Research on freehand drawing environments to support creative activities

本研究的目的是支持利用计算机在创造性活动的较高阶段绘制图表。我们的目标是开发一个具有以下特点的交互系统，以实现对计算机的功能支持和对情感和印象方面的考虑。(1)该工具的主要处理对象是具有逻辑结构的图表。(2)该工具提供了手绘素描界面。(3)保持了手工作画的手感和模糊性。(4)支持智能化、主动性绘图。我们开发了用于手绘环境和创造性活动支持环境的基本技术。此外，我们还进行了作为手绘环境的应用程序的开发。我们认为回顾对于创造性活动很重要，所以我们考虑了对具有历史数据的图的逻辑结构的操作，并开发了一个具有这种操作的工具。我们还认为，计算机提供灵活的输入接口作为手写输入接口是很重要的。为此，我们开发了一个以手写笔画为输入数据和手势命令的记事本工具。此外，我们开发了一种安装了加速度计的手写笔，因为使用作为手绘输入设备的顺序手写笔并不一定容易。这种新型的触控笔使我们能够利用手在空中的运动与电脑互动。作为一些基本技术的应用程序，我们开发了一个电子白板系统。黑板写字是课堂创作活动的重要场景之一，我们开发了一个支持黑板写字再利用的环境。

The purpose of this research is to support, drawing diagrams in the upper stages of creative activities by using computers. We aimed at developing an interactive system with the following features to realize both functional support with the computer and consideration to the aspect of the feelings and impressions. (1) The main processing objects of the tool are diagrams with logical structures. (2) The tool provides a freehand sketching interface. (3) The tool maintains the feel and ambiguity of drawing done by hand. (4) The tool supports drawing intellectually and actively. We developed fundamental techniques for freehand drawing environments and creative activity supporting environments. Furthermore, we performed the development of the application program as a freehand drawing environment. We thought that looking back was important on creative activities, so we considered operations of logical structures of diagrams with historical data, and then developed a tool with such the operations. We also thought that it was important that computers offered flexible input interface as a freehand input interface. Therefore we developed a note pad tool which took freehand strokes as input data and gesture commands. Furthermore, we developed a stylus installed accelerometers because it is not necessarily easy to use the ordinal stylus which spread as an input device for freehand drawings. The new style of stylus enables us to use hand motions in the air for interactions with computers. As an application program of some fundamental techniques we developed an electronic whiteboard system. Writing on the blackboard in the classroom is one of the important scenes of creative activities, We developed an environment that supported reuse of writing on the blackboard.