Project Proposal

For my project I will be working with Athena and Sasha. We wanted to make a TUI that deals with the visualization of music and after some brainstorming we decided to make a wearable electronic hoodie that the user can plug her phone or ipod into and listen to her music using the attached speakers or earbuds in the hood.

Often when people listen to music in public they are cut off from communicating with the rest of the world by their earbuds. Some may want to share the music that they are listening to, but cannot because the music may be disruptive to those around them. By creating a lit visualization of the music that they are listening to on their hoodie, they are able to unobtrusively communicate with other's about the music they are listening to  during everyday situations, such as when they are traveling or running errands. The hoodie could also be worn in social setting as a portable speaker and a way to add visual interest to the music.

We want to create a very visually engaging project, because we are all very involved in visual art classes. I am also interested in learning about soft circuits and wearable electronics, because I have always loved crafts such as sewing, embroidery, knitting and crocheting. I think that this project will be a good use of the skills that we already have, while also allowing us to learn things that will build on them.

Evaluating FluidPaint Using the TAC Paradigm and the Reality Based Interaction Conceptual Frameworks

FluidPaint is a user interface that allows users to create digital paintings using real wet brushes that would be used by a traditional painter on a digital canvas.

The TAC Paradigm is a conceptual framework used to evaluate TUIs based on tokens and constraints. A token is a physical object that a user can use to manipulate digital information. Tokens are often used to update variables. A constraint is a limit on how the user can manipulate the token. A TAC is the relationship between a token, and its variables and constraints.

FluidPaint is representative of the tokens and constraints and interactive surfaces categories of tangible user interfaces. The tokens in FluidPaint are the brushes that the users can manipulate to create realistic painting effects. Similar tokens are fingers or tissues that the user can also use to digitally paint. The variables associated with the these tokens are location, speed, pressure and wetness of the brushes.  The constraints are the dimension of the digital canvas, which the user must paint within, and the fact that the token the user uses to paint must be wet.

TUIs can also be evaluated using the Reality Based Interaction (RBI) framework. The RBI framework compares a TUI's interface to real world interactions based on the user's knowledge and understanding of Naive Physics, Body Awareness and Skills, Environmental Awareness and Skills, and Social Awareness and Skills. The RBI Framework also describes tradeoff associated with TUIs including expressive power, efficiency, versatility, ergonomics, accessibility and practicality.

FluidPaint takes advantage of the user's environmental awareness skills and body awareness and skills because the user can judge the location of the brush to apply digital paint directly where she places the brush. FluidPaint also takes advantage of the user's body awareness and understanding of naive physics when she judges the amount of water on the brush and adjusts the speed and pressure of the brush based on the effect she would like to achieve with her digital paint. FluidPaint has an efficiency trade off because in order for the image to display at a rate of 25 frames per second, the image resolution can only be 70 dpi. Therefore efficiency of the displaying the image is prioritized at the expense of image resolution. However, in user testing the participants did not find this to be a major problem.

Sources:

1.Jacob, Robert J.K., Audrey Girouard, Leanne M. Hirshfield, Michael S. Horn, Orit Shaer, Erin Traecy Solovey, and Jamie Zigelbaum. "Reality-Based Interaction: A Framework for Post-WIMP Interfaces." CHI (2008).

 

2.Shaer, Orit, Nancy Leland, Eduardoh. Calvillo-Gamez, and Robertj.k. Jacob. "The TAC Paradigm: Specifying Tangible User Interfaces." Personal and Ubiquitous Computing 8.5 (2004).

 

3.Vandoren,, Peter, Luc Claesen, Tom Van Laerhoven, Johannes Taelman, Chris Raymaekers, Eddy Flerackers, and Frank Van Reeth. "FluidPaint: An Interactive Digital Painting System Using Real Wet Brushes." The ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces (2009).