Advanced Techniques for Everyday Embodied Interaction

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The next generation of digital technology is shaping far beyond gadgets, dongles and distinct `smart devices'. Technologies rising today -ranging from Internet of Things (IoT) and Cloud Computing to Artificial Intelligence- will hide ubiquitously within the built environment, furniture and our everyday objects in the near future. The impact of this research is creating the next curve where innovation will not be bound by rigid displays on our desks, vehicle dashboards or wristwatches. Instead, digital capabilities can be embedded/embodied in interior spaces and products seamlessly within their woodwork, fabric membranes or construction layers. This does not only require engineering interactive elements but also reinventing electronic components and materials. Everyday objects can be capable of displaying information by dynamically changing their appearance in response to user interaction. The field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) explores the design of innovative user interfaces that supports embedded interaction. But unlike focus-demanding technology that uses typical rigid sensors, emissive displays, screen projection and motors, this program proposes that interactive elements can be integrated in the physical materiality. Objects can detect user input using embodied crafted sensors (using conductive materials), and respond with crafted actuators (using shape-changing wires, colour-changing pigments or woven audio-haptic speakers). The proposed research program aims to engineer and design interactive spaces (including smart homes, classrooms and workplaces), surfaces (such as interactive walls, floors, and ceilings) and objects (such as interactive furniture, tableware, and soft furnishing) that can support people's well-being and meet user needs. For example, we plan to explore the potentials of engaging remote students in classroom synchronous activities; explore digital living opportunities (away from smart phones) in senior homes; engage people with disabilities and marginalized groups in co-designing ubiquitous technology; and invent new fabrication methods to achieve these goals. This research program is timely and contributive to the vision of how future technology will be interwoven with our real-world spaces and augment the embodied human experience. Aside from lab experiments, and through real-world deployments, we will adopt in-the-wild situated studies -placing interactive objects back in the hands of users- to gain deeper insights and better understanding of how people will perceive, interact with and experience future embedded technologies. I expect that 2 PhD students, 3 Master's students, and 4 undergraduate students will acquire training through this program; preparing them for the high demand areas of Interaction Design, Assistive Technology and Digital Fabrication in both academia and industry. Examples of Canadian companies include: Blackberry, AutoDesk, Electronic Arts, Technicolor, Astound, Unity and Maker Labs.