space for this approach. Various examples are fabricated to demonstrate the possibility to attain a range of physical and functional properties. The simplicity of the proposed method opens the grounds for a light-weight fabrication approach for the generation of new structures and the customization of existing objects using soft materials.

Metaphors for Embodied Interaction: Device, Robot, and Friend

Poster based on Work-in-Progress

• Kim Jingoog (University of North Carolina, USA)

Prediction of Impulsive Input on Gamepad Using Force-Sensitive Resistor

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Atsuya Munakata (Keio University, Japan)
• Yuta Sugiura (Keio University, Japan)

In this paper, we propose a method to predict impulsive input on a gamepad. We use a force-sensitive resistor to observe pressure on the gamepad button, and prediction is achieved by simple filtering processes. To evaluate our method, we conducted a user study in which users were encouraged to make impulsive inputs. The results showed that the system predicted an ON event of the button 30.82 ms in advance on average and an OFF event 29.30 ms in advance. Prediction accuracy was 97.87% for predicting ON events and 81.74% for predicting OFF events.

Towards Tangible Interaction in Scraping Therapy

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Casey Walker (Brigham Young University, USA)
• Michael D Jones (Brigham Young University, USA)
• Steven J. Orrock (Orrock/Mendenhall Sports Medicine and Physical Therapy, USA)
• Karen Carter (Orrock/Mendenhall Sports Medicine and Physical Therapy, USA)

This work in progress explores tangible interaction in the context of scraping tools commonly used in physical Therapy. Physical therapy is a health profession which uses mechanical force or motion to improve a person’s mobility and physical motion. We began with an open-ended research through design process that resulted in a scraping tool that gives the PT feedback on applied force using embedded pressure sensors and an ambient light display. At the conference, we will display a prototype interactive scraping tool and several other design artifacts. We invite participants to use the tool on a human calf simulant made from ballistics gel. We hope our work-in-progress will encourage new work exploring tangible interaction and physical therapy.

TMOVE: Multimodal Feedback Actuator for Non-visual Exploration of Virtual Lines

Demo based on Work-in-Progress

• Pranjal Protim Borah (Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, India)
• Ayaskant Panigrahi (Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, India & PDPM Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing Jabalpur, India)
• Keyur Sorathia (Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, India)

Students with visual impairment and blindness learn 3D shapes using physical models, which pose portability issues and high associated costs. Although tactile and kinesthetic feedback systems have been proposed for non-visual exploration of 3D virtual objects, such systems tend to suffer from similar shortcomings. In this research, we propose TMOVE, a low-cost handheld tactile feedback actuator to provide tactile, vibrotactile, and combined feedback for the exploration of virtual space. We conducted a preliminary study with 10 blindfolded sighted participants to compare the perceived 3D experience and the effectiveness of using the feedback modalities in the exploration of two coplanar virtual line segments. We found that all the feedback modalities are equally effective in the exploration of virtual space, and multimodal feedback offers an enhanced 3D perception of virtual objects. We believe the findings presented in this paper will be helpful for designers and researchers in developing low-cost tactile feedback systems.

Level 3 Homebase Studio, Wilkinson Building, University of Sydney campus.