Haptic Reassurance in the Pitch Black for an Immersive Theatre Experience

An immersive theatre experience was designed to raise awareness and question perceptions of ‘blindness’, through enabling both sighted and blind members to experience a similar reality. A multimodal experience was created, comprising ambient sounds and narratives – heard through headphones – and an assortment of themed tactile objects, intended to be felt. In addition, audience members were each provided with a novel haptic device that was designed to enhance their discovery of a pitch-black space. An in the wild study of the cultural experience showed how blind and sighted audience members had different ‘felt’ experiences, but that neither was a lesser one. Furthermore, the haptic device was found to encourage enactive exploration and provide reassurance of the environment for both sighted and blind people, rather than acting simply as a navigation guide. We discuss the potential of using haptic feedback to create cultural experiences for both blind and sighted people; rethinking current utilitarian framing of it as assistive technology

Weaving Lighthouses and Stitching Stories: Blind and Visually Impaired People Designing E-textiles

We describe our experience of working with blind and visually impaired people to create interactive art objects that are personal to them, through a participatory making process using electronic textiles (e-textiles) and hands-on crafting techniques. The research addresses both the practical considerations about how to structure hands-on making workshops in a way which is accessible to participants of varying experience and abilities, and how effective the approach was in enabling participants to tell their own stories and feel in control of the design and making process. The results of our analysis is the offering of insights in how to run e-textile making sessions in such a way for them to be more accessible and inclusive to a wider community of participants

First validation of the Haptic Sandwich: a shape changing handheld haptic navigation aid

This paper presents the Haptic Sandwich, a handheld robotic device that designed to provide pedestrian navigation instructions through a novel shape changing modality. The device resembles a cube with an articulated upper half that is able to rotate and translate (extend) relative to the bottom half, which is grounded in the user’s hand when the device is held. The poses assumed by the device simultaneously correspond to heading and proximity to a navigational target. The Haptic Sandwich provides an alternative to screen and/or audio based pedestrian navigation technologies for both visually impaired and sighted users. Unlike other robotic or haptic navigational solutions, the haptic sandwich is discrete in terms of form and sensory stimulus. Due to the novel and unexplored nature of shape changing interfaces, two user studies were undertaken to validate the concept and device. In the first experiment, stationary participants attempted to identify poses assumed by the device, which was hidden from view. In the second experiment, participants attempted to locate a sequence of invisible navigational targets while walking with the device. Of 1080 pose presentations to 10 individuals in experiment one, 80% were correctly identified and 17.5% had the minimal possible error. Multi-DOF errors accounted for only 1.1% of all answers. The role of simultaneous or independent actuator motion on final shape perception was tested with no significant performance difference. The rotation and extension DOF had significantly different perception accuracy. In the second experiment, participants demonstrated good navigational ability with the device after minimal training and were able to locate all presented targets. Mean motion efficiency of the participants was between 32%-56%. Participants made use of both DOF

Control and Being Controlled: Exploring the use of Technology in an Immersive Theatre Performance

Immersive theatre is a growing trend within theatre entertainment: audience members can now wander around performances and choose how the story unfolds in front of them. Technology can be used to create novel, multi-modal experiences for audiences in these performances; but when the rules of such an experience are ill-defined, how do users react to this technology? We present an evaluation of 25 performances of an immersive, in the dark performance. Issues of control can arise in situations where technology becomes an important part of such a performance. Participants take and relinquish control in three key areas: navigation, exploration and attention during the performance, and this affects their perception of both technology and the piece itself. We discuss how technology can play a positive role in immersive theatre and other cultural settings, yet its use must be carefully choreographed to ensure the audience experience matches the intended goal

Testing a Shape-Changing Haptic Navigation Device With Vision-Impaired and Sighted Audiences in an Immersive Theater Setting

Flatland was an immersive “in-the-wild” experimental theater and technology project, undertaken with the goal of developing systems that could assist “real-world” pedestrian navigation for both vision-impaired (VI) and sighted individuals, while also exploring inclusive and equivalent cultural experiences for VI and sighted audiences. A novel shape-changing handheld haptic navigation device, the “Animotus,” was developed. The device has the ability to modify its form in the user's grasp to communicate heading and proximity to navigational targets. Flatland provided a unique opportunity to comparatively study the use of novel navigation devices with a large group of individuals (79 sighted, 15 VI) who were primarily attending a theater production rather than an experimental study. In this paper, we present our findings on comparing the navigation performance (measured in terms of efficiency, average pace, and time facing targets) and opinions of VI and sighted users of the Animotus as they negotiated the 112 m2 production environment. Differences in navigation performance were nonsignificant across VI and sighted individuals and a similar range of opinions on device function and engagement spanned both groups. We believe more structured device familiarization, particularly for VI users, could improve performance and incorrect technology expectations (such as obstacle avoidance capability), which influenced overall opinion. This paper is intended to aid the development of future inclusive technologies and cultural experiences

A survey of the trajectories conceptual framework: investigating theory use in HCI

We present a case study of how Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) theory is reused within the field. We analyze the HCI literature in order to reveal the impact of one particular theory, the trajectories framework that has been cited as an example of both contemporary HCI theory and a strong concept that sits between theory and design practice. Our analysis of 60 papers that seriously engaged with trajectories reveals the purposes that the framework served and which parts of it they used. We compare our findings to the originally stated goals of trajectories and to subsequent claims of its status as both theory and strong concept. The results shed new light on what we mean by theory in HCI, including its relationship to practice and to other disciplines

Immersive event experience and attendee motivation: a quantitative analysis using sensory, localisation, and participatory factors

‘Immersive events' is a growing category within the range of event typologies that includes participatory theatre, interactive launch parties, ‘escape rooms’ and dress-up cinema. A conceptual model reflects three core elements of the immersive events: Interaction, Sensory experience, and Localisation. A targeted online survey obtained a sample of n = 201 participants who had attended an immersive event within the past year. The results reveal that novelty and entertainment are highly important to attendee motivation. Gender, marital status, age, and education affected attendance patterns. Attendees were drawn to the uniqueness and participatory aspects of the immersive event. Deterrents to attendance were cost and perceived value. Rapid developments in digital technology suggest even greater degrees of immersivity on the horizon. These findings offer a timely contribution to the better understanding of the immersiveness concept, and its influence on attendee motivation and experience

A Picture of Present Ubicomp Research Exploring Publications from Important Events in the Field

In this work we use a dataset of papers published in top conferences focused on ubiquitous computing (ubicomp) to provide an overview and analysis of recent ubiquitous computing research performed internationally and in Brazil. The contributions of this study are twofold. First, we extracted useful information from our dataset such as representativeness of authors and institutions, and the formation of communities. Second, we analyzed all papers published between 2010 and 2011 in all top international conferences, creating a taxonomy of recent ubicomp research performed internationally. Afterthat we mapped SBCUP papers (Brazilian ubicomp conference) according to this taxonomy, which enables the comparison of international and national research. This study is useful to guide novices in the field and it also provides experienced researchers with facts enabling the discussion of ubicomp research.Key words: Ubiquitous computing, scientific network, collaboration network, Pervasive, Percom, Ubicomp, SBCUP, taxonomy, characterization

From Inclusive Theatre to Inclusive Technologies: Lessons Learnt From Co-designing Touch Tours With an Inclusive Theatre Group

The HCI community has attempted to understand the role theatre can play in systems design, but the ways inclusive design methodologies could benefit from inclusive theatre are underexamined. To better understand inclusive theatre practices for technology design, we worked with the first professional inclusive theatre ensemble in Greece, which faced difficulties due to social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this paper, we attempt to better understand inclusion within such theatre practices through the co-designing of a prototype digital system for Touch Tours, an experience through touch service. We conducted a series of research through design activities with the group, building on eighteen months of ethnographic research. Our goal was to develop a service based on their practices. We contribute design implications for inclusive services, with respect to equity in experience, which enhance the activistic character of the movement, and HCI research concerned with developing technologies that support inclusion

Conception, développement et validation expérimentale d'une boussole haptique

Ce mémoire présente la conception, le contrôle et la validation expérimentale d’une boussole haptique servant à diriger les utilisateurs aux prises avec une déficience visuelle, et ce, dans tous les environnements. La revue de littérature décrit le besoin pour un guidage haptique et permet de mettre en perspective cette technologie dans le marché actuel. La boussole proposée utilise le principe de couples asymétriques. Son design est basé sur une architecture de moteur à entraînement direct et un contrôle en boucle ouverte étalonné au préalable. Cette conception permet d’atteindre une vaste plage de fréquences pour la rétroaction haptique. Les propriétés mécaniques de l’assemblage sont évaluées. Puis, l’étalonnage des couples permet d’assurer que le contrôle en boucle ouverte produit des couples avec une précision suffisante. Un premier test avec des utilisateurs a permis d’identifier que les paramètres de fréquence entre 5 et 15 Hz combinés avec des couples au-delà de 40 mNm permettent d’atteindre une efficacité intéressante pour la tâche. L’expérience suivante démontre qu’utiliser une rétroaction haptique proportionnelle à l’erreur d’orientation améliore significativement les performances. Le concept est ensuite éprouvé avec dix-neuf sujets qui doivent se diriger sur un parcours avec l’aide seule de cette boussole haptique. Les résultats montrent que tous les sujets ont réussi à rencontrer tous les objectifs de la route, tout en maintenant des déviations latérales relativement faibles (0:39 m en moyenne). Les performances obtenues et les impressions des utilisateurs sont prometteuses et plaident en faveur de ce dispositif. Pour terminer, un modèle simplifié du comportement d’un individu pour la tâche d’orientation est développé et démontre l’importance de la personnalisation de l’appareil. Ce modèle est ensuite utilisé pour mettre en valeur la stratégie d’horizon défilant pour le placement de la cible intermédiaire actuelle dans un parcours sur une longue distance.This Master’s thesis presents the design, control and experimental validation of a haptic compass, designed as a guiding device for the visually impaired in all environments. The literature review shows that there is a need for haptic guidance and how this technology differs from current haptic devices. The proposed device uses the principle of asymmetric torques. Its design is based on a direct drive motor and a pre-calibrated open-loop control, which allows the generation of stimuli in a wide range of frequencies. The device is calibrated and its mechanical properties are evaluated to ensure that the open-loop control provides sufficient precision. A first user study presents interesting effectiveness in the frequency range 5 to 15 Hz and for torques over 40 mNm. In a second experiment, the use of a haptic feedback proportional to the anglular error is shown to significantly improve the results. An experimental validation by a group of subjects walking with the aid of the portable device in an open environment is then reported. The results show that all participants met all route objectives with small lateral deviations (0:39 m on average). The performances obtained and the user’s impressions are favorable and confirm the potential of this device. Finally, a model of the human orientation task is developed and demonstrates the importance of individual customization. A receding horizon strategy for the placement of the current target on the path is thereby proposed