Jiangnan Xu
HCI Researcher + PhD Student + Designer
"Blow A Digital Dandelion":
Tangible Interactions in Hybrid Space
Timeline
2019.10-12: Ideation
2020.01-04: Prototyping
2020.05-06: Evaluation
Role
Product Designer
Collaborate with: 1 programmer, 1 3D printing expertise.
Methodology
Double Diomand Model,
Research through Design
Only swipe? No, we can blow.
Project Overview
Since we entered the digital era, there have been some complaints about the transformation from the physical world to cyberspace, and everything can be done online: shopping, learning, meeting, gaming, etc. With the emergence of VR and AR, physical and digital reality boundaries have been further blurred. To this end, I reflected on what makes physical reality physical.
Typing and swiping are the most common interactions between humans and machines in digital space, whereas, in real life, we have many more ways to interact with our surroundings. For instance, we use our mouths to blow things (dandelions, balloons, windmills, and bubbles), usually for fun. Can we blow a digital dandelion, bridging the physical and virtual space? How will we interact with objects in the hybrid space (blending physical and virtual space)?
Workflow
1. Discover: literature review and background studying.
2. Define: refined my research questions.
3. Develop: designed and implemented the installation.
4. Deliver: iterated the installation and evaluated in user testing.
Tools
Media: Cinema 4D
Programming: Arduino
Installation: Rhino+3D printing
Programming and Testing
Interaction Scenario Ideation Sketch Rendering
Cinema 4D rendered interactive dandelion
Cinema 4D rendered interactive Bubble
Cinema 4D rendered frames: windmill, dandelion, balloon, bubble.
User Scenario
Reflection and Future Works
I still feel happy about my design and remember how users like the novel experience.
However, if I could go back, I wish I could dive deeper into the UX research part! I want to have interviews/focus groups with users to understand their feelings, behaviors, and expectations.