Problems and Opportunities of Interdisciplinary Work involving Users in Speculative Research for Innovation of Novel ICT Applications

In this article we focus upon some challenges of multidisciplinary teams working interdisciplinary in research for innovation of novel ICT applications. We start by defining some general challenges of especially social scientists when working interdisciplinary. The formulated challenges are grounded in our personal experiences. In the next part of the article we focus upon research methods that are used when involving users in the research of novel ICT applications. We shortly describe the different methods and the value they have for social scientists, designers, marketing people and engineers. In the latest part of the article we argument why, from our opinion, using this speculative research methods involving users can help facilitating interdisciplinary work

Digital manufacturing: what are we able to print?

In a rational exercise, in the present paper it is extrapolated how the development of ICTs (information and communication technologies) and the incipient technological development of additive manufacturing has the potential to change our society. In the following, it is analyzing the evolution of man over physical matter and how this has shaped our society. The main milestones or key stages in history that have marked a transcendental change in the human-machine-environment relationship have been identified and consequently have led us to ask ourselves: What is next, how far are we, and what are we capable of printing? In an attempt to identify the current state of the art, highlighting the possibilities those additive technologies can offerPostprint (published version

Haptic Experience and the Design of Drawing Interfaces

Haptic feedback has the potential to enhance users’ sense of being engaged and creative in their artwork. Current work on providing haptic feedback in computer-based drawing applications has focused mainly on the realism of the haptic sensation rather than the users’ experience of that sensation in the context of their creative work. We present a study that focuses on user experience of three haptic drawing interfaces. These interfaces were based on two different haptic metaphors, one of which mimicked familiar drawing tools (such as pen, pencil or crayon on smooth or rough paper) and the other of which drew on abstract descriptors of haptic experience (roughness, stickiness, scratchiness and smoothness). It was found that users valued having control over the haptic sensation; that each metaphor was preferred by approximately half of the participants; and that the real world metaphor interface was considered more helpful than the abstract one, whereas the abstract interface was considered to better support creativity. This suggests that future interfaces for artistic work should have user-modifiable interaction styles for controlling the haptic sensation

Beyond representations: towards an action-centric perspective on tangible interaction

In the light of theoretical as well as concrete technical development, we discuss a conceptual shift from an information-centric to an action-centric perspective on tangible interactive technology. We explicitly emphasise the qualities of shareable use, and the importance of designing tangibles that allow for meaningful manipulation and control of the digital material. This involves a broadened focus from studying properties of the interface, to instead aim for qualities of the activity of using a system, a general tendency towards designing for social and sharable use settings and an increased openness towards multiple and subjective interpretations. An effect of this is that tangibles are not designed as representations of data, but as resources for action. We discuss four ways that tangible artefacts work as resources for action: (1) for physical manipulation; (2) for referential, social and contextually oriented action; (3) for perception and sensory experience; (4) for digitally mediated action

Aircraft conceptual design by collaborative manual and automatic agents

In real applications, it is extremely difficult (if not impossible) to define function(s) that measure the `true merit' of a design object. For example, even the most prominent aircraft designers would not dare to claim that a particular set of merit and constraint functions measures the `true merit' of a class of aircraft. The traditional approach to set up a `machine centric' optimization cannot effectively address this issue because there is no user interaction with the numerical optimization at design or run time. The semi-automatic concept, however, can help because the user is allowed to interact with the design problem and the design progress in-the-loop, such that the design criteria can be improved relatively easily at design time. This paper briefly describes the semi-automatic design optimization setup which was introduced in full detail in a previous paper by the author. A simple multidisciplinary aircraft conceptual design optimization problem is then specified based on Torenbeek (1992). Various modes of in-the-loop user control on the search progress and the search problem then illustrate the potential benefits of allowing the user to interact with a numerical agent at various levels of automation