Keytar: Melodic control of multisensory feedback from virtual strings

A multisensory virtual environment has been designed, aiming at recreating a realistic interaction with a set of vibrating strings. Haptic, auditory and visual cues progressively istantiate the environment: force and tactile feedback are provided by a robotic arm reporting for string reaction, string surface properties, and furthermore defining the physical touchpoint in form of a virtual plectrum embodied by the arm stylus. Auditory feedback is instantaneously synthesized as a result of the contacts of this plectrum against the strings, reproducing guitar sounds. A simple visual scenario contextualizes the plectrum in action along with the vibrating strings. Notes and chords are selected using a keyboard controller, in ways that one hand is engaged in the creation of a melody while the other hand plucks virtual strings. Such components have been integrated within the Unity3D simulation environment for game development, and run altogether on a PC. As also declared by a group of users testing a monophonic Keytar prototype with no keyboard control, the most significant contribution to the realism of the strings is given by the haptic feedback, in particular by the textural nuances that the robotic arm synthesizes while reproducing physical attributes of a metal surface. Their opinion, hence, argues in favor of the importance of factors others than auditory feedback for the design of new musical interfaces

Knowledge visualization: From theory to practice

Visualizations have been known as efficient tools that can help users analyze com- plex data. However, understanding the displayed data and finding underlying knowl- edge is still difficult. In this work, a new approach is proposed based on understanding the definition of knowledge. Although there are many definitions used in different ar- eas, this work focuses on representing knowledge as a part of a visualization and showing the benefit of adopting knowledge representation. Specifically, this work be- gins with understanding interaction and reasoning in visual analytics systems, then a new definition of knowledge visualization and its underlying knowledge conversion processes are proposed. The definition of knowledge is differentiated as either explicit or tacit knowledge. Instead of directly representing data, the value of the explicit knowledge associated with the data is determined based on a cost/benefit analysis. In accordance to its importance, the knowledge is displayed to help the user under- stand the complex data through visual analytical reasoning and discovery

Designing Haptic Clues for Touchscreen Kiosks

Most interactive touchscreen kiosks are a challenge to accessibility: if graphics and sound fail in communication, the interaction process halts. In such a case, turning to the only remaining environmentally suited sense - the touch - is an intuitive option. To reinforce the interaction with interactive touchscreen kiosks it is possible to add haptic (touchable) feedback into the features of the device. The range of touchscreen-suited haptic technologies already enables some touch feedback from touchscreen surfaces and significant leaps still forward are being made at a constant rate. Due to this development it is relevant to review the human-centred factors affecting the design of haptic touchscreen in public kiosks. This thesis offers an overview for designing haptic clues for touchscreen kiosks. It emphasizes context sensitivity and the meaningfulness and communicability of different haptic design variants. As the main contribution, this thesis collects together the important considerations for the conscious design of haptic features in interactive kiosks and offers points of multimodal design considerations for designers intending to enrich their touchscreen interaction with haptic features